Take a Michigan Wildflower Scavenger Hunt this Spring
A wildflower scavenger hunt is a fun reason to take a walk in the woods. In spring, one of the first things to come back to life in Michigan’s forests, meadows and marshes are native wildflowers. It’s exciting when you happen across these beautiful,delicate blooms in the wilderness. Bring a cell phone or camera along to take pictures of your finds. Please don’t pick the flowers. Some are endangered and protected by the state. Besides, it’s better to leave them for someone else to enjoy. Here’s a list of spring blossoms to keep an eye out for on your Michigan wildflower hike:
1. Ram’s Head Orchid – This flower is also called a Lady Slipper and grows in the Northern Lower Peninsula and Upper Peninsula. It needs a cool, damp place to thrive, like a wetland or bog, often in a pine forest. A purple pouch of petals hangs from a stem with green leaves that grow in a spiral around the flower. Be sure to bend down and take in this plant’s pleasant scent. You’ll find these in bloom from mid-May to mid-June.
2. Trillium – You’ll find Trillium in damp, wooded areas. Most commonly the plant has three large, white flower petals, but it can be found in a variety of other colors. They bloom as early as March and continue into June, depending on the variety.
3. Hepatica – One of the first to bloom each year, these white, pink and blue blossoms herald spring in Michigan. They’re found almost exclusively in forests with maple and beech trees. They can be found as soon as the ground thaws, sometimes even before it’s officially spring on the calendar.
4. Dwarf Lake Iris – The Dwarf Lake Iris is Michigan’s state wildflower. It’s rare and only grows in the Great Lakes Region. It takes root in sandy soil or gravel where limestone is present, most often in full sun. They’re related to garden variety Iris, but are much shorter and smaller. They have deep blue petals and dark green leaves. You’ll find them from May to June.
5. Sweet Whites and Common Violets – You’ll find wild violets in bloom in shady, moist soil in mid-may. They’re generally a light purple color, but can be darker shades of purple to deep blue as well as white. The white violets, also known as sweet whites, have a distinct raspberry scent. All varieties grown low to the ground in small clumps.
6. Virginia Bluebells – You have to be quick to catch these flowers in bloom. They come alive in mid-spring and only last about three weeks. Clusters of blue, bell-shaped flowers grow from stalks that can reach as much as three feet high. They are found mainly in West Michigan in areas that often flood in the spring.
7. Dutchman’s Breeches – Small, white and yellow flowers that form the shape of a pair of pantaloons grow on a stalk extending from fern-like foliage. They generally grow in large groups. They can bloom as early as march, but are most commonly found in late-April in Michigan. They finish before the trees in the forests where they grows get their leaves.
8. Yellow Trout Lily – This plant features yellow petals that fold back from a dark reddish-brown stem, revealing long “antlers” that are either yellow reddish-brown. Their the leaves are green and white mottled in color. You’ll find them in damp areas of the forest in mid-spring.
9. Evening Primrose – These yellow flowers get their name, because they always open in evening, then only bloom for one day. The blooms form at the end of this plant that grows close to the ground in full sun. Look for them in late spring.
10. Marsh Marigold – You’ll find these flowers beginning in April in wet, marshy areas at the name suggests. The yellow, five-petaled flowers grow on mounded plants with green, heart-shaped leaves. They bloom through June.
11. Spring Beauties – The flowers arrive mid-march and finish by early May. They feature while petals with pink veins. Sometimes they’re completely white. In undisturbed areas, they can form ground cover over large sections. Clumps of two or three blooms form at the top of a stem that grows from two narrow green leaves close to the ground.It’s mainly found in the Southern Lower Peninsula.
12. Blood Root – This flower blooms from early March to mid-May in Michigan, depending on location and weather. A single white flowers with yellow and orange in the center is surrounded by a single scalloped green leaf. It grows in deciduous forests. The plant gets its name from the orange-red sap that leaks from its roots when picked.
13. Fleabane – This flower resembles a daisy and blooms in spring. You may find it again in the fall. It grows in dry, sandy soil in full sun. It’s found in clearings near the beach and along railroad beds. The petals are white to light purple and it has a bright yellow center.
14. Wild Geraniums – The garden variety is red, but wild geraniums in Michigan feature light purple flowers. They spread, creating ground cover and blooming from May to mid-June. You’ll find them growing in shady areas.
Image credits: 1. Pverdonk, 2. JackFrost2121, 3. Archenzo, 4. J M, 5. James Steakley, 6. Nafsadh, 7.
