Was up at Holston Mountain twice in the past few weeks, searching for a few rare and unusual plants, and one rare butterfly. First hike was along the Holston Mountain Trail. Here the Turk's Cap Lilies (and the Stinging Nettles) were thriving!
This high elevation species of Milkweed - called Poke Milkweed - was also at peak bloom.
Poke milkweed is a nectar source for one of our rarer butterflies, so we always plan at least one hike up on Holston when it is blooming. Sure enough, we spotted a few Diana Fritillaries. Here's a male, enjoying the sunshine among the nettles and on the path. Females are blue instead of orange, but we didn't see any females this trip.
We did see some tasty trailside snacks!
And we saw buds of two more plants (Michaux's Lily and Yellow Fringed Orchid).
These buds encouraged us to return a few weeks later for another hike. This time we went UP the Flint Mill Trail. It's one of the shortest, but steepest ways to the top. Along the way, we spotted a new county record for a small bloom of the dry places. A huge bed of Curtis' Milkwort has sprouted near a recent controlled burn...
The dry slopes of Flint Mill trail are ideal for Michaux's Lily - one of our few native lilies that is not affected by the lily fungus, probably because it grows in dry places. They don't bloom every year. But this year must have been just right for them.
We also saw LOTS of Yellow Fringed Orchid up at the top of the trail. Not a rare wildflower, but its beauty sure was worth the climb.
These little fellows also think that the dry rocky slopes of Holston Mt are ideal habitat. You can tell that Copperheads are venemous by the shape of their pupils. But if you are close enough to examine their pupils, you are probably too close! These two were nestled rather far back in a rock crevice. I had to use a sheet of paper as a reflector to shed some light on them...
Hope you enjoyed the flowery hikes, and that you'll share your comments and critique!
Post #1 by mole
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