Early spring wildflowers at Cootes Paradise in Burlington

April showers bring May flowers, and true to that adage, the forests in Cootes Paradise in Hamilton, Ontario, were already liberally sprinkled with clumps of Round-lobed Hepatica (Anemone Americana). We had been enjoying very warm temperatures in Southern Ontario, and in combination with the odd April shower, it has given rise to these early spring wildflowers.

Scampering up the hillsides and along the trails, Round-lobed Hepatica provided a colourful contrast to the otherwise brown forest floor. It is a native perennial that grows between 4-6 inches tall. The tuft of lobed leaves that develop during the spring actually persist through the winter in shades of green, reddish brown or brownish green, as seen in my picture.

Round-lobed Hepatica is one of the first spring wildflowers to come into bloom, usually with lavender flowers.

Growing in close proximity to the Round-lobed Hepatica were equal numbers of Sharp-lobed Hepatica. These plants are very much like one another, except where it comes to the leaves.

Both species of Hepatica bear blooms in shades of white, pink or mauve, but here, you can see that the leaves of the Sharp-lobed Hepatica are more pointed at the tips, and the lobes are more deeply cut. Another common name for Hepatica is Liverleaf, which refers to the appearance and shape of the leaves.

On both species of this plant, a single flower grows atop each slender, hairy stem. The hairy stems help protect the plant by keeping a warm layer of air close to the plant when the spring temperatures drop to freezing.

The delicate flowers gaily bobbed in the breeze, but they will be short-lived.

I had not expected to see Trout Lily (Erythronium americanum) in bloom yet, but there, along the forest trails, a few of these delightful spring flowers had already been encouraged to open their buds.

As a child, we used to call this flower Adder’s Tongue or Dog-Toothed Violet. A pair of maroon-mottled leaves sheathes the base of each stalk that bears a nodding flower.

Each flower is composed of petals and sepals that are bent backwards exposing six brown stamens.

Not yet showing signs of flowers, the modest Mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum) had only recently pushed its way up out of the soil. The dense shoots, composed of tightly-wrapped leaves, seemed to glow from within where the sunlight lit their white crowns.

It won’t be long before each plant supports between 1-3 deeply-lobed leaves and one delicate white flower. Although the common name is Mayapple, it is the flower that appears in early May, not the “apple”. The fruit or “apple” is produced by early summer and ripens later in summer.

Since our last visit to Cootes Paradise, when Bob and I discovered the humble Skunk Cabbage in early bloom, we wanted to check the status of that plant’s development.

Vibrant green leaves closely wrapped into themselves are now slowly unfurling in a spiraling pattern into what will become a beautiful clump of cabbage-shaped leaves. In my photo, here, you can see the remains of the maroon-coloured bloom that preceded the growth of the leaves.

Gradually a large, funnel-shaped rosette forms. The largest leaves will reach three, occasionally four feet in length.

Stands of the vigorously growing Skunk Cabbage scrambled up the hillsides, never venturing far from a source of water. By mid-May, the surge of spring growth will peak, and the wetland will be flooded with wide swathes of robust Skunk Cabbage plants.

For now, the most hearty plants are those with their feet actually in water such as this one growing right at the edge of a stream. Bob and I were careful to keep our own feet dry as we navigated the woodland environment in search of more wondrous things to see and experience.

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