Don’t Miss Spring

Chris Casciano — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 12:50:02 +0000

Though today is the official first day of Spring, Spring jumped the gun on us for a few weeks. If for some reason you haven’t gotten outside on the trail or walking around a local park, don’t waste much more time — you may miss it.

On Saturday I put in 10 miles on the trails of South Mountain Reservation and saw many signs of Spring — early wildflowers like Lavender or the invasive Lesser Celandine, many chirping birds, and trees pushing out new leaves. There are already some signs the second wave of blooms are already on their way — I saw mountain laurel budding and in the muddier areas the leaves of trout lilies poking through. Tis the season of perfect hiking weather, too. Grab a light jacket or heavy shirt and go for miles without getting overheated or cold.

Early Spring 2012 Photos

If you need a bit more of a kick in the rear to get out of your house and spend some time in the woods or the hills, here’s a few images from my hike of the Lenape and Rahway trails this past weekend.

Pink Cherry Blossoms in full bloom on the walk up Warner Rd to the park entrance

Aside from some beech leaves that are still hanging on, this dried tulip tree flower was one of the last signs of the monochromatic brown winter season

The buds of a mountain laurel plant near Hemlock Falls

A Spring Beauty poking out from under a tree root near the river

One of a few turkey vultures casting shadows on the ground and soaring on the warm air

A lovely purple lavender flower on the ground near the Tulip Springs area

Want to Find A Park?

If you want to find a park near you to explore and get some exercise and fresh are here are a few great resources:

Spring Wildflower Spotting

Chris Casciano — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 14:09:45 +0000

It was such a nice Spring day on Friday that I had to leave the confines of my desk and spet a few moments in the sun. After lunch I walked a short loop in South Mountain Reservation entering from the Locust Grove parking area with the intention on checking into what wildflowers were appearing. Here’s what I spotted. What signs of Spring have you seen on the trail?

Lesser celadine

This waxy yellow flower can be seen in many spots in the valley near the water, runoff or muddy areas. The above photo was taken right off the parking area. Wikipedia entry for Lesser celadine.

Yellow Trout-Lily

Trout lilies are my favorite spring wildflower to photograph. On this walk I didn’t see any of the yellow flowers blooming yet, but the familiar leaves were popping up out of the moss all around the park. Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center page on Trout Liliy.

Cypress Spurge

Not quite at peak yet, the cypress spurge in the exposed rocky basalt areas near the top of Washington Rock has begun making an appearance. Wikipedia entry for Cypress Spurge.

Periwinkle

The crocus have died back, but there’s still some purple to be found in the viney Periwinkle flower. Periwinkle info at USDA Plants.

Identification

I’m the last person that would consider myself an export on identification of wildflowers [or trees, or birds or anything else]. I was able to i.d. these spring flowers by three resources — The great reference book Wildflowers ( Northeastern/North-central North America) by Peterson Field Guides, asking for help of experts on the internets in forums like Flickr’s ID Please group which has 5800 people all helping each other identify things, and repeated sightings. If you’re not sure what you’re looking at wile on a trail, take a photo and then look it up when you get back. File that away for later reference.

Hike New Jersey » wildflowers