Arboretum Photos 2.28.2016

Here's a few of the photos I took yesterday with the macro lens.

Fern fiddleheads unfurling

Urn-flowered clusters of swamp-homed climbing heath
(Pieris phillyreifolia).
This is a native relative of the common Japanese pieris (P. japonica) found in many gardens and landscapes in the U.S. These urn-shaped flowers, similar to blueberry flowers and many other flowers of native species in the heather family, are adapted for bumblebee pollination, requiring longer "tongues" than honeybees have, which aren't capable of reaching into the urn.

Buckwheat tree in blossom.
Cliftonia monophylla is the only species in its genus, and Cliftonia is one of only two genera in its family, both of which are native near the Gulf Coast. I remember when I first saw this tree in flower at Birmingham Botanical Gardens. "What the hell is that? Sure is purty."

Toadshade, wakerobin, Trillium. These little forest beauties go by many names, and I still haven't sorted out the way to tell the difference between the several spotted species found in Alabama. Perhaps I could go to grad school and study Trilliums. I'm thinking this is
Trillium maculatum.

I've recently discovered Pinterest is a great place to find great plant photos and garden ideas. My Pinterest profile is here. I also started a gardening journal on Instagram called inhortisconclusis.