Western Carolina Botanical Club

Flat Laurel Creek – July 29, 2022

Posted on August 1, 2022 by WCBC

Plenty of black clouds but no rain – we lucked out! We saw so many orchids that I was reminded of a 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 Penny Longhurst. Click on any picture to zoom & enter the slide show.

Small Green Wood Orchid (Platanthera clavellata; Gymnadeniopsis clavellata)

Round-leaved Sundew (Drosera rotundifolia)

Appalachian or Kidney-leaved Twayblade (Neottia smallii)

Running Club Moss (Lycopodium clavatum) [Lycopodiaceae]

Second Group Photo - Spot the Difference!

Long-leaved Houstonia (Houstonia longifolia)

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

Ground Pine (Dendrolycopodium obscurum; Lycopodium obscurum)

Whorled Wood Aster (Oclemena acuminata) & White Wood Aster (Eurybia divaricata)

Wild or Smooth Hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens) [Hydrangeaceae]

Michaux's Saxifrage (Micranthes petiolaris)

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

Bearberry; Southern Mountain Cranberry (Vaccinium erythrocarpum)

Fringed Loosestrife (Lysimachia ciliata) [Primulaceae]

Indian Pipes; Ghost Flower (Monotropa uniflora)

Blue Ridge White Wood Aster (Eurybia chlorolepis)

Canada St. John's-wort (Hypericum canadense) [Hypericaceae]

Wild Raisin (Viburnum nudum var. cassinoides)

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

Bear Pen Gap to Wet Camp Gap – July 22, 2022

Posted on July 28, 2022 by WCBC

A perfect day and the meadow was glorious as always! Plants that are non-native to North America are indicated by an asterisk (*) placed after the species name. Photography by Penny Longhurst, Lucy Prim, & Randy Richardson. Click on any picture to zoom.

Fire Pink (Silene virginica) [Caryophyllaceae]

Bluebead Lily (Clintonia borealis) Fruit

Hoary Mountain Mint (Pycnanthemum incanum)

Dwarf or Smaller Enchanter's Nightshade (Circaea alpina) [Onagraceae]

Doll's Eyes; White Baneberry (Actaea pachypoda) Fruit

Wall Scalewort Liverwort (Porella platyphylla)

Blue Cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides) Fruit

Green-headed Coneflower (Rudbeckia laciniata) [Asteraceae]

Narrow-leaf Blue-eyed Grass; Stout Blue-eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium angustifolium)

Smooth Southern Bush Honeysuckle (Diervilla sessilifolia)

Tall Meadow Rue (Thalictrum pubescens) Fruit

Rose Twisted Stalk; Rose Mandarin (Streptopus lanceolatus v. roseus) Fruit

Appalachian Bindweed (Calystegia sepium ssp appalachiana) Bracts

Wild or Smooth Hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens)

Epling's Hedge Nettle (Stachys eplingii)

Appalachia False Bindweed (Calystegia sepium ssp. Appalachiana)

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

Frying Pan Gap Trail – July 18, 2022

Posted on July 24, 2022 by WCBC

This was the fourth monthly walk on the Frying Pan Gap Trail. We hiked from the gate to the Pisgah Inn. Photography by Joe Standaert & Angela Wagner. Click on any picture to zoom. Plants that are non-native to North America are indicated by an asterisk (*) placed after the species name.

Jack-in-the-Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum) Fruit

American Lovage (Ligusticum canadense) Fruit

Southern Bush Honeysuckle (Diervilla sessilifolia)

Gall-of-the-Earth (Prenanthes trifoliolata) [Asteraceae]

Cat's Ear (Hypochaeris radicata*) Leaves

Mountain Holly (Ilex montana) [Aquifoliaceae] Fruit

Large-thorn Hawthorn (Crataegus macracantha)

Virgin's Bower (Clematis virginiana) [Ranunculaceae] Leaves

Spreading Dogbane (Apocynum androsaemifolium) [Apocynaceae]

