WILDFLOWERS
Used as an "all-heal" medicinal herb, this plant is circumpolar and was familiar to early settlers. Colonizes roadside and field edges.
Quite uncommon on the Eno and elsewhere in the central piedmont. The basal rosettes show up in late winter but this shade-loving plant has flower stems that don't elongate and bloom until very late in the summer, barely before frost.
A shrubby annual of the Figwort family that blooms in late summer and early fall. Found in open habitat such as powerlines and unmowed roadsides.
A lily found in dry open woods. At one time, the bulbs were actually crushed and mixed with honey or syrup for fly poison.
Amphicarpa bracteata
Hog Peanut
An early blooming plant of woods edges. Closely related to Indian Hemp, both being from the Dogbane family.
The common name is derived from the appearance of the seed head. There is one very rare look-alike in NC.
Along the Eno this plant can be found growing in the wild at Cox's Mountain. Frequently a cultivated garden plant.
Denizens of low, swampy woods and edges, flowering in early spring.The bright red berries are very spectacular in the fall.
Early blooming (April) member of the Composite family. Common name means killer of leopards! Actually all parts of the plant are deemed poisonous to mammals.
A low growing colorful milkweed that frequently shows up in dry fields and along roadbanks from June until August.
Growing in open areas, this tall summer milkweed attracts numerous butterflies. The floss from the seedpods was collected for life jackets during World War II!
Late blooming tall spikes of flowers - Plant is parasitic on the roots of oaks. Prefers dry, open, deciduous woods.
A. virginica
Downy False Foxglove
A rare species of Baptisia associated with the prairie remnant glades around Penny's Bend.
B. aristosa
A profusely blooming annual of early fall that literally takes over newly mowed powerlines and roadside ditches.
Found in early spring in moist rich woods along streams and in lowlands. The Falcate Orange-tip butterfly shows up when this plant blooms.
Blooms in late summer along weedy roadsides and edges of farm fields. A favorite of the Cloudless Sulfur butterfly.
A sprawling vine of midsummer found mostly in open woods and clearings such as roadsides.
Cerastium glomeratum
Found in late summer along stream banks, this plant blooms profusely when located in a sunny opening. Look straight into the blossom and see the reason for its common name.
Common in mature pine woods. The fragrant blossoms appear in April and May but the variegated foliage is evergreen and evident the year around.
Can be found almost anywhere under the sun - literally - roadsides, pastures, yards, powerlines
A low growing composite with a long bloom period. Seems to bloom longer and more profusely in edge habitats with some sun.
Found in coves and on rich slopes. Blooms in early summer. Used as a herbal estrogen substitute.
On a sunny
day in early spring, the Eno lowlands are carpeted with this perennial. The
natives boiled the round irregular roots for a starchy food.
The common name is derived from the plumose styles of the globular seed heads. This species of Clematis is considered rare and is found on diabase soils in the Eno watershed.
C. viorna
A vine whose flowers have thick leathery sepals - hence the common name of Leather Flower - found along forest margins on basic soil.
C. virginiana
This plant
closely resembles the "other" Butterfly Pea - Centrosema virginianum. A field
guide will help differentiate them in the field.
A showy
Coreopsis of late spring that needs open habitats along roads and fields. Easily
and frequently cultivated.
Flowers abundant in mid-summer and recognizable by the apparently 6-whorled stem leaves (which are really two sessile opposite leaves each deeply cut into three leaflets).
Recognizable
by the thread-like leaves. This Coreopsis is a favorite nursery grown perennial.
The feathery foliage appears as early as February in sunny locations in alluvial woods or slopes and blooms by March.
A large spectacular orchid of pine flatwoods and acid soil. A reason for the scarcity of this orchid is that so many try to transplant it - Impossible!
A large circumboreal orchid which can be found in the moist woods along the Eno near the Pump Station.
Cytisus scoparium
Scotch Broom
Flowers show up in early spring. This plant puts on an incredible show along Penny's Bend trail and at Willie Duke's Bluff.
