This is a re-post from my previous blog site. Looking for the Dwarf Trout Lily has now become an annual spring event for me…I love Nerstrand and wildflowers and springtime and walking in the woods! Naturalists are now in the park on weekends during the Dwarf Trout Lily’s bloom season to point it out to those in search of the precious flower.
My favorite park is Big Woods State Park, or affectionately known as Nerstrand. The maple-basswood forest has lovey trails and a Hidden Falls…and camping. We have camped there several times over the years but since it is really close to where we live I can hop in the car and be there in no time, so I go there often. It’s a favorite place to go…for all seasons.
I go on an annual Dwarf Trout Lily hunt. The Minnesota dwarf trout lily (Erythronium propullans) is a federally endangered forest wildflower found in Rice, Goodhue, and Steele Counties, Minnesota. Because it is known only from this small area the dwarf trout lily is considered a Minnesota “endemic” – i.e. a species that grows in Minnesota and nowhere else on earth.* Now that’s exciting.
I know one spot on the trail where they bloom among thousands of Common Trout Lilies. So I walk the trail and look for my treasure and when I find it I am delighted to have seen it once again. I use my finger as a reference point for pictures so one can see how tiny the flowers are.
Then I continue to walk along the trail and spy the Marsh Marigolds, Spring Beauties, Anemones, Violets and Dutchman’s Breeches. The trees are starting to but out and the hint of “spring” green is so beautiful. The branches are airy and you can see right through them to the hilly woods that are normally leafed-covered in the summer.
I’m grateful for this gift and the opportunity to experience nature. My heart is joyful and I praise the Lord for the beauty that surrounds me.
* Sather, N. 1990. “Minnesota dwarf trout lily: an endangered Minnesota wildflower.” Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, St. Paul. 9 pages.