Bloodroot fruits

Bloodroot seeds with elaiosomes

Bloodroot, Sanguinaria canadensis, is a wonderful spring woodland flower in the Eastern U.S.  Its reproductive ecology is fascinating:  ants disperse seeds of bloodroot, as they're interested in the lipid-rich elaiosomes, transporting the seeds as well as the elaiosomes back to their nests.

This is a photo taken by my gardening companion (and newly published author, woo-hoo!) of Wildflowers and Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont.

Check out this great photo of bloodroot in fruit on his Wildflower Ecology blog. 

I'm proud of what he's produced with 8+ years of hard work (no apologies for the enthusiasm).  And the books have arrived, and are ready to be shipped.  And all of the proceeds will go to conservation in the Southern Appalachians and Piedmont.

Mocha would be proud, too!

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Signs of spring

The Iris cristata foliage is up, buds of the hickories, oaks, and blueberry relatives are swollen, and the songs of birds are louder than ever in the morning.  Spring is progressing. 

Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis), Spring, 2010

The bloodroot plants along the front walk are flowering, although there's still no competition to last year's flowering (above).

It's still early, though, and a few years ago, we experienced a significant late April 8 (Easter that year) freeze.  It caused a lot of freeze damage, even to native plants, as it was a hard freeze, much later than usual.

But this has been a year for enjoying the non-native Magnolia stellata and M. acuminata flowers, following a long warm February.

Erratic weather is something that is predicted to become more common, as the climate changes.  It's worrisome, to be sure.

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Bloodroot flowers

Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis) is a lovely spring wildflower in deciduous forests in the Eastern U.S.

The common name reflects its reddish sap, when the underground parts are bruised. The sap contains active phytochemicals, some potentially effective against less desirable bacteria and possibly some cancer cells.

Its flowers tell me that spring is definitely here.

This plant, transplanted from the side garden, is flourishing along the front pathway. (And note the young, seed-derived, plant on the left!)

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