The rarest plant in this list. Occurs along the Eno and in nearby Granville County. Look for it in the meadow at Penny's Bend in July.
A low,
trailing woody plant of the Heath family. Can bloom as early as February.
Prefers rocky, dry hillsides and bluffs. Requires getting down on your hands and
knees to appreciate the fragrant flowers.
An early blooming lily that covers many slopes along the river and its tributaries. The mottled leaves can be identified as early as late February.
E. umbilicatum
Dimpled Trout Lily
These tiny
flowers are found throughout the summer along field edges and even in sunny
spots in the woods.
An evergreen ground cover more at home on our mountain slopes. The Eno's steep north facing banks boast several colonies of this plant.
Uncommon and frequently overlooked. It blooms late in semi-shaded upland woods, bogs and ditches.
A spring blooming woodland flower. Usually prefers lowlands and ravines. Foliage is distinctive and recognizable well into the summer.
Increasingly rare in the Eno valley and elsewhere. Prefers bogs, meadows and grassy hills.
H. clavellata
Crested Yellow Orchid
H. flava
Pale Green Orchid
H. orbiculata
Round-Leaved Orchid
This tall orchid found chiefly in Southwest North Carolina is rare in the piedmont where it is found only in permanently moist woods near the Eno and Flat Rivers.
A shrubby fall blooming composite of open ditches and wet fields.
A late blooming sunflower found in ditches and wet meadows.
H. annus
Common Sunflower
An early bloomer named for leaf color and shape. Start looking on sunny south-facing slopes as early as February.
In early spring clear away last year's fallen leaves and find the blooms lying low on the ground. Pinch a leaf and you find why it is called "Wild Ginger"! This is the least showy of the wild gingers and is also the most abundant. The common name "Little Brown Jug" fits well.
A tall and showy flower of mid-summer that is found around pond edges and wet ditches. Needs full sun.
Tiny masses
of flowers are also known as Quaker Ladies. These can show up almost anywhere
by mid-March.
This larger and taller version of Bluets is frequently found along trails, roadsides and powerlines.
A shrubby summer blooming annual. Its name derives from the bright turquoise visible after rubbing off the outer coating of the seed. Also called Touch-Me-Not because the ripe seed pod explodes when touched.
A short-stemmed wild Iris that colonizes large areas along river and stream slopes. Blooms in March and April.
A rare member of the Buttercup family that can be found along the Eno at Willie Duke's Bluff. Overlooked because if its resemblance to Windflower.
Look closely at bright green ponds and backwaters. You may be surprised to find thousands of these tiny plants covering the water surface.
Late summer spikes of this plant add color and contrast to roadsides and powerlines when they are in bloom with several species of yellow composites.
Check out
bright spots of color in the woods in July and you just might find this uncommon
Lily.
This minature orchid has two shiny leaves that appear oily. A close look is needed to appreciate the mauve orchid flowers on the spike.
Another rare plant that grows in the prairie remnant glades on circumneutral soil near the Eno. Blooms in late March to early April.
A lobelia of moist pastures, pond shores, muddy and marshy banks of tributaries in the woods. A summer blooming plant.
An uncommon lobelia found in the low woods and marshy areas near the Eno River.
A spring blooming composite of roadsides and open areas, frequently overlooked because other species are profusely blooming at the same time.
This plant
pops up overnight. Pale and shiny and without chlorophyll, it also merits its
name of Corpse Plant.
A common and underappreciated summer wildflower of fields, pastures and roadsides.
Look for this unusual low growing orchid in low wet areas near streams in rich hardwood forests.
A waxy-leaved aquatic whose common name literally describes the bloom spike. The starchy roots were used by the natives for food.
Common name is derived from its use as a substitute for quinine in the treatment of urinary tract inflammations.
P. integrifolium auriculatum
Glade Wild Quinine
This plant
spreads horizontally along sunny roadbanks. Frequently cultivated as a ground
cover.
The bloom hides under umbrella-like leaves. Berry is allegedly edible but all other parts of the plant are considered poisonous.
