Hawks and Chrysogonum virginianum

A early morning walk found us (a good friend and me) admiring Green and Gold (Chrysogonum virginianum) and the emerging green of the oak-hickory forest in the 'back' of the Garden.

It's a lovely forest, with Piedmont azaleas and sweet shrub in flower (not to mention the oaks and hickories, achoo!)

We heard one of the red-shouldered hawks calling in the forest and coming out towards the meadows, we saw a pair soaring high up, barely within reach of my camera lens.

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Spring wildflowers

Here are a few images from the native plant collections at the Botanical Gardens of Asheville.

An tough and adaptable wildflower, Green and Gold (Chrysogonum virginicum) thrives in conditions from dry dappled sunlight to damper edges; some plants (from northern populations) are much more upright than the prostrate rosettes common in southern populations. These plants, growing in relatively high rich soil, look robust.


Firepink (Silene virginica) must be challenging to move - I seldom see it for sale as a tranplant. Otherwise, it would be more common as a garden plant!


And Iris cristata always is lovely.

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