Wildflowers
complicated flowers, which are perennial herbs.
You may be surprised to learn that Indiana is orchid country. There are more naturally occurring orchids in Indiana( 44) than in Hawaii( 4). Orchids are the largest family of flowering plants, with over 20,000 different species, mostly in tropical situations.
In Indiana, orchids are usually found in swamps, floodplains, ditches, or on the slopes of moist, upland deciduous forests. You are likely to spot the Yellow Lady Slipper, Spotted Coralroot, and the Grass Pink.
Yellow Lady’ s Slipper, blooms in late-April to mid-June and can be found on slopes facing east and west. The egg-yolk colored blossom looks like a dainty shoe.
The Grass-Pink Orchid, also likes mucky soils, but can be found in open, sunny places instead of shade. It has a stunning deep rich pink flower.
But the orchids may not be the most mysterious and desirable find of your woodland flower walk. Consider the Jack in the Pulpit’ s more elusive relative, the Green Dragon, similar to jack-in-the pulpit, but with a less dominant hood( spathe) and a curious longtipped spadix( the dragons tongue) protruding several inches beyond the narrow spathe.
Spotting one would be considered the highlight of any flower-hunting woods walk.
If you would like to get to know Brown County’ s incredibly diverse and beautiful wildflower population a little better get a field guide and check out the Wildflower Foray. I highly recommend The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Wildflowers, a handy, durable field reference with excellent color photos and scientific descriptions of over 600 common wildflowers of North American forests and grasslands.
For a hands-on, expertled, group-fun introduction to wildflower spotting in Brown County, it’ s hard to beat the annual Wildflower Foray at the T. C. Steele State Historic Site near Belmont and other neighboring locations.
The 35 th annual Wildflower Foray will be held from Friday, April 24, at 7:30 a. m. to Sunday, April 26, at 5:00 p. m. and offers participants the chance to experience the natural beauty and incredible wildlife of Brown County during wildflower and bird walks, wetlands hikes, nature photography, and other programs.
Hikes and programs are held on T. C. Steele grounds on established trails, and on other nearby natural areas including area DNR properties, Hoosier National Forest, Indiana University, Sycamore Land Trust, and Nature Conservancy lands.
From late March through May, a walk among the spring wildflowers of Brown County can bring extraordinary joy as the sentinels of a new season carpet the forest floor with colorful blooms.
Get out and see’ em! •
March / April 2020 • Our Brown County 43