Bloodroot is in flower!

It's such a joy to see the bright white flowers of bloodroot after a long winter.  It's one of our early spring flowering natives, along with hepatica and trout lily.

It's done well in our emerging woodland garden, too.

clumps of bloodroot along the front path

After slowly amending the soil with mulch and leaves, our patch in front of the house is doing well, with companions of Christmas fern, green-and-gold, and pussytoes.

Happily, the large plant (transplanted from a shadier site in back) has been a prolific seed producer, and ants have "planted" new clumps around.  Even the small seedlings (with the abundant rain over the last year) have flourished.

parent with offspring

We now have over 9+ plants in front, including the biggest bloodroot we've ever seen -- testament to how natives in a more benign (garden)
environment can really flourish.

the original parent (transplanted from a shadier spot in the garden)

Bloodroot has been a favorite spring wildflower.

Here are some previous musings over the past 5+ seasons.

Read More

Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis)

The bloodroot in the oak hickory forest along the Heusel Nature trail (in the botanical garden where I work) is in full flower now.  It's right on time - I usually see Sanguinaria in flower from early to late March, depending on the year.  It's definitely spring here in the Piedmont of South Carolina!

I've posted about bloodroot over the last 5 spring seasons, apparently. 

This was the most impressive plant that I've ever seen:  a happy camper featured in this 2010 post! 

Bloodroot in the front woodland border, March 2010

Read More