Western Carolina Botanical Club

Frying Pan Gap – September 8, 2023

Posted on September 10, 2023 by WCBC

We hiked from the gate to the Pisgah Inn. Looks like fall is on its way! Photography by Penny Longhurst, Jim Poling, & Joe Standaert. Click on any picture to zoom. Plants that are non-native to North America are indicted by an asterisk (*) placed after the species name.

Hairy-jointed Meadow Parsnip (Thaspium barbinode)

Large-leaved Aster (Eurybia macrophylla) [Asteraceae]

Mountain Maple (Acer spicatum) [Sapindaceae]

Climbing False Buckwheat (Fallopia scandens) [Polygonaceae]

Purple-stemmed Aster (Symphyotrichum puniceum)

Broadtooth Hedge Nettle (Stachys latidens)

Alternate-leaved Dogwood (Cornus alternifolia)

Minnie Bush (Menziesia pilosa) [Ericaceae]

American Mountain Ash (Sorbus americana)

Tassel Rue; False Bugbane (Trautvetteria caroliniensis)

Purple-stemmed Aster (Symphyotrichum puniceum) [Asteraceae] Bracts

Appalachian Gentian; Showy Gentian (Gentiana decora)

Wild Yam (Dioscorea villosa) [Dioscoreaceae]

Thin-leaved Sunflower (Helianthus decapetalus)

American Mountain Ash (Sorbus americana) Heart

Pinkshell Azalea (Rhododendron vaseyi) [Ericaceae]

Jack-in-the-Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum)

Common Evening Primrose (Oenothera biennis)

Green-headed Coneflower (Rudbeckia laciniata)

Smooth Azalea (Rhododendron arborescens) [Ericaceae]

Clammy or Swamp Azalea (Rhododendron viscosum) [Ericaceae]

American Mountain Ash (Sorbus americana) [Rosaceae]

Silverrod (Solidago bicolor) [Asteraceae]

Dissected Grape Fern (Sceptridium dissectum; Botrychium dissectum) [Ophioglossaceae]

Curtis' Goldenrod (Solidago curtisii) [Asteraceae]

White Heath Aster (Symphyotrichum pilosum)

Purple-stemmed Aster (Symphyotrichum puniceum) [Asteraceae]

Arrow-leaved Aster (Symphyotrichum urophyllum)

Spreading Dogbane (Apocynum androsaemifolium) [Apocynaceae]

Large-leaved Aster (Eurybia macrophylla)

Indian Cucumber Root (Medeola virginiana)

Posted in Field Trips | Tagged Blue Ridge Parkway, Ferns, Hiking, North Carolina, Trees, WCBC, Wildflowers | Leave a comment

Parkway South – August 25, 2023

Posted on August 27, 2023 by WCBC

Good day to be up on the Parkway when the forecast is for 90 degrees down below! Stops were Wagon Gap Overlook, Log Hollow Overlook, and Wolf Mountain Overlook. We ate lunch at John Rock Overlook. Photography by Ken Borgfeldt, Penny Longhurst, & Joe Standaert. Plants that are non-native to North America are indicated by an asterisk (*) placed after the species name. Click on any picture to zoom & enter the slide show.

Thin-leaved Sunflower (Helianthus decapetalus) Leaves

Purple-node Joe-Pye-Weed (Eutrochium purpureum) Stem & Leaves

Thin-leaved Sunflower (Helianthus decapetalus) Blooms

Long-leaved Houstonia (Houstonia longifolia)

Wild Raisin (Viburnum nudum var. cassinoides) Fruit

American or Canadian Burnet (Sanguisorba canadensis)

Mountain St. John's-wort (Hypericum graveolens) Fruit

Common Speedwell (Veronica officinalis*)

Ox-eye; False Sunflower (Heliopsis helianthoides) Bracts

Stiff Cowbane (Oxypolis rigidior) Leaves

Appalachian St. John's-wort (Hypericum buckleyi)

Spotted Joe-Pye-Weed (Eutrochium maculatum) [Asteraceae]

