For the first time in a decade or more (since high school, I think), I got to celebrate Mother's Day at home with my mom. Maisie and I arrived in Petoskey in time for breakfast waffles. That afternoon, Mom and I headed to the woods for a springtime treat: hunting for morels. It was lovely to get reacquainted with so many of my northwoods wildflower friends. Above, trout lilies with their speckled leaves. Below, frilly white trillium.
Dutchman's breeches and wild leeks.
Jack-in-the-pulpit, with leaves all shiny-new.
Fern unfurling.
Spring beauties.
Trillium and bellwort.
I've been writing about wildflowers for a trailhead poster for the Grand Traverse Conservation District, my first spot of local employment, so my head is full of interesting flower factoids. See how the forest floor is a glorious carpet of green leaves and flower petals, while the trees are still bare and leafless? These flowers, the spring ephemerals, are taking advantage of a brief window of opportunity between snowmelt and leaf-out, when sunlight reaches all the way to the ground and soil moisture and nutrients are at a peak. In just a few weeks, the canopy will close and cast the understory into deep shade, but the flowers will have already completed their whole blooming cycle for the year.The wildflowers alone would have made the hike worthwhile, but just when we were beginning to give up on mushrooms - aha!
A single cluster - the only one we managed to find - yielded a total of thirteen black morels of various shapes and sizes. Just the right amount to cook up for dinner.
We also collected a bucketful of wild leeks to go with our forest-foraged meal . . .
. . . and added a beautiful bunch of local asparagus I "picked" at the first farmer's market of the season the day before in TC. It was frigid at the market, 40 degrees and spitting rain, with a cold wind off the bay and everyone all bundled and huddled. But no matter, warmer days are coming - and this one was perfect, with dinner truly the taste of spring!
1 comment:
Oh Kate, I miss you and spring ephemerals too. We had the most beautiful and amazing thunderstorm here the other night--it was like a firework finale for over an hour and going strong when I went to bed. It even rained all night long (which, aside from being a beautiful and unusual thing for CA summer night, went a long way towards allaying my fear of another smoky forest-fire filled summmer). It's been followed by several days of cloudy, breezy, occasionally even drizzly weather. Heavenly. Things have smell. My nose is not dry and crusty. It's been lovely. It made me think of you. :)
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