May 2019 Sica Hollow State Park
Sica Hollow State Park is such a treasure and it is my escape when I need to be in the woods. With a rainy weekend coming up, I decided to make a very quick evening trip after work. I'm not sure I'll be able to make it back until June. I am super glad I was able to make this happen.
There were more wildflowers than I expected to see, however, I couldn't spot a Pasqueflower. With the goofy spring weather this year, I don't know if I missed them or if they are still around. There is one spot right on the edge of the trail that I've almost always spotted a clump when I've gone looking in the past. The plant is there, but no sign of buds, blooms or fruit. So, I am a little mystified.
First off is the Nodding Trillium. If you aren't watching you could walk right by this bloom as it hides under the leaves.
I almost always find Violets in the park in all shades from purples to white. Although, I find it challenging to identify specific members of the species, my best guess on this one is the Common Blue Violet
Here is another Violet, this time it is the Canadian White Violet
Here's another flower bloom that hides under the leaves. This is the Large-flowered Bellwort.
A little tighter shot to give you some additional detail
Large-flowered Bellwort Detail
One of the flowers I was specifically looking for was the Bloodroot. BUT, before I found that, I came across another white flower that is somewhat similar. This is the Wood Anemone.
Many of the Bloodroot are just starting to appear. Here is one unfolding its leaves.
BloodrootBrand new Bloodroot unfolding
Here's one fully open!
Here is a really tiny bloom that is very easy to walk by. I wonder how many I missed before I spotted this Dutchman's Breeches?
Here is one more example of a hard to find bloom, if you don't know where to look. This bloom is straight out of a science fiction movie and is found under the leaves very close to the ground. This is the Canadian Wild Ginger.
Getting down in the low wetlands in Sica Hollow, I was excited to see large swathes of Marsh Marigolds. When the light hits them trough the trees it almost glows. They can actually be quite hard to photograph properly. It usually takes me quite a few frames to photograph one that I like.
Here is something else found in the damp areas. This is Jack-in-the-pulpit. The green coloring can make this one hard to spot amongst all the other green plants low to the ground.
Found this next flower off the edge or the road as I travelled to the top of the hill to look for some prairie flowers. This is the Cutleaf Toothwort.
In the prairie grass, I saw a flash of pink and purple. I recognized this as something in pea family. My best gues on this one is Ground Plum. This is a macro photograph to capture the awesome details.
With the sunset and a strom coming in over the hills, I decided to wrap up my search without finding the Pasqueflower. However, on the way down the trail to where I left the jeep, I saw this hanging in the brush. The evening light and its slightly decayed state kind of caught my eye, so we'll finish up this trip to Sica Hollow with something that isn't a flower, but a reminder of people passing through.
Hope you enjoyed the photographs. Until next time!
PJ