This time we walked to the southern bridge in the park and followed along the creekside trail. There were many oohs and ahs from my wildflowering buddy - my sister Marie, and me. We spent 5 hours at Aman admiring everything.
We saw several different types of violets, all so pretty in their own way.
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Many trees were flowering, below is the creamy white flower of Flowering Dogwood.
The Paw Paw trees had fuzzy buds...there are numerous Paw Paw trees at this park.
Buttercups have shiny yellow flower petals...
For the first time this year, we saw Wild Geranium blooming...
Just a few Dicentra, 
I know dandelions are known as nasty little invaders but how can you not think they are pretty?
A lovely group of Large-flowered Bellwort, these are at the northern bridge in Aman.
Spring Beauty were everywhere, at times making the forest floor look pinkish-white.
We saw a few trillium that had various abnormalities...
We found many other wildflowers blooming but after 5 hours at Aman we moved on to Grand River Park.
In a field 500 feet from the Grand River we saw signs of how high the flood waters had been. See the red arrows pointing at the debris caught in the trees, the debris was more than 4 feet off the ground!
Marsh Marigold
Wow!! We went hiking yesterday and i was excited to take pictures of the wildflowers and i did not get one picture . the flowers are way behind yours and i cant wait for the spring show!!! Thanks for posting.
ReplyDeleteHey Flowerdave, I hope you enjoyed your hike even if the flowers weren't out yet. Maybe you could find Jack-in-the-Pulpit or Marsh Marigold near the river you visit? We had a few days in the 80's then things popped out.
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It's hard to believe that you went to Aman Park just two days after I did, and there were even more flowers open than when I was there.
ReplyDeleteThings really popped out fast, that's for sure.
DeleteOn the way home, at Millhouse Bayou, we saw a Great Egret!
:)
I can't get over how amazing these places are that you get to see. I've seen white trillium with green stripes-they're actually quite common-but the doubled, all green one is really unusual. The violets in the first photo of them are unusual too-I've never seen anything like them. One thing missing here this year are jack in the pulpits. I've only seen two and they were tiny. Thanks for the great photos and for showing us around!
ReplyDeleteThe multiple green trillium is unusual, although I went back to Aman Park three days later and saw four of the multiple green trillium! They were quite near one another. I found this posted on a website, "The large-flowering trillium occasionally produce "quadrilliums" with four leaves, four sepals, and four petals. Finding one is like finding a four-leaf clover".
DeleteI haven't seen the violets with purple splotches before...maybe a certain gardener from New Hampshire might know? The Jack-in-the-pulpit were slow to be seen this year.
Glad you enjoyed Aman Park Allen.
:)
That's pretty lucky to find 4 of those trilliums. I haven't been able to ID that violet, but if I lived near it I'd collect a few seed pods and try to grow it in my yard. It's a beauty and it could be a natural hybrid like the trilliums are. Thanks for the information on the trilliums!
DeleteYou're welcome, if I knew when to collect the seeds and I happened to find those violets again, I could gather the seeds. I would have to mark them soon, in some way, to get the correct seeds. It's an idea, I might just try that, thanks Allen. If I ever get some growing I'll send you some seeds okay?
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That would be great. Violets put out millions of seeds but you're right-you have to be there at the right time to collect them. I'd watch the ones in my own yard to get an idea of when they're setting seed.
ReplyDeleteThat's great advice I'll keep my eye on the violets here, Aman is only 25 miles to the east.
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I've been to Aman park many times but I've never seen so much. I've long been focused more on "doing" something rather than looking and enjoying. When I was at Aman I was mountain biking or xc skiing. I think I am gradually changing more to "looking" but I am still very much about "doing". For me, the hike is the thing, followed by the scenery and plants etc. But I understand your (and M's) wildflowering & rambling "passion". To find something like that, something you love to do, is a rare thing. Often once I find one of those rare things I am not able to do it every day or every week. I don't want to say you're "lucky" to have this all so close to home, and to be able to go and see it every week. But maybe lucky you are to be able to enjoy it all so much.
ReplyDeletestratovolcano, you are definitely a "doer" and I am a "looker", only pertaining to doing and looking of course. Aunt Marie and I do enjoy rambling, just enjoying the day. We consider ourselves lucky to be able to go out each week, and we hope it lasts.
DeleteI love the first picture of the spring beauty! Wow!
ReplyDeleteThanks Anonymous, we saw Spring Beauty that were totally white and some that were deep pink, some that were white with dark pink stripes.
DeleteThese are Virginia spring-beauty (Claytonia virginica), a bit farther north in Michigan you can also find Carolina spring-beauty (Claytonia caroliniana).
:)
I love Aman Park! Back when I was a boy, which is now several decades ago, there was a small sphagnum bog remnant north of the lake, with pitcher plants, sundews, pink ladyslippers, and white fringed orchids. I was told that at one time, the bog was absolutely thick with the orchids, but by the time I became acquainted with the place, it had become mostly wooded, with just a narrow strip of sphagnum. I found one straggler white fringed orchid there, the only one I have ever seen.
ReplyDeleteThe bog is long since overgrown. I've been there since and found nothing to suggest that anything like a bog ever existed there. But I remember it well. I only wish I had seen it when it was still an open bog--it must have been quite the place.
Storm -Bob, Aman Park is great, a favorite of mine too! You always have such tasty bits of information about where to find the plants! What an interesting recollection about the bog at the lake. A few years ago, Marie and I actually walk out through the woods in that general direction. There were many trees down and it was difficult to get through, hm, now I can't remember what we found or how close to the lake we walked. So now there is no sign of a bog at all?
ReplyDeleteI thought I read somewhere that near the entrance, right by the road that there was a bog in that area? We did check that out too but the wet area was quite overgrown with trees.
I always appreciate the tips you give me on finding exciting plants, I tried to leave a comment on your blog but wasn't able to for so reason. Thanks for visiting my blog. I need to get working on it again. Before you know it will be spring and we will be out looking for those harbingers of spring! :)