I like to learn about the local plants before I visit a new area of the country. As an elementary school science teacher and science outreach instructor for the American Museum of Science and Energy in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, I enjoy passing along my love of nature to others. This website is designed to help local residents and visitors share my enthusiasm for the wildflowers that decorate the hills, mountains, and valleys of east Tennessee (see Tennessee Geology and Topography on site map). I am not a formally trained botanist, but I try to be as correct in identifying the plants as possible.