Every spring, the forested hills around Grand Traverse Bay begin to fill up with crowds of eager, determined hunters. But none of them have guns. Most, armed with mesh bags and long sticks, are searching for morel mushrooms – the culinary Holy Grail of the northern woodlands, which attracts literally thousands of gourmands to this area each May. But for others, the quest is more aesthetic: they’re on the lookout for “spring ephemerals” – shy plants that grow, bloom and disappear for a few brief weeks between the end of winter and the start of summer. “That’s when our woods are at their loveliest, at least at ground level,” says nature guide Abby Gartland. “There are places where the whole forest is just flowers, and in a few weeks they’re completely gone. You’d never know they’d ever been there.” Gartland knows her wildflowers, too. She works for the Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy, one of several Traverse City environmental groups that hold annual “wildflower walks” to popularize these short-lived jewels of the spring woodlands. In fact, a growing number of parks and nature preserves are incorporating such walks into their programming in response to an increase in requests from spring visitors.
Some spring flowers don’t seem so shy – like the huge white blossoms of the large-flowered trillium, the signature wildflower of these northern woodlands. Trilliums (so called because each plant bears only three leaves and a single three-petaled flower) can be an impressive sight when they carpet the spring forest. Their sheer numbers can sometimes conceal smaller, more delicate neighbors like the trailing arbutus, bloodroot and starflower. Other spring ephemerals are hard to hide, even among the showy trilliums. Blue hepaticas and violets, red columbines, yellow trout lilies and bellworts, purple gaywings, delicate pink spring beauties are easily recognized by their bright colors. (And in the case of the latter, by their sweet scent, which fills the woods on warm spring days.) Even some of the smaller white flowers can make an impression by the sheer whimsicality of their shape. Dutchman’s Breeches, for instance, really do look like nothing so much as pairs of upside-down puffy white bloomers. And there’s no hiding the superstars of the spring forest. Northern Michigan’s native orchids -- the pink, yellow and showy lady’s slippers -- are rare standouts in any setting and easily draw attention to themselves. “It’s hard to find another place where you can find such a variety of wildflowers in such a variety of habitats all so close to one another,” said naturalist Cindy Rutherford of the Grand Traverse Conservation District, which administers a 500-acre riverine nature preserve at the southern edge of Traverse City. “I’ve seen flowers here that I’ve never seen together anywhere else.”
May and June are the best months for viewing spring ephemerals in the forests around Traverse City. Usually, upland woodlands break into bloom first because they’re farther from the cooling influence of the cold Lake Michigan waters, while coastal forests can still be in flower for a week or two later. Here are several prime spots for spring wildlflower viewing: Grand Traverse Natural Education Reserve. Located just outside the city on the banks of the Boardman River, this preserve encompasses several miles of mixed forest, wetlands and meadows and is particularly rich in plant, animal and bird specials. The Grand Traverse Conservation District conducts regular spring wildflower walks and publishes a self-guiding brochure for those who would rather explore on their own.
Article from Mike Norton of the Traverse City Convention and Visitors Bureau
Time: May 1, 2009 from 5pm to 9pm
Posts
