I'm always getting ahead of myself. Last night, after our back deck barbeque, I never could muster sufficient energy to finish the rant I promised in my previous post. Then, this morning I had to drive out by Oakland Camp in search of Mountain Lady Slippers and Scarlet Fritillary. I think I discovered why I keep getting ahead of myself, going after new sightings before I've finished thinking and writing about the old ones. I found myself driving along the Oakland Camp road at 5 mph at least subconsciously trying to will certain wildflowers to bloom, to overcome the drought and my doubts. My first stop was by the Lady Slipper area and it was discouraging. Only a few plants had broken ground, and the ones that had were looking rather distraught. I could imagine their failing to bloom this year. Nearby there was a healthy crop of blooming False Solomon's Seal which I'll feature here later. There I go again, promising; but maybe I'll get distracted again and forget. In any case, my quick round trip was rewarded by finding a few blooming Fritillary in a place where I'd never seen them before. Despite the drought conditions, these lilies looked fine. Of course, their early season energy is derived mainly from bulbs that are still in what remains of moist soil below the surface.
My plan is first to post some flowers from yesterday's drive around American Valley, then post a more thorough coverage of this morning's run to the Oakland Camp area. I'll be leading a nature walk in the area two weeks from now, and due to the paucity of species blooming and the corresponding lack of pollinators, I'll need to be more creative to make nature seem as interesting to my visitors as it is to me. "When life serves you lemons, make lemonade." Erma Bombeck
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