A few days ago a friend reported seeing spring beauty (Claytonia virginica) blooming on the Billy Goat C trail. Damn, that’s early!  Think I’ll head out tomorrow and have a look, because it has been literally months since I last photographed a wildflower.

<—not my friend’s picture; one of mine from last year

Except for this one: trailing arbutus (Epigaea repens), a low-growing evergreen in the Ericaceae. Please forgive the picture quality; it’s a quick iPhone snapshot to remind me to go back and look for it again, because it’s already budding up, and I’ve never seen one in bloom. If I manage to catch it flowering I will of course be writing about it here.

Nerd moment: I just realized it’s time to start my 2018 spreadsheet.