P. hydropiper
Swamp Knotweed
P. pensylvanicum
Common Knotweed
P. sagittatum
Tearthumb
P. scandens
Climbing False Buckwheat
The more
common and the paler of our two Rhexias. Both species love ditches and low wet
fields.
Handsome Harry
R. triloba
A colorful and prolificly blooming composite the favors roadsides and powerline clearings. Frequently cultivated for a garden perennial.
One flower at
a time, this little plant blooms over a large part of the summer.
R. humilis
Fringeleaf Wild Petunia
R. purshiana
Pursh's Petunia
Look for this
bushy annual in recently disturbed soil such as highway widening and along new
utility lines.
An aquatic
plant of pond edges and other permanently wet spots. Submerged bulb was commonly
used as food by natives, hence Duck Potato.
A member of the poppy family - blooms very early on rich wooded slopes. Name is derived from its blood-red roots used for dyeing.
S. gregaria
Clustered Black Snakeroot
S. marilandica
Maryland Sanicle
S. smallii
Small's Black Snakeroot
A wetland
plant that can totally fill wet sloughs in the floodplain - blooms in June.
This spring blooming plant's species name is derived from the fact that the round shiny leaves resemble Galax. This endangered plant is mainly found on slopes in humid gorges in three mountain counties.
Star shaped bright red flowers. The common name derives from the old name of "Pink Family".
Silphium asteriscus
Starry Rosinweed
A lily whose common name belittles its beauty - more clearly it should be called Plumed Solomon's Seal.
From late summer into fall is a good time to study the Goldenrod species. This is only one of at least 16 in the Eno watershed.
S. ovalis
October Lady Tresses
S. verna
Spring Ladies Tresses
Stellaria graminifolia
Grasslike Starwort
Seemingly fragile, this early spring ephemeral which starts blooming in March can be found in many habitats.
Dense spikes of flowers from a rosette of rounded leaves colonize stream banks and wet ditches. Early April is prime time.
A cryptic colored spike of orchid blooms shows up in July - the leaves are only evident in the fall and winter and are very distinctive being green on top, maroon underneath.
The 3-petalled flowers bloom at the rate of one a day but the blooming period spans several weeks during spring and early summer. The Spiderwort name may have been derived because of the angular leaf arrangement that resembles a squatting spider.
Look on rich slopes and the sides of ravines for this trillium that hides beneath its 3 leaves.
Trillium luteum
Yellow Wake Robin
Tristeum perfoliatum
Horse Gentian
V. occidentalis
A showy yellow composite that seems to prefer neutral soils but will take over flower gardens almost anywhere!
Vernonia glauca
Broadleaf Ironweed
Underappreciated because it occurs so many places - begins blooming early and persists into the summer in favorable habitats.
Also called
Zephyr Lily and grows in low woods and wet meadows. Actually a member of the
Amaryllis family.
A spring wildflower of the carrot family. Shows up in rich woods by April or May. Host plant for the Black Swallowtail butterfly.
TREES, SHRUBS AND WOODY VINES
Acer negundo
Box Elder
A. saccharum
Sugar Maple
A. rubrum
Red Maple
A. sylvatica
Buckeye
Ailanthus altissima
Tree-of-Heaven
Albizia julibrissin
Mimosa
Alnus serrulata
Tag Alder
Anisostichus capreolata
Cross Vine
Amelanchier arborea
Serviceberry
Aralia spinosa
Devil?s Walking Stick
Baccharis halimifolia
Eastern Baccharis
Betula nigra
River Birch
Calycanthus floridus
Sweet Betsy, Sweet Shrub
Campsis radicans
Trumpet Creeper
A robust native vine sometimes sold in plant nurseries as "Hummingbird Vine". Blooms in early summer.
Carpinus caroliniana
Ironwood, Muscle Tree
Carya carolinae-septrionalis
Southern Shagbark Hickory
C. cordiformis
Bitternut Hickory
Carya glabra
Pignut Hickory
Carya ovalis
Red Hickory
Carya ovata
Shagbark Hickory
Carya tomentosa
Mockernut Hickory
Celtis laevigata
Hackberry, Sugarberry
Cephalanthus occidentalis
Button Bush
This native shrub likes to "have its feet wet". It prefers full sun such as ponds and old beaver impoundments. Flowers are a magnet for butterflies seeking nectar.
