Just because fall strolled through the door doesn’t mean the growing season in West Virginia woods has ended. Leaves are drifting lazily down from a few trees here and there. Mornings are cool. The sun’s rays are slanting in lower than before. But still the fields and roadsides are still popping with wildflower color. AugustContinue reading “Golden fall days of West Virginia wildflowers”
Category Archives: West Virginia wildflowers
Spring, Easter & keeping on
It’s so easy to look at the new growth of spring and think about Easter’s message of resurrection. Everything that’s blooming right now — the trees budding, leaves opening, flowers reaching up through the soil — was built to come back to life. All of these plants are designed to flourish themselves… to grow atContinue reading “Spring, Easter & keeping on”
A poke of purple in the woods
Clusters of dark purple berries stand out in West Virginia woods as trees and shrubs are losing their summer green, and the oranges and reds of fall start creeping in. In a dry spell, pokeweed’s bright red stems and berries are a real stand out in fields and at the edge of forest openings andContinue reading “A poke of purple in the woods”
Catch the WV mountain laurel bloom on the Ziler loop trail at Cacapon State Park
Mountain laurel is blooming right now in our part of West Virginia — in the part we call the Eastern Panhandle. Morgan County has its share of mountains, which means lots of places to look at this wild flowering shrub as its blooms open up. This week I’ve been on laurel patrol in Morgan County.Continue reading “Catch the WV mountain laurel bloom on the Ziler loop trail at Cacapon State Park”
Two out of three ain’t bad: more about spring in the West Virginia woods
Like I said before, spring in West Virginia zooms at the speed of sunlight. Take a week’s break from the woods and there’s a whole other type of tree or wildflowers blooming when you go back. Open winter views are now closed up by a glowing green curtain of new buds and leaves. In aContinue reading “Two out of three ain’t bad: more about spring in the West Virginia woods”
West Virginia wildflowers: Good luck keeping up
Spring in the Mountain State comes on strong. We jump from a grey and brown forest floor to carpets of wildflowers in no time flat. The past few days have delivered summer-like temperatures and powerful sunshine, revving up the spring cycle. It’s here, whether you’re ready for it or not. Nothing to do but plugContinue reading “West Virginia wildflowers: Good luck keeping up”
Four generations at Cacapon State Park, and counting
My father climbed to the top of Cacapon Mountain near Berkeley Springs, W.Va. when he was about 16. He was on a fall hike with his father and younger brother. They all lived in suburban Maryland at the time, and it was, perhaps, their first visit to Cacapon State Park. A photo of the threeContinue reading “Four generations at Cacapon State Park, and counting”
Witch hazel: nature’s medicine & dowser’s tool
Our woods don’t offer up a lot of color in wintertime. That’s why the feathery yellow bloom of the witch hazel tree is such a curious surprise from the late fall to the midwinter months of the year. Because it only grows as a short tree (or a tall shrub, depending on who you ask),Continue reading “Witch hazel: nature’s medicine & dowser’s tool”
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