A Tangle of Bright Moments: All the Firstlings of the May

“I strolled along the beaten way,
Where hoary cliffs uprear their heads,
And all the firstlings of the May
Were peeping from their leafy beds,
When, dancing in its rocky frame,
I saw th’ columbine’s flower of flame.

I saw them a-flaming
Against the gray rocks;
I saw them in couples,
I saw them in flocks.
They danced in the breezes,
They glowed in the sun,
They nodded and beckoned,
Rejoiced every one.” ― from the poem “Columbine” by John Burroughs (1837-1921)

 

*

As I mentioned last week, on 21 May I visited both Tower Hill Botanic Garden, in Boylston, MA, and Garden in the Woods, in Framingham, MA, on a typical spring day with a high of about 70F.

Of the two, Garden in the Woods is my favourite, especially in spring, because it’s such a rambling woodland garden. It’s run by the Native Plant Trust, which conserves and promotes New England’s native plants. The Garden is “a plant collection that showcases New England native plants with complementary specimens from across the country …, on 45 acres sculpted by retreating glaciers into eskers, steep-sided valleys, and a kettle pond. A shaded brook and wetlands draw a panoply of animals and insects.” There are interesting plants in the gardens and for sale next to the little store at the entrance.  (You can download their plant list and price list from links on this page.) There’s not a cafe per se but there is some prepared food in the store, or you can order a boxed lunch ahead of time.

giftshopvisitorcenterGardenintheWoods21May2019
Shop (with bathroom), and plants for sale

*

Map of the gardens and trails:

mapGardenintheWoods21May2019

*

Some of the many species and varieties of trilliums:

sign21trilliumspeciesGardenintheWoods21May2019
There are 21 species (3 native) of trillium here!
trilliumSessileredGardenintheWoods21May2019
Trillium sessile (sessile means stalkless)
doublewhitetrilliumgrandiflorumGardenintheWoods21May2019
double white Trillium grandiflorum ‘multiplex’
yellowtrilliumLuteusbestGardenintheWoods21May2019
Trillium luteus (I have this species growing in my shade garden)
trilliumCuneatumredfernGardenintheWoods21May2019
Trillium cuneatum, with its wedge-shaped leaves
whitetrilliumpinkGardenintheWoods21May2019
Trillium grandiflorum turns pink after post-peak

*

Two wild orchids: yellow lady’s slipper (Cypripedium parviflorum, formerly C. calceolus) —

showyladyslipperyellowGardenintheWoods21May2019showyladyslipperyellowbGardenintheWoods21May2019

— & Jack in the Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum)

JackinthePulpitcloseGardenintheWoods21May2019

*

Other woodland plants.

SolomonsSealflowersMayapplebloomGardenintheWoods21May2019
Solomon’s Seal (Polygonatum, either P. biflorum or P. pubescens — both are native) and a may-apple (Podophyllum peltatum) bloom; may-apple is native to Mass. but not the region where the garden is
mayappleflowerGardenintheWoods21May2019
may-apple (Podophyllum peltatum) bloom
PodophyllusMayAppleGardenintheWoods21May2019
colony of may-apples (Podophyllum peltatum) … the flowers are underneath
VancourveriaHexandraNorthernInsideOutFlowerbGardenintheWoods21May2019
a plant I’ve never heard of or seen before: Vancouveria hexandra, or northern inside-out flower … white flowers and maple-like leaves … native to the western U.S., in the barberry family
redyellowcolumbinefalseSolomonsSealrockGardenintheWoodsl21May2019
red columbine (Aquilegia canadensis)  “a-flaming / Against the gray rocks” 
falseSolomonsSealGardenintheWoods21May2019
false Solomon’s seal (Maianthemum racemosum)
dicentracanadensispinksquirrelcornGardenintheWoods21May2019
Dicentra canadensis, pink squirrel corn
twinflowerJeffersoniadiphyllaGardenintheWoods21May2019
Jeffersonia diphylla, twinflower
maidenhairfernGardenintheWoods21May2019
northern maidenhair fern (Adiantum pedatum), with, I think, Solomon’s seal
sharplobedhepaticaleavesGardenintheWoods21May2019
sharp-lobed hepatica (Anemone acutiloba, syn. Hepatica acutiloba) foliage, plus foliage on the right that I can’t identify
colonyskunkcabbageGardenintheWoods21May2019
colony of skunk cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus) and ferns
purplephloxDivaricataBlueMoonsignyellowCelandinePoppyGardenintheWoods21May2019
Phlox divaricata ‘Blue Moon’ and yellow Celandine poppy
purplephloxDivaricataBlueMoonGardenintheWoods21May2019
Phlox divaricata ‘Blue Moon’
pinkgeraniumsGardenintheWoods21May2019
geraniums of some kind
falsehelleboreGardenintheWoods21May2019
false hellebore (Veratrum viride)

*

A few other shots.

easternpricklypearcactusrocksGardenintheWoods21May2019
eastern prickly pear cactus (Opuntia humifusa)
pondGardenintheWoods21May2019
pond
fenceartmothsAylaMackoGardenintheWoods21May2019
fence art with moths (artist: Ayla Macko)
fenceartmothsbAylaMackoGardenintheWoods21May2019
fence art with moths (artist: Ayla Macko)
livingroofGardenintheWoods21May2019
living roof

alternatingbrancheslaiddownartwaterimpedimentGardenintheWoods21May2019

easternpaintedturtlelogflipperslegscloseGardenintheWoods21May2019
painted turtle

dirtpathtrailtreesGardenintheWoods21May2019

*

Featured image: brook
This is one in a series of posts revisiting field trips taken from January to June 2019, as described here.

One comment

Leave a Reply