Orchid Family May 13, 2007 I was hoping to get an orchid for Mother's Day and I finally found this one! Unfortunately, the 2 plants that I had driven 75 miles to photograph (that had been in bud 2 weeks earlier) had been dug by plant poachers! I was furious! It is a shame that some people are so selfish. Removing plants from the Smokies is also against the law. Fortunately, I found this one growing in another location (in the middle of a bed of poison ivy!). This is a pretty poor representation of the flowers, but it was all I could find! I hope the plant is able to make seeds and start some new orchids. Unfortunately, it takes up to 7 years for an orchid to grow big enough to bloom, so I may have to wait for a while! :( Where seen: Great Smoky Mountains N P
Honeysuckle Oak Ridge, TN Haw Ridge April 22, 2009 I was excited to find this new plant(to me) along the trail at Haw Ridge on Earth Day. As I was laying on the ground focusing on the flowers, oblivious to everything around me, a woman and her huge dog came up the trail. When the dog saw me, he barked and I just about jumped out of my skin! The following photo shows a close-up of the flower.
Buttercup Family The unusual blue fruits of this wildflower look like small blue lightbulbs in the fall. It is in the Buttercup family. It is very common on the Panther Branch trail in Frozen Head State Park. It blooms in April. Perennial Where seen:Frozen Head SP, Haw Ridge Greenway, Great Smoky Mountains NP, Warriors' Path SP, Ijams Nature Center, Piney River SNA
