Thursday, March 25, 2010

Hunting for Skunk Cabbage & Leeks






It didn't start out that way.

I took off through the woods with Morris to where the wild leeks grow. I was sure that they'd be up and I'd be able to pick some for myself and my new neighbor.

Well, the leeks, or "wild ramp" as they are also called were up...but only about 2 inches.
Okay, I should be patient, maybe in a couple of weeks.

So I marched down the creek bottom where I know the skunk cabbage make an appearance each year for a very short time before they leaf out green.
I was happily rewarded for my hard fast walk.

Skunk Cabbage, a whole patch of them.
Of course I was scouring the ground, looking for them, when I looked up and saw Morris...
looking at me as if to say....


Hello...Duh...look at by my feet!

And there they were, hidden somewhat by dead Queen Anne's Lace and tall Streamside Fleabane.
I do get excited and thrilled over small things don't I?

But this is such an odd plant, I just love seeing it each year. The plants are very good indicators of when spring has begun to warm the soil.

On our way back home we followed our 'winter' deer trail, which is almost impossible to follow with the human eye.
But thank you Morris, for knowing the exact path to take up that steep hillside.

4 comments:

  1. I have never seen skunk cabbage at that stage before ... and I guess if I had, I wouldn't have know what I was looking at.
    Question: Does it have any odor at that stage? Somehow I'm guessing that it does not.

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  2. Soooo interesting! I've never heard of skunk cabbage before. How cool and way to go Morris! He's like a truffle sniffing pig.

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  3. No odor that I could detect and I was laying on the ground right in it..but not on it.

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  4. Christina!!!

    Morris is dah bomb...he finds deer antler sheds too.
    Now if I could get him to find Morel mushrooms!!!

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