Cercis canadensis
Red Bud
Chionanthus virginica
Fringe Tree
Clouds of wispy white seem to envelope this little tree in May.
Cornus amomum
Silky Dogwood
C. florida
Flowering Dogwood
C. stricta
Stiff Dogwood
Corylus americana
Hazelnut
Diospyros americana
Persimmon
Euonymus americanus
Hearts-a-busting-with-love
Flowers are rudimentary but this shrub comes into its glory in the autumn when
the fruit ripens.
Fraxinus ameicanus
White Ash
F. carolina
Carolina Ash
F. pensylvanica
Green Ash
Fagus grandifolia
Beech
Galussacia spp.
Huckleberries
Gelsemium sempervirens
Jessamine
An evergreen vine that climbs into treetops and can bloom in a mild winter in
January but sometimes waits until early May if the weather is cold.
Hamamelis virginiana
Witch-Hazel
Blooms before the leaves form - usually January or February. It is occasionally found along the Eno riverbanks. It is the source of Witch Hazel, an astringent
lotion.The forked branches were used as divining rods for water.
Hydrangea arborea
Wild Hydrangea
Ilex decidua
Possumhaw
I. glabra
Inkberry
I. montana
Mountain Holly
I. opaca
American Holly
I. verticillata
Common Winterberry
Itea virginica
Virginia Willow
Juniperus virginica
Red Cedar
Juglans nigra
Black Walnut
Kalmia latifolia
Mountain Laurel
The steep shady banks of the Eno become showy when this shrub blooms
around mid-May.
Uncommon
in the piedmont but very common in the North Carolina mountains.
Leucothoe racemosa
Doghobble
This shrub is also called Fetterbush. Grows mainly along steep stream
banks in thick clumps.
Lindera benzoin
Spicebush
Liquidambar styraciflua
Sweet Gum
Liriodendron tulipifera
Tulip Poplar
Lonicera japonica
Japanese Honeysuckle
Lonicera sempervirens
Coral Honeysuckle
Our native honeysuckle, very colorful but not fragrant like its Japanese cousin which is very, very invasive. Lyonia ligustrina
Maleberry
Lyonia mariana
Piedmont Staggerbush
Magnolia grandiflora
Southern Magnolia
M. tripetala
Cucumber tree
Morus rubra
Red Mulberry
Myrica cerifera
Bayberry
Nestronia umbellula
Leechbush
Nyssa sylvatica
Black Gum, Tupelo
Ostrya virginiana
Hop Hormbeam
Oxydendrum arboreum
Sourwood
Parthenocissus quinquefolia
Virginia Creeper
P. echinata
Short-leaf Pine
P. taeda
Loblolly
P. virginiana
Scrub Pine
Platanus occidentalis
Sycamore
Prunus angustifolia
Chickasaw Plum
P. serotina
Black Cherry
Quercus alba
White Oak
Q. coccinea
Scarlet Oak
Q.
falcata
Southern Red Oak
Q. marilandica
Blackjack Oak
Q. michauxii
Swamp Chestnut Oak
Q. montana (prinus)
Chestnut Oak
Q. nigra
Water Oak
Q. pagoda
Cherrybark Oak
Q. phellos
Willow Oak
Q. rubra
Northern Red Oak
Q. shumardi
Shumard?s Oak
Q. velutina
Black Oak
Robinia hispida
Bristly Locust
Robinia pseudo-acacia
Black Locust
Rosa carolina
Wild Rose
R. palustris
Swamp Rose
A simple rose with sharp back-facing thorns. It prefers the low wet areas in the Eno valley. Large rose hips are edible and a good source of Vitamin C
Rhododendron catawbienseCatawba Rhododendron
A disjunct shrub which finds a habitat to its liking along the north-facing banks of the Eno and a few other streams in the piedmont.