Balsam Mountain Gentian (Gentiana latidens)

Grass-of-Parnassus (Parnassia asarifolia) Bloom

Ox-eye; False Sunflower (Heliopsis helianthoides) [Asteraceae]

Cuthbert Turtlehead (Chelone cuthbertii) [Scrophulariaceae]

Canadian Burnet (Sanguisorba canadensis) Plant

Canadian Burnet (Sanguisorba canadensis)

Sticky Asphodel (Triantha glutinosa) [Liliaceae]

Southern Harebell (Campanula divaricata)

Thin-leaved Sunflower (Helianthus decapetalus) Bracts

Mountain Goldenrod (Solidago roanensis) [Asteraceae]

Long-bristled Smartweed (Persicaria longiseta*) [Polygonaceae] Blooms

Flat-topped White Aster (Doellingeria umbellata) [Asteraceae]

Blue Ridge White Wood Aster (Eurybia chlorolepis) [Asteraceae]

Round-leaved Sundew (Drosera rotundifolia)

Flat-topped White Aster (Doellingeria umbellata) Leaves

Small Green Wood Orchid (Platanthera clavellata; Gymnadeniopsis clavellata) Flowers

Wavy-leaved Aster (Symphyotrichum undulatum) Leaves

Ox-eye; False Sunflower (Heliopsis helianthoides) Leaves

Now She Knows What It's Like Herding Cats!

Long-bristled Smartweed (Persicaria longiseta*) [Polygonaceae] Bristles

Cat's Ear (Hypochaeris radicata*) [Asteraceae; Cichoroideae]

Patch of Thin-leaved Sunflower (Helianthus decapetalus)

Purple Giant Hyssop (Agastache scrophulariifolia)

Wavy-leaved Aster (Symphyotrichum undulatum) Blooms

Bushy St. John's-wort (Hypericum densiflorum) [Hypericaceae]

Spotted Joe-Pye-Weed (Eutrochium maculatum) [Asteraceae] Stem & Leaves

Maple-leaved Viburnum (Viburnum acerifolium) Fruit

Grass-of-Parnassus (Parnassia asarifolia)

Cat's Ear (Hypochaeris radicata*) [Asteraceae; Cichoroideae] Bracts

Michaux's Saxifrage (Micranthes petiolaris) [Saxifragaceae]

Ox-eye; False Sunflower (Heliopsis helianthoides) [Asteraceae] Style

Purple-node Joe-Pye-Weed (Eutrochium purpureum) [Asteraceae]

Stiff Cowbane (Oxypolis rigidior) [Apiaceae]

Small Green Wood Orchid (Platanthera clavellata; Gymnadeniopsis clavellata) Going

Posted in Field Trips | Tagged Blue Ridge Parkway, Ferns, Fungi, Hiking, Insects, North Carolina, Pisgah National Forest, Views, WCBC, Wildflowers, Wolf Mountain Overlook | Leave a comment

Flat Laurel Creek – August 18, 2023

Posted on August 20, 2023 by WCBC

Perfect weather for a hike, unlike the day of the scout! We saw so many orchids that I was reminded again of the poem that Larason wrote after hiking this trail several years ago.

Malaxis by Larason Lambert (in Shortia, Fall 2017, page 15)

My name is Malaxis, I live in the weeds.
I have just one stem to hold all my seeds.
I’m truly an orchid, though not very bright.
Get out your hand lens, I’m sure to delight.

Photography by Mary Knierim & Penny Longhurst. Click on any picture to zoom & enter the slide show.

