Broomrape Family April 3, 2005 This leafless plant is a parasite on the roots of trees, often on oaks. I call it "Bears' Ex-Lax" because it is eaten by bears in the spring as a type of "laxative" to clean them out after spending the winter sleeping. There is a huge area of these strange flowers at Norris Dam State Park, however, there are no bears there to eat them! Perennial Where seen:University of Tennessee Arboretum, Haw Ridge Greenway, Frozen Head SP, Great Smoky Mountains NP, Warriors' Path SP
Violet Family April 15, 2005 This is a very early blooming (March) stemless yellow violet I found growing at Frozen Head State Park. This park has 11 species of violets. Perennial Where seen:Frozen Head SP, Haw Ridge Greenway, Great Smoky Mountains NP, Warriors'Path SP
Violet Family Halberd-leaf Violet has silvery patches on the leaves. It is easy to identify even without the pretty yellow flowers. This is a "stemmed" violet, the flower stem arises from the plant stem instead of the from the roots like the "stemless" violets. The nectar guides are easy to see on this flower. Frozen Head State Park has large numbers of these flowers. Perennial Where seen:Great Smoky Mountains NP, Big South Fork NRRA, Frozen Head SP, Piney River Trail, Ijams Nature Center
