Monthly Archives: May 2018

Long-Tube Valerian

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Two weeks ago I mentioned long-tube valerian in a post. This plant bedevils me. It grows in the deep, deep shade of the woods, often along the banks of seasonal streams and in other very moist soils. The deep shade makes it difficult to photograph, especially since I need to use a very small aperture to get the entire inflorescence in focus.

Valeriana pauciflora, whose other common names are few-flowered valerian and large-flowered valerian, is in the Caprifoliaceae (honeysuckle family), and is listed S1/endangered by the Maryland DNR. Its native range is restricted almost entirely to the Ohio River drainage basin, along with a few occurrences on the lower Susquehanna River, central Maryland, and northern Virginia.


The plants I’ve seen consist of a single delicate stem that grows to about two feet tall, sporting a terminal cyme of flowers. The compound leaves have 3 leaflets each, the terminal leaflet often with an elongated tip. According to descriptions I’ve read in other sources, there can also be inflorescences in the upper leaf axils; sometimes these are described as panicles rather than cymes; also, the leaves can have as many as seven leaflets.

The are fourteen other Valerian species found in North America, only one of which is in the mid-Atlantic (barely).

I’ve never managed to do it justice in pictures. This one from 2014 is still my favorite.

But I’ll try again next year.

Found Again!

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It was raining, and the forecast said rain all week, but then there was a window of a few hours between downpours. Thinking about the plants that might be Scutellaria nervosa, I decided to take the camera on a quick hike to the site and check. I was sure they wouldn’t be flowering yet, since a week before they had just the tiniest little buds on them.

I was wrong: they were already flowering. But, I was right: they are S. nervosa!

Veiny skullcap is one of ten Scutellaria species found in Maryland. All are native, and half of them are on the RTE list (veiny is ranked S1S2). The species is globally secure; the only other jurisdiction listing it is Michigan, where it’s threatened. Its native range is more or less the Ohio River basin and somewhat east of that into the mid-Atlantic states.

This is a slender forb growing to about a foot tall, with a single stem. The lower stem leaves are ovate and dentate, and may have short petioles, while the upper leaves are elliptical, less dentate or almost entire, and sessile. The upper leaf surfaces are lightly covered in hairs, and the margins are more densely hairy.

The light blue, pendant flowers are borne in pairs in the upper leaf axils. They aren’t very showy, and sometimes they hide under the leaves, so they’re easy to miss.

If you find veiny skullcap in Maryland please post in the comments section! We have very few records for this species.

More RTEs

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What a week I had last week! It started with orchids and ended with multiple RTE sightings. I re-found Scutellaria nervosa (S1S2/highly state rare; endangered) on the same day I pulled weeds from a stand of Valeriana pauciflora (S1/highly state rare/endangered). And not long after that, I came across the largest stand of Phacelia purshii (Miami mist, fringed phacelia) that I have ever seen.

That stand had literally dozens of star-of-Bethlehem plants all through it, so before taking pictures I weeded that patch. [important note in case you missed my previous post: I have authority to do so in that area] Actually I rather regret not taking a picture of the whole patch first, but oh well. They’ll be back…

P. purshii is listed S3/watchlist in Maryland.

Not long after that, I found a lovely and mostly weed-free patch of Phacelia dubia (small-flower phacelia), which is also S3/watchlist.

I wrote about the two species (and a third, P. covillei) in April of 2017, so won’t repeat myself. I just wanted to post these pictures.

Superhero

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Every spring I go looking for long-tube valerian, aka few-flowered valerian or large-flower valerian (Valeriana pauciflora), a forb of wet wooded areas that sports a stunning inflorescence. In Maryland it’s listed S1/E [see my previous post for definitions]. I know of four distinct populations in the Maryland piedmont.

Last week I was at one of those sites, setting up the camera on the tripod, and while looking around for a good candidate (since the flowers were just starting to bloom and the dappled forest light was making annoying shadows), I noticed a fair amount of garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) and a few star-of-Bethlehem (Ornithogalum umbellatum), too.

Those two species are invasive aliens. While garlic mustard is a well-known pest, star-of-Bethlehem gets less attention. The first time I saw it in those woods, maybe seven or eight years ago, there were just a few. But every year, there are more and more.

 

 

Here’s a picture of its close cousin, nodding star-of-Bethlehem (Ornithogalum nutans), invading a floodplain in Frederick County.

 

 

 

So anyway, before shooting, I donned this vest and pulled some weeds.

I don’t do this nearly as often as I should. But I took a class, was given a vest, and am therefore allowed to do a certain amount of invasive alien plant removal in a few specified areas. There are so many invasive aliens in those areas that I’ve decided to limit my efforts to places with populations of RTEs (rare, threatened, endangered species).

I’m not sure who originated the Weed Warrior concept, but Carole Bergmann of Montgomery Parks started our local  program in 1999, and there are others in the DMV. If you’re inclined to do some volunteering and make a difference, I urge you to look for a local Weed Warrior group and sign up. At the same time I strongly urge you not to just start pulling weeds. It’s illegal to do so in most public parks, unless you have permission, for a good reason: it’s easy to do real damage to native plant populations if you don’t know what you’re doing. So please, get involved, but do so responsibly.

Found Again?

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I took this picture four years ago when still fairly new to photography, learning to use a new lens (105mm macro) and not sure what I was doing. Lying on my belly to get some close-up shots of miniscule blossoms on other plants, I happened to see these little pendant blue flowers and shot them, too. I had no idea what the plants were.

Later at home I keyed them out to veiny skullcap (Scutellaria nervosa). And then I learned that the species was listed S1 and endangered in Maryland!

Currently it’s listed S1/S2 endangered, with a status change to threatened pending. According to the Maryland DNR,

S1: Critically Imperiled/Highly State Rare—At very high risk of extinction or extirpation due to very restricted range, very few populations or occurrences, very steep declines, very severe threats, or other factors. Typically occurring in five or fewer populations.

S2: Imperiled/State Rare—At high risk of extinction or extirpation due to restricted range, few populations or occurrences, steep declines, severe threats, or other factors. Typically occurring in 6-20 populations.

Endangered: A species whose continued existence as a viable component of Maryland’s flora is determined to be in jeopardy.

I went back as soon as I could to get better pictures, but couldn’t find the plants, despite knowing exactly where to look (geotagged with iPhone). And I’ve hunted for them every year since, but have never found them.

Until a few days ago.

I won’t be positive until they bloom, but the appearance of the leaves and stem, coupled with flower bud location (in the upper leaf axils), leaves little doubt.

Fingers crossed.