By Vanessa Voelker, Botanist with the Office of Kentucky Nature Preserves
While you’re admiring the usual spring flora during the week leading up to Wildflower Weekend, here are a few infrequent to rare native plants to watch for across Kentucky. In past years, iNaturalist observers have helped to document new populations of these seven uncommon to rare native species in the state. With a little luck and a sharp eye, you may be able to help us document even more!
Spotted mandarin (Prosartes maculata, Special Concern)
Blooming period: April
Where to find it: High quality mesic forests in the eastern part of the state. Most iNaturalist observations of Spotted Mandarin in Kentucky come from the Red River Gorge area, however it is known to occur in a number of counties throughout the Cumberland Plateau ecoregion.
What it looks like: This perennial species is in the Lily Family, and like its relatives, its leaves have parallel venation. When in bloom, Spotted Mandarin can be easily distinguished from its more common cousin Yellow Fairybells (Prosartes lanuginosa): both species have similar foliage and nodding flowers, but the blooms of Spotted Mandarin are white with purple speckles, while those of Yellow Fairybells are greenish-yellow.
Click here to view all iNaturalist observations of Spotted Mandarin in Kentucky.
Sweet pinesap (Monotropsis odorata, Threatened)
Blooming period: March-April
Where to find it: Scattered counties of eastern Kentucky. Sweet pinesap is usually found in upland woods with dry, acidic soil under oaks and pines, often in areas where Rhododendron species and Mountain Laurel (Kalmia latifolia) also like to grow.
What it looks like: If it seems familiar, you may be noticing its family resemblance to the more common Ghost Pipes (Monotropa uniflora) and Pinesap (Monotropa hypopitys). Like its relatives, Sweet Pinesap lacks chlorophyll and is parasitic on underground fungi that associate with tree roots. It is an inconspicuous perennial that stands no more than 4 inches tall, sometimes not even rising above the leaf litter, and its flowers and fleshy stems are violet to rosy, covered by bracts that turn brown. The common name derives from the sweet, delicate fragrance of the flowers, which is described as being similar to cloves, nutmeg, or cinnamon. The lovely, unusual flowers and sweet fragrance make this species a real treat to behold, although you may actually smell Sweet Pinesap before you see it.
Click here to view all iNaturalist observations of Sweet Pinesap in Kentucky.
False mermaidweed (Floerkea proserpinacoides)
Blooming period: April
Where to find it: This species is absent in most of Kentucky, and is restricted to the counties of the Cincinnati Metro area. On iNaturalist, it has been spotted at Gunpowder Creek Nature Park in Boone County, as well as St. Mary’s Cemetery and Lincoln Ridge Park in Kenton County. However, it might be found in any suitable habit in that area. Look for it in low woods near springs or small streams, as it prefers higher quality woodland habitats with consistently moist soils.
What it looks like: The first leaves to emerge are distinctively 3-parted. As the stem elongates, later leaves are 5- to 7-parted compound, and its 3-parted flowers are miniscule and greenish. Although it can be locally abundant, this diminutive annual is quite inconspicuous, and can be mistaken for a variety of dainty, similar-looking wildflowers, such as Catchweed Bedstraw (Galium aparine) and Harbinger of Spring (Erigenia bulbosa). Check it out “hiding in plain sight” in front of Sessile Trillium in this observation from Grant County.
Click here to view all iNaturalist observations of False Mermaidweed in Kentucky.
Forkleaf toothwort (Cardamine dissecta)
Blooming period: March-April
Where to find it: Forkleaf Toothwort prefers oak-hickory forests and rocky calcareous woods. In Kentucky, this species is found in the lower center of the state, with several populations having been observed on iNaturalist in the Mammoth Cave area. It is one of the less frequently encountered Toothworts, and there are currently only 14 observations of this species in Kentucky on iNaturalist!
What it looks like: Flowering stems have two highly dissected leaves, with lobe segments that are very slender and untoothed. The whole plant is hairless, and like related Toothworts, the flowers are