A Walk in the Woods
I spent the May long weekend at my family’s cottage in Northern Ontario. It was great to get out of the city, the weather was wonderful, and it was the perfect opportunity to poke around the wooded parts of the property while the undergrowth was still manageable. What at first glance appears to be just a carpet of indistinguishable leafy greens is actually a highly diverse community of plants. Some are food sources for the local wildlife (and treats for us if we can get there in time!), others have historically been used to treat a variety of ailments, some just look pretty, and a few of them are potentially quite dangerous to us and are best left alone.
Herb Robert (Geranium robertianum), a wild geranium thought to have medicinal properties.
Thankfully the bugs were not bad at all. Normally it would be death by bug bites to go wandering into the woods at this time of year, but a dry winter and spring so far have meant the mosquito and black fly populations are low. I only got a couple mosquitoes trying to nibble at my hands, nothing I couldn’t deal with.
White Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum), The provincial flower of Ontario.
I’ll head back north later in the summer when even more has grown. There’s plenty more to photograph, from mullein to yarrow, to milkweed, and more. For more images of the interesting flora from the woods and shoreline of our place in cottage country, please check out the gallery of images.
Tags: cottage country, herbalism, wildflowers