Fringed Loosestrife (Lysimachia ciliata)

Fan Club Moss (Diphasiastrum digitatum; Lycopodium digitatum)

Purple-node Joe-Pye-Weed (Eutrochium purpureum) Leaves

Appalachian St. John's-wort (Hypericum buckleyi) [Hypericaceae]

Michaux's Saxifrage (Micranthes petiolaris)

Spotted St. John's-wort (Hypericum punctatum) [Hypericaceae]

Panicled Hawkweed (Hieracium paniculatum)

Appalachian or Kidney-leaved Twayblade (Neottia smallii)

Mountain Fetterbush (Pieris floribunda) [Ericaceae]

Bitter Dock (Rumex obtusifolius*) [Polygonaceae]

Gooseberry (Ribes rotundifolium) [Saxifragaceae]

Bouncing Bet; Soapwort (Saponaria officinalis*) [Caryophyllaceae]

Ground Pine (Dendrolycopodium obscurum; Lycopodium obscurum)

Wild Raisin (Viburnum nudum var. cassinoides)

Purple-node Joe-Pye-Weed (Eutrochium purpureum)

Indian Pipes; Ghost Flower (Monotropa uniflora)

Posted in Field Trips | Tagged Blue Ridge Parkway, Hiking, Pisgah National Forest, Trees, Views, WCBC, Wildflowers | Leave a comment

Whiteside Mountain – August 11, 2023

Posted on August 15, 2023 by WCBC

Whiteside Mountain Brochure

Wildflowers of Whiteside Mountain, Jackson County, North Carolina by Kevin Adams

Well, we almost made it back before it rained! No matter. The plants were glorious anyway! Photography by Cindy Carpenter, Mary Knierim, & Penny Longhurst. Click on any picture to zoom and see the slide show.

Mountain Sweet Pepperbush (Clethra acuminata)

Flat-topped White Aster (Doellingeria umbellata)

Granite Dome Goldenrod, Cliffside Goldenrod (Solidago simulans) [Asteraceae]

Southern Harebell (Campanula divaricata) [Campanulaceae] Plant

Hairy Angelica (Angelica venenosa) Leaves

Entire-leaved False Foxglove (Aureolaria laevigata) [Scrophulariaceae]

Smooth Southern Bush Honeysuckle (Diervilla sessilifolia)

Witch Hazel (Hamamelis virginiana) [Hamamelidaceae] Fruit

Mountain Spleenwort (Asplenium montanum)

Hartwig's Locust (Robinia viscosa v hartwegii) [Fabaceae]

Pale Corydalis (Corydalis sempervirens) Bloom

Mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris*) [Asteraceae]

American Lovage (Ligusticum canadense) Leaves

Mountain Sweet Pepperbush (Clethra acuminata) [Clethraceae]

Long-leaved Houstonia (Houstonia longifolia) Blooms

Ledge Spikemoss (Selaginella rupestris)& Reindeer Lichen (Cladonia rangiferina)

Mountain Spleenwort (Asplenium montanum) Sori

Whorled Wood Aster (Oclemena acuminata) [Asteraceae]

an Old Man's Beard Lichen (Usnea sp.) & Lichens

Hog Peanut (Amphicarpaea bracteata) & Curtis' Goldenrod (Solidago curtisii)

Granite Dome Goldenrod, Cliffside Goldenrod (Solidago simulans) [Asteraceae] Leaves

Tall Meadow Rue (Thalictrum pubescens) [Ranunculaceae]

Clinton's Lily, White Clintonia (Clintonia umbellulata) Fruit

Hog Peanut (Amphicarpaea bracteata) [Fabaceae]

Zigzag Spiderwort (Tradescantia subaspera)

Northern Red Oak (Quercus rubra) [Fagaceae]

Granite Dome Goldenrod, Cliffside Goldenrod (Solidago simulans) with Bugs

Posted in Field Trips | Tagged Ferns, Hiking, Mosses, North Carolina, Trees, Views, WCBC, Wildflowers | Leave a comment

Sam Knob Meadow – August 7, 2023

Posted on August 11, 2023 by WCBC

This is our third monthly post on the flora of Sam Knob Meadow. Another successful outing! Photography by Ken Borgfeldt, Cindy Carpenter, John Colson, Mary Knierim, Penny Longhurst, & Jim Poling. Click on any picture to zoom & enter the slide show. Plants that are non-native to North America are indicated by an asterisk (*) placed after the species name.