Highbush Blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum) [Ericaceae] Fruit

Large-leaved Aster (Eurybia macrophylla)

Pale Indian Plantain (Arnoglossum atriplicifolium) Leaves

Common Evening Primrose (Oenothera biennis) [Onagraceae]

Thin-leaved Sunflower (Helianthus decapetalus) [Asteraceae]

Northern Leatherflower (Clematis viorna)

Small-flowered Agrimony (Agrimonia parviflora) [Rosaceae]

Pale Indian Plantain (Arnoglossum atriplicifolium) [Asteraceae] Fruit

American Lovage (Ligusticum canadense) Leaves

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

American Chestnut (Castanea dentata) [Fagaceae]

Northern Leatherflower (Clematis viorna) [Ranunculaceae] Fruit

Hairy-jointed Meadow Parsnip (Thaspium barbinode ) [Apiaceae] Fruit

Fly Poison (Amianthium muscitoxicum) Fruit

Hairy-jointed Meadow Parsnip (Thaspium barbinode)

Painted Trillium (Trillium undulatum) Fruit

Tassel Rue; False Bugbane (Trautvetteria caroliniensis) [Ranunculaceae] Fruit

Broadtooth Hedge Nettle (Stachys latidens)

Tassel Rue; False Bugbane (Trautvetteria caroliniensis) [Ranunculaceae]

Southern Mountain Mint (Pycnanthemum pycnanthemoides) [Lamiaceae]

Whorled Loosestrife (Lysimachia quadrifolia)

Appalachia False Bindweed (Calystegia sepium ssp. Appalachiana)) Bracts

Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) Leaves & Stem

Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) Bracts

Wild Raisin (Viburnum nudum var. cassinoides) Fruit

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

Shut-In Trail – July 15, 2022

Posted on July 20, 2022 by WCBC

Photography by Charlie Brice, Richard Holzman, Lucy Prim, & Joe Standaert (Click on any picture to zoom).

Pinesap (Hypopitys monotropa ) [Ericaceae]

Perfoliate Bellwort (Uvularia perfoliata) Fruit

Figwort; Carpenter's Square (Scrophularia marilandica)

Wild Lily-of-the-Valley (Convallaria majalis var. montana) Fruit

Cornel-leaved Aster (Doellingeria infirma) [Asteraceae]

Wild Bergamot (Monarda fistulosa) [Lamiaceae]

Lopseed (Phryma leptostachya) [Phrymaceae]

Wood Betony; Lousewort (Pedicularis canadensis) Fruit

Purple or Wideleaf Bedstraw (Galium latifolium)

Downy Rattlesnake Plantain (Goodyera pubescens)

Zigzag Spiderwort (Tradescantia subaspera)

Blue Cohosh (Caulophyllum thalictroides) [Berberidaceae] Fruit

Yellow Mandarin (Prosartes lanuginosa) Fruit

Indian Cucumber Root (Medeola virginiana) Fruit

Massive vines of Dutchman’s Pipe (Aristolochia macrophylla)

Pale Indian Plaintain (Arnoglossum atriplicifolium)

Wake Robin Trillium (Trillium erectum) Fruit

Appalachian Bunchflower (Veratrum parviflorum) [Liliaceae]

Northern Leatherflower (Clematis viorna) Fruit

Fringed Campion (Silene ovata) [Caryophyllaceae] Leaves

Rosebay; Great Laurel (Rhododendron maximum)

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

Common Evening Primrose (Oenothera biennis) [Onagraceae] Fruit

Black Cohosh (Actaea racemosa) [Ranunculaceae]

Hairy-jointed Meadow Parsnip (Thaspium barbinode) Fruit

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

Sky Valley Road – June 23, 2022

Posted on June 27, 2022 by WCBC

Photography by Ken Borgfeldt, Richard Holzman, & Penny Longhurst. Plants that are non-native to North America are indicated by an asterisk (*) placed after the species name. Click on any picture to zoom.