Silver Spring Wanderer

Monday, May 18, 2015

Georgia

Last weekend, I flew down to Georgia to spend a great weekend with friends. My friend picked me up at the airport and we spent the afternoon in Atlanta at the Atlanta Botanical Garden, went out for a nice dinner and saw a show at the Fox Theater.

Earth Goddess, a plant sculpture at the botanical gardens

My friends have a three-year-old daughter, so we went out for several short hikes in a couple of Georgia state parks (and we went strawberry picking, too!).

We visited Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area. The main attraction of the park is a huge granite monadnock with rare plants growing in the solution pools (called obferkessels) on top of the mountain.

Diamorpha smallii (Red Diamorpha). This little plant is a succulent. It was done blooming for the year. As it gets hot and dry, the plant shrivels up and dries out to survive until the next time it rains.

Opferkessels with D. smallii, and purple Tradescantia virginiana (Spiderwort) on the summit of Arabia Mountain.

Near the top of the mountain, there was a pool of water. We found salamander eggs (the white shapes in the water above).

A spider riding a leaf in the pool.

A juvenile salamander in the pool.

Minuartia uniflora (Single-flowered Sandwort). This is a rare little plant that is primarily found in the Piedmont of Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina.

On another short hike, we visited Hard Labor State Park.

A tiny seedling in a nurse log.

A mushroom in the leaf litter.

Monday, April 9, 2012

Wildflowers and Good Friends in Georgia

I spent the weekend in Madison, Georgia with good friends. While we didn't hike long distances, we did get out for some nice, long walks. They are birders and were previously scheduled to lead a bird walk as part of a local conference. I tagged along and learned a lot about birds and the ecology of Central Georgia. We also saw lots of local flowers. Best of all, I got to spend time with friends that I don't get to see nearly enough.

Pictures (click to enlarge):

A mustard field on an evening walk near my friends' house.

Salvia lyrata (Lyre-Leaved Sage) along a roadside. S. lyrata is a member of the Mint Family.

Viola sp. (Violet) along a roadside.

Rock Eagle Effigy Mound at the 4-H Rock Eagle Environmental Education Center. The mound is estimated to have been built between 1,000 and 3,000 years ago.

An Eastern Bluebird in a field.

Hexastylis arifolia (Little Brown Jug Plant). This little oddity is a relative of Asarum canadense (Wild Ginger)

A small (~1.5 inches) scorpion that was under a log at Hard Labor State Park.

Trillium catesbaei (Catesby's Trillium, Rose Trillium) at Hard Labor State Park. Trilliums are among my favorite spring flowers. Georgia has a lot of different species, some of which were on display this weekend.