Summer wildflowers

There’s no doubt that early spring wildflowers across the Southern Appalachians are spectacular. The fact that we as well as the forests are feeling the warm spring sunshine and sensing the annual renaissance probably enhances the focus and attention we bestow upon those spring emphemerals. But the wildflower show across Western North Carolina doesn’t end in the spring.

Below you will find some good wildflowering locations with some of the species you might encounter for the next month or so:

• Blue Ridge Parkway at Wolf Mountain overlook (seepage area and road shoulder) — closed gentian, Gentiana clausa; grass-of-Parnassus, Parnassia asarifolia; purple-stemmed aster, Aster puniceus; mountain Cynthia, Krigia montana; nodding ladies’ tresses, Spiranthes cernua.

• Flat Creek Trail from Heintooga Picnic area — monkshood, Aconitum uncinatum; small false hellebore, Veratrum parviflorum; green-headed coneflower, Rudbeckia lacinata; crimson bee-balm, Monarda didyma.

• Intersection of U.S. 276 & Raccoon Rd. — cardinal flower, Lobelia cardinalis, New York ironweed, Vernonia noveboracensis, Joe-pye weed, Eupatorium fistulosum and wingstem, Verbesina alternifolia.

• Near Mile High on Heintooga Road — featherbells, Stenanthium gramineum and obedient plant, Physostegia virginiana.

• Richland Balsam overlook and common along road shoulder BRP — stiff gentian, Gentianella quinquefolia.

• Bear Pen Gap and Devils Courthouse Trail on Blue Ridge Parkway — turtlehead, Chelone lyonii.

• Double Top Mtn. Overlook along Blue Ridge Parkway — purple giant hyssop, Agastache scrophulariaefolia.

• Entrance to the BRP off US 23/74 — cardinal flower, Lobelia cardinalis; boneset, Eupatorium perfoliatum; pale-leaved sunflower, Helianthus strumosus; green-headed coneflower, Rudbeckia lacinata, rough-stemmed goldenrod, Solidago rugosa and tall goldenrod, Solidago canadensis.

• Scott’s Creek Overlook along BRP — white wood aster, Aster divaricatus; New England aster, Aster novae-angliae; cornel-leaved aster, Aster infirmus, whorled wood aster, Aster acuninatus; Silverrod, Solidago bicolor; and cowbane, Oxypolis rigidior.

Some other late-blooming wildflowers along the Blue Ridge Parkway include: bergamot bee balm, Monarda fistulosa; tall coneflower, Rudbeckia laciniata; starry campion, Silene stellata; bellflower, Campanula americana; white snakeroot, Eupatorium rugosum; jewel weed, Impatiens capensis; pokeberry, Phytolacca americana, virgins bower, Clematis virginiana and angelica, Angelica triquinata.

The list above is quite simple and quite general. Some of the plants listed, like grass of Parnassus, are just beginning to bloom. Others, like crimson bee balm, are waning. But the fact is the wildflower show in Western North Carolina is far from over. It will continue until the hard killing frosts take out the last of the goldenrods and other late-blooming asters.

Now is a great time to get a wildflower guide and hit the Parkway. There are plenty of wildflowers blooming and you can catch a respite from the heat. A hand lens would be a good accompaniment for your field guide. While it’s true that wildflowers can’t fly away, some can still be tricky to identify.

A couple of good field guides that combine photos with good technical descriptions are Wildflowers of the Eastern United States and Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains. The latter contains a general key that can be quite handy.

(Don Hendershot can be reached at ddihen@earthlink.net)