Persistence and Timing

Rose Twisted-Stalk – Prebloom

In May of 2015 I located a plant at the Headlands just outside of Mackinaw City in northern Michigan. It had a somewhat similar look to False Solomon Seal except the stem was branched.  I thought I recognized it as Twisted-Stalk from having seen it in books over the years. The plant wasn’t blooming yet so I stopped again in June on my way north and couldn’t even locate the plant. Did something (deer) eat it or did it look different after blooming? I’m not sure. That may be a question I can soon answer on a return June trip this year.

Rose Twisted-Stalk

When I returned in mid May of this year I once again found the plant in exactly the same place as last year. Again it had buds, but wasn’t blooming yet. I paid close attention to location in relation to markers on the trail to aid in relocating it. I decided since I had missed the bloom the previous year by waiting a month to go back, that I needed to return sooner this time. Temperatures shot up into the 80’s that next weekend and I decided if I waited until after Memorial Day it might be too late. So I went just over a week later and found Rose Twisted-Stalk, Streptopus lanceolatus blooming. It was a breezy day and light was good but not the best for shooting in the woods but I was able to get some useable images. For those photographing flowers, I am finding that increasing the camera’s ISO to give you faster shutter speeds in helping get those low light pictures we would otherwise miss.

If you are from northern Michigan or are familiar with this plant, you may be asking why the bid deal? Well, this was a new plant for me. One that I have wanted to find for years of seeing it in the books while looking to identify others I had seen. Rose Twisted-Stalk may not be a bright showy flower, but it is a new one on my list that continues to grow.

As you find and learn plants around you and venture out to new areas check back if the plant isn’t blooming yet to see the flower and maybe help identify it. You too may have to make several visits over multiple years but it will be worth it. You may also want to add estimated return time to your calendar as I have missed several blooms by forgetting to go back at the right times.

As the temperatures rise and the bugs become bothersome, prairies and wetlands will come alive with blooms over the summer: waiting for you to find them.