Jeanne and I walked at Charleston Falls on April 19, the day before Easter. We saw hundreds, maybe even thousands of of White Trout Lily leaves. (Some people know these wild flowers as Adder's Tongues and others call them Dogtooth Violets.) Whole hillsides were covered with the leaves. There were lots of buds, even a flower or two whose petals were spreading just a bit. Nowhere did we see a plant with a wide-open bloom.
White Trout Lilies are true ephemerals, short-lived spring flowers of moist Ohio woodlands. Chances were overwhelming that when Jeanne and I walked the following Saturday the flowers would be past blooming. I talked Tom into coming out to Charleston Falls with me on Monday. I didn't want him to miss the hundreds of White Trout Lilies. And I didn't want to miss them, either.
Photo by Tom Persing, White Trout Lily (Erythronium albidum)
Photo by Tom Persing, White Trout Lily
I walked further along the trail because I wanted to see a big patch.
Most of the tiny white teardrop shapes are Trout Lily blossoms. There are a few other wild flowers scattered among them. Click on the photo to see the flowers larger. There is a fully open lily toward the center front.
Sure enough, when Jeanne and I walked on Saturday, April, 26, this is how most of the Trout Lilies looked.
That is quite a patch! Tom took some great photos. I think I always miss that one up here...maybe this year:)
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