It is much more common in the higher mountains of Northwestern North Carolina. R. nudiflorum
Wild Azalea, Pinxter Flower
Rhus aromatica
Fragrant Sumac
Rhus copallina
Winged Sumac
R. glabra
Smooth Sumac
R. typhina
Staghorn Sumac
R. radicans
Poison Ivy
R. toxicodendron
Poison Oak
Rubus species
Blackberries
Salix nigra
Black Willow
S. sericea
Silky Willow
Sambucus canadensis
Elderberry
Sassafras albidum
Sassy Tree
Smilax bona-nox
Greenbrier
S. glauca
Saw Brier
S. herbacea
Carrion Flower
S. rotundifolia
Common Greenbrier
Sorbus (Aronia) arbutifolia
Chokecherry
Spirea tomentosa
Hardhack, Steeplebush
Staphylea trifoliata
Bladdernut
Styrax americana
Snowbells
Symphoricarpus orbiculata
Coralberry
Ulmus alata
Winged Elm
U. americana
American Elm
U. rubra
Slippery Elm
Vaccinium arboreum
Farkleberry
V. corymbosum
Highbush Blueberry
V. pallidum
Blue Ridge Blueberry
V. staminuem
Deerberry
Viburnum acerifolium
Maple-leaf Arrow Wood
Typical Viburnum blossoms and berries but the leaves are distinctive, making it an easy shrub to identify. V. dentatum
Southern Arrow Wood
V. prunifolium
Blackhaw
V. rafinesquianum
Downy Arrow Wood
V. rufidulum
Rusty Blackhaw
Vitis aestivalis
Summer Grape
V. labrusca
Fox Grape
V. rotundifolia
Muscadine Grape
V. vulpina
Frost Grape
Wisteria sinensis
Japanese Wisteria
Xanthorhiza simplicissima
Yellowroot
FERNS AND ALLIES
Adiantum pedatum
Maidenhair Fern
Asplenium bradleyi
Bradley?s Spleenwort
A. montanum
Mountain Spleenwort
A. platyneuron
Ebony Spleenwort
Athyrium asplenioides
Lady Fern
Grows profusely in damp sloughs, ditches, stream banks, and low areas on the forest floor. Our most common deciduous fern.
A. pycnocarpon
Glade Fern
Botrychium biternatum
Common Grape Fern
B. dissectum
Cutleaf Grape Fern
B. virginianum
Rattlesnake Fern
Cheilanthes lanosa
Hairy Lip Fern
Dennstaedtia punctiloba
Hay-scented Fern
Dryopteris marginalis
Marginal wood Fern
D. cristata
Crested Wood Fern
A Wood Fern that is rare in Durham County - Historically there was a large colony at Huckleberry Springs.
D. goldiana
Goldie?s Wood Fern
Lycopodium flabelliforme
Running-Pine or Running Cedar
The fossil history of Clubmosses supposedly dates them back to the Paleozoic Era.
The pollen from the spores was once used as "flash powder" in the early days of photography. Lygodium palmatum
Climbing Fern
Onoclea sensibilis
Sensitive Fern
Ophioglossum vulgatum pycnostichum
Adder?s Tongue
Osmunda cinnamomea
Cinnamon Fern
O. claytonia
Interrupted Fern
O. regalis
Royal Fern
Polypodium polypodioides
Resurrection Fern
A small fern that colonizes rock crevices and tree trunks.
It becomes desiccated during dry weather then becomes green and lush a few hours after a rain.
P. virginianum
Rock Cap Fern
P. acrostichoides
Christmas Fern
There are many stories about how the common name of Christmas Fern came about
-the most likely is because this fern is one of very few lush green plants in forests during the winter months.
Selaginella apoda
Meadow Spikemoss
Thelypteris hexagonoptera
Broad Beech Fern
T. noveboracensis
New York Fern
T. palustris
Marsh Fern
Woodsia obtusa
Blunt-lobe Cliff Fern
Woodwardia areolata
Netted Chain Fern
last updated: October 15, 2009