Spring Wildflowers at Anglin Falls State Nature Preserve

Spring is finally in full swing here in Kentucky and things are greening up rather quickly. Wooded hillsides are bursting with colors as numerous spring wildflowers begin to carpet the forest floors. Over the last few days, I've been frantically visiting all of my favorite wildflower spots around central Kentucky to catch as many of my favorites in bloom as I can. Yesterday I visited my favorite wildflower spot in south-central Kentucky, which is perhaps the best area in the region for spring wildflowers; John B. Stephenson Memorial Forest State Nature Preserve which is also known as Anglin Falls. Anglin Falls is located in Rockcastle County and is a 123 acre preserve that protects a forested gorge with two waterfalls and boasts an impressive and rich spring floral display. I try to visit this place around once every other week, as the community of wildflowers changes rapidly from week-to-week as spring progresses onward.

Red trilliums (Trillum erectum).

The most notable and abundant wildflowers were the red trilliums (Trillium erectum) that extensively carpet the wooded slopes at Anglin. This member of the lily family (Liliaceae) is quite large and showy, however the aroma they emit is pretty foul-smelling, hence why they are sometimes called stinking benjamins. The pungent smell is said to resemble that of a wet dog, and after taking a big whiff of one yesterday, I completely agree with the assessment...gross! The foul-smelling fragrance is used to entice pollinators such as flies and beetles that would normally feed on carrion to visit their flowers . But if you can tolerate the off-putting smell, the flowers are quite attractive and lovely when you examine them up close.

Red trillium (Trillium erectum). Red form.

Red trillium (Trillium erectum). White form.

Red trillium (Trillium erectum). White form.

T. erectum can also occur in a white-petaled form as shown above. In the population at Anglin Falls, the red form is much more dominant over the white form. I find both forms equally as attractive and it creates a nice compliment of colors when the white forms are mixed in with the red forms.

Virginia pennywort (Obolaria virginica).

A common but often overlooked spring wildflower is the Virginia pennywort (Oboloria virginica). This is a small perennial herb that blends in well with the leaf litter. The plant contains little chlorophyll and mainly gets its nutrients from mychorrhizal fungi.

Wild ginger (Asarum canadense).

These downy, heart-shaped leaves belong to wild ginger (Asarum canadense). The really interesting aspect of this abundant spring ephemeral is the flower, which has an urn-shaped maroon calyx that is often found lying prostrate on the leaf litter. Crawling insects such as ants and beetles are said to be the main pollinators for this species.

Wild ginger (Asarum canadense).

One of my favorite spring flowers is the dutchman's breeches (Dicentra cucullaria), and it grows abundantly at Anglin Falls. I find the small white and yellowish flowers, which resemble the baggy pantaloons worn by "Dutchmen" hanging upside-down on a clothesline, to be quite intriguing.

Dutchman's breeches (Dicentra cucullaria).

Dutchman's breeches (Dicentra cucullaria).

Another one of my favorite groups is the violets, and Kentucky is home to many different species of violets. It seems a violet exists for every different kind of habitat we have here in the Bluegrass State. A common one of mesic woodlands is the Canada violet (Viola canadensis). This species is distinguished from others by its white flowers with yellow centers and purple veins located on the base of each of the 5 petals. The violets are typically broken down into two major categories: the stemmed violets and the stemless violets. This species falls into the former category, as the alternating leaves arise from the stem as opposed to the base of the plant.

Canada violet (Viola canadensis).

Large-flowered bellwort (Uvularia grandiflora).

The pale yellow and drooping flowers in the photo above belong to the large-flowered bellwort (Uvularia grandiflora). This species prefers to grow on calcareous soils on forested slopes and can be easy to overlook as the flowers remain twisted and in a closed position. The leaves of this species are called perfoliate, meaning they are pierced by the stem, but this is not to be confused another similar-looking species of the same genus, the small-flowered bellwort (Uvularia perfoliata). The small-flowered bellwort also has perfoliate leaves but differs from the large-flowered in that it is a much more delicate-looking plant and the leaves are smooth on the underside.

Three male eastern tiger swallowtail butterflies (Papilio glaucus).

As I was making my way back to the parking lot at Anglin, I came across this scene along the banks of the stream that runs through the middle of the preserve. This is a trio of eastern tiger swallowtail butterflies engaging in a behavior known as "puddling." Apparently the males will gather in moist areas to dabble for minerals that are necessary for reproduction.


Lastly, I will leave you with this teaser. These are the emerging leaves of the pink lady's slipper orchid (Cypripedium acaule) I found at Anglin Falls. In just a couple weeks, these beauties will be gracing the hillsides and ridgetops along select locations in eastern and southern Kentucky and you can be sure I will be eagerly awaiting their arrival and I'm looking forward to sharing their pictures with you!

Pink lady's slipper orchid (Cypripedium acaule). Coming soon...

Harbinger of Spring (Erigenia bulbosa)

Another one of spring's earliest native wildflowers here in Kentucky is the harbinger of spring (Erigenia bulbosa). This spring ephemeral is one of, if not always, the first to emerge from the ground and add a splash of color to an otherwise drab winter landscape. As the name suggests, the emergence of this plant is surely a sign that spring has officially begun. A member of the carrot family (Apiaceae), this diminutive species ranges from an inch to ten inches in height. This species can be found growing in rich, wooded forests in association with other spring ephemeral wildflowers such as toothworts (Cardamine sp.), sharp-lobed hepatica (Hepatica nobilis var. acutiloba), spring beauties (Claytonia virginica), dwarf crested iris (Iris cristata), etc.

With the recent warm stretch of weather we've been having, I went for a hike the other day to check on the progress of the spring ephemerals at a local nature preserve, Anglin Falls State Nature Preserve (also referred to as John B. Stephenson Memorial Forest SNP). This relatively unknown and hidden gem is one of my favorite haunts in all of south-central Kentucky and a place I frequent often. Anglin Falls is a moist, rich wooded ravine and has one of the best spring wildflower displays that can be found in the region. I found many harbingers of spring in flower and this provided a great opportunity to test out my new macro lens. This plant is tiny, and all of the specimens I found were only about an inch tall and had just freshly emerged from the ground. The collection of flowers, referred to as an umbel, were smaller than a fingernail. This wildflower is also called pepper-and-salt by some people due to the red anthers which turn black and the flower petals which are white. As with most spring ephemerals they are pollinated by various species of bees and flies.

Harbinger of spring (Erigenia bulbosa)

Harbinger of spring (Erigenia bulbosa). A close-up showing the red-ish anthers.

Near the entrance of the trail to Anglin Falls a vivid burst of purple stopped me dead in my tracks. I was shocked to see another native spring wildflower already in bloom, a dwarf iris (Iris verna). This species typically shouldn't be flowering for another couple weeks but this eager individual just seemingly couldn't wait any longer. However, this was the only one I found in flower on my hike. This species inhabits drier areas and prefers to grow on more open and sunny areas along ridge tops. This area where this individual was flowering was rocky and in full sun, perhaps the soil temperature in this area was just enough to trigger this individual to flower. Anyways, I took advantage of the opportunity to get some photos of it on this occasion but I'm certain to run across many more dwarf iris over the coming weeks as I visit some of my other favorite wildflower hotspots in eastern Kentucky.

Dwarf iris (Iris verna)

Dwarf iris (Iris verna)