In and around the month of May (depending on weather and other environmental conditions) is the time to see short-lived spring ephemeral wildflowers in New York State. Below are a few popular and fascinating spring wildflowers you can encounter throughout the state.
This is only a smattering, as there are dozens of different wildflower species. Here is a list of tips for viewing wildflowers. And remember to protect these plants, many are rare and legally protected species.
Bloodroot
Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis) is a cheery white flower and is named for the red-orange juice in its stem and roots. The flower is encircled by a single leaf. As the morning sun hits the flower, the flower will rise above the leaf and bloom. At night, the flower closes and is again enveloped by the leaf.
Bloodroot prefers the shade and moist to wet soil. Like trillium, and a few other early wildflowers, the seeds of bloodroot are sought after by ants, who bring the seed to their nest, eat the fleshy part outside of the seed, then “dispose” of the seed. This allows the seed to propagate away from the original plant.
This process of pollination by ants is called myrmecochory. You can read more about bloodroot here and here.
Trillium
There are several varieties of trillium across the state, including white, painted, red, and a few others that are less common. It is usually found in damp woodland areas. Take the “tri” in trillium and you have everything you need to know to identify the genus: it contains three petals in the flower, three sepals just below the petals, and three leaves or bracts.
Trillium do not technically have a true stem or leaves above ground. The “stem” is just an extension of the rhizome. The bracts are capable of photosynthesis and provide energy for the plant. The trillium is a protected species in New York so take only pictures. Read more about Trillium here.
Jack-In-The-Pulpit
One of the coolest, but most subtle of spring flowers is the Jack-in-the-Pulpit (Arisaema triphyllum). It has one or two leaves, separated into three leaflets. The hooded green flower, or spathe (the pulpit) has maroon-brown stripes and shades the maroon-brown spadix (Jack) that contains the tiny flowers.
Found in humus-rich, moist soil, the flower is pollinated by small flies that are lured by the smell of fungus. The male flowers have a hole at the bottom so the flies can escape. The females do not, thus the flies spread the pollen around, and then die in the flower.
The corm, or root of the plant, is where the carbohydrates are stored. This is where it gets really interesting: the plant may start out as male, but over time, as enough energy is stored, it will change and produce a female flower.
Because it doesn’t take as much energy to make pollen, it is easier to produce male flowers. As more energy is stored in the corm, it can produce the female flower and with pollination, produce seeds. Based on the energy reserves, the plant can change the sex of its flowers from year to year. The males produce only one leaf, while the females will usually produce two leaves.
Red Columbine
The brightly-colored red columbine (Aquilegia canadensis) bloom later in spring. This plant has a beautiful bell-like flower with reddish petals and bright yellow stamen. Look for it on rocky outcrops and dry soils. The long tubular segments of the flower contain some of the first nectar available for long-tongued insects and hummingbirds.
Some say the spurred tubular flowers resemble an eagle’s talons, hence the genus name Aquilegia, meaning “eagle” in Latin.
Fringed Polygala
Another interestingly shaped flower that blooms about the same time as red columbine is fringed polygala (Polygaloides paucifolia). This brightly colored rose-purple flower lights up the dark pine forest floor in the spring.
It is a low-growing plant, easily overlooked when it is not in bloom. The flowers have two petals separated by a fringed petal in the center. It is part of the milkwort family (Polygalaceae), “poly” meaning “much”, and “gala” meaning “milk” in Greek. Farmers believed that cows that ate plants from the milkwort family would produce greater amounts of milk.
Want to See Some?
Here are a list of New York State parks where you have a good chance of seeing wildflowers like these.
Saratoga/Capital Region
Central New York
New York City
Long Island
Finger Lakes
Western New York
Northern New York
Hudson Valley
Read more about wildflowers in New York State.
A version of this essay by Karin Badey, State Parks Environmental Educator and Ryan Percy, Community Engagement Coordinator of the Saratoga-Capital Region State Parks Regional Office, first appeared in the New York State Parks and Historic Sites Blog.
Illustrations, from above: A State Parks Outdoor Educator leads a hike (photo by Ryan Percy provided by State Parks); Bloodroot; a Trillium; a Jack-in-the-Pulpit; Red Columbine, and Fringed Polygala (all provided by State Parks).
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