These delicate members of the Saxifrage family prefer the banks of a woodland stream; these were blooming in Bird Park, Mount Lebanon.
For a description of the species, see the Tiarella cordifolia reference page.
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Foamflower (Tiarella cordifolia)
Photographed May 2. -
Bugles (Ajuga reptans)
Photographed May 2 with a Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z6. A European import prized as a groundcover, and now a thoroughly naturalized citizen of our flora. These were blooming in Bird Park, Mount Lebanon.
For a description of the species, see the Ajuga reptans reference page.
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Blue Phlox (Phlox divaricata)
Photographed May 2 with a Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z6. Much treasured as a garden flower, this native perennial is abundant in some of our wooded parks. Here we see a large patch in Bird Park, Mount Lebanon.
Sometimes a white or nearly white form appears; the range of shades is continuous from deeper blue to almost pure white.
Photographed May 2 with a Canon PowerShot SX150 IS. For a description of the species, see the Phlox divaricata reference page.
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Solomon’s Seal (Polygonatum pubescens)
These charming little green bells are usually invisible from human level; you have to get down to plant level and gently lift up the leaves, and there they are.
Photographed April 30 with a Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z6. The leaves seem to provide an ideal lurking place for tiny spiders. The pictures above were taken in the Kane Woods Nature Area in Scott Township; the one below was taken in Fox Chapel.
Photographed April 29. For a description of the species, see the Polygonatum pubescens reference page. Note that there are two very similar species of Polygonatum in our area, treated by some botanists as indistinguishable; if any botanically inclined readers believe that these plants are P. biflora rather than P. pubescens, corrections are always welcome.
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Wild Geranium (Geranium maculatum)
Frequently found in our woodlands, these are also called Cranesbills, because of the distinctive seedpods that look like the head of a long-billed bird.
The “bill” is an ingenious spring-loaded mechanism that, when the pod dries, suddenly releases and flings the seeds into the air with amazing force.
The five-petaled flowers come in shades of pink ranging from lavender to deep rose.
Photographed April 30 with a Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z6. These plants were blooming in the Kane Woods Nature Area in Scott Township.
For a description of the species, see the Geranium maculatum reference page.
