Winter Botany: Wildflowers in Winter

It’s winter time, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t any wildflowers to see. Many of the flowers of the Fells have a winter form you can spot and identify once you know what to look for. Here are a few of the easier ones:

Spotted wintergreen (Chimaphila maculata): In winter, Nov 12. In bloom, July 5.

   

This is one of my favorites. It’s evergreen, so you can spot it on the forest floor any time it’s clear of snow. The dark green leaves with white veins stand out well against the yellow-brown leaf floor.

Pipsissewa (Chimaphila umbellata): In winter, Nov 12. In bloom, June 23.

 Pipsissewa in bloom. White flowers nodding downward, circle of evergreen leaves at base

Closely related to spotted wintergreen above, pipsissewa has very similar flowers but fairly different leaves. It’s also evergreen, so you can spot it all winter when the ground is clear.

Canada-mayflower (Maianthemum canadense):  In winter, Nov 12. In bloom, May 17.

  

This plant blankets large swaths of the Fells in spring and summer. In fall, red fruits replace the sweet-smelling white flowers. Most of the fruits have been eaten by winter time, but you’ll still spot them if you keep a close eye out.

Ghost pipes (Monotropa uniflora): In winter, Dec 9. In bloom, July 22.

  ghost pipes in flower. 3 white plants with nodding heads

This parasitic plant steals nutrients from the roots of trees instead of photosynthesizing. It’s one of those plants that you can’t stop seeing once you first spot it. In summer, the white flowers stand out clearly. And in winter, the clusters of dark brown stems are still pretty visible against lighter leaves or snow.

What other plants do you look for in winter?

The image above is downy rattlesnake-plantain (Goodyera pubescens). This native, New England orchid had not been seen in the Fells for more than 20 years – until Dennis Crouse and Lindsay Beal re-discovered a small population.

Bryan Hamlin, our local expert on the flora of the Fells, says that a previous botanical survey in 1993 reported its presence. But the survey that he and others conducted from 2004-2012 had not been able to relocate it.

It is really exciting that it has been re-found after so long!

Rattlenake plantain in bloom

Rattlesnake-plantain in bloom – not taken in the Fells

The plants found this year were not blooming. But when this species does flower, it produces a spike of small, white flowers that I find very beautiful.

Closeup of rattlesnake-plantain flowers in bloom

Closeup of rattlesnake-plantain in bloom – not taken in the Fells

Look at the tiny pouch shape that the flowers make and the fine fuzz of hairs that give it the “downy” part of its common name. The “rattlesnake” part probably comes from the patterns on the leaves which look a bit like snake skin. And “plantain” from the leaves’ similarity to common garden plantain (Plantago major).

Dried brown seed capsules

Dried brown seed capsules follow the flowers if they are pollinated

Rattlesnake-plantain flowers in later summer and is pollinated by bees. If you find it at other times of the year, look for the dried brown seed capsules that indicate it flowered the previous season.

The leaves are evergreen, so it’s a great one to look for in late Fall and early Spring when the ground is mostly brown and its bright green leaves stand out.

Downy rattlesnake plantain is fairly common in New England. But, like most other local orchids, it is very sensitive to soil conditions and disturbance. If you’re lucky enough to come across this plant in the Fells or elsewhere, be careful not to trample it or disturb the area around it. And if you do find it in the Fells, take a picture and let us know!

To learn more about this plant, check out these resources:
https://gobotany.newenglandwild.org/species/goodyera/pubescens/
https://plants.usda.gov/factsheet/pdf/fs_gopu.pdf
http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/woodland/plants/dwn_ratsnk_pl.html
https://vnps.org/wildflowers-of-the-year/wildflower-of-the-year-goodyera-pubescens-downy-rattlesnake-plantain/

This post was written by Bryan Hamlin and Walter Kittredge. Above: Indianhemp Dogbane – Apocynum cannabinum.

The Fells has a surprising diversity of plants for its size; so much so that in a nine year survey we found 868 species of ferns, conifers and flowering plants! In 2012 we (along with Betty Wright and Don Lubin) published the results in the botanical journal Rhodora (available on our Merchandise page) entitled “Changes in the vascular flora of the Middlesex Fells Reservation from 1895 to 2011”. We explained the high number of plants as due to the varied geology, topography and habitats in the Fells, but also to an increase in the number of non-native weeds and escaped garden plants. This steady arrival of non-native species will continue indefinitely. It is remarkable though that the number of native plants has remained constant for over a century, although the composition has changed somewhat as the forest has matured.

We’ve continued to survey and document the Fells flora, resulting in finding quite a few more species: 21 in 2012, then 17 in 2013, and now seven more this year. Most significantly twenty of these species are native to the area. There surely has to be a limit to this sort of thing.

Scientific names are always a little bit arcane, but this year’s crop of new finds has some fun common names.

[column size=half position=first ]Common Name

Cockspur Hawthorn*

Common Yellowcress

Indianhemp Dogbane*

Quickweed

Ridged Goosefoot

Sweet Autumn Clematis

Tumbleweed[/column] [column size=half position=last ]Scientific Name

Crataegus crus-galli

Rorippa palustris var. palustris

Apocynum cannabinum

Galinsoga parviflora

Dysphania pumilio

Clematis terniflora

Amaranthus blitoides[/column]

* Indicates a native species

Cockspur Hawthorn – Crataegus crus-galli

Cockspur Hawthorn – Crataegus crus-galli

The Indianhemp Dogbane (at top) was reported in the original survey of the Fells published in 1896, so it was great to finally re-find it. The Cockspur Hawthorn (above) is the third native species of Hawthorn in the Fells, which have become uncommon due to the fields growing back into forests. Our new findings are getting fewer and fewer each year. This may be because we’re getting older, or more likely that we’re getting closer to finding most things, although in over 3,000 acres it is well-nigh impossible to be sure of finding everything. But it’s that slim possibility of coming around a corner and finding a rarity that hasn’t been seen for 100 years that keeps us excited to continue exploring the wonderful flora of the Fells.

Without Bryan and Walter’s involvement with the Friends of the Fells, these long lost species would never have been rediscovered in the Fells. Right now, your contribution to the Friends will be tripled by a generous donor, helping us provide a new generation with the love of nature that drives Bryan and Walter.  Please consider making a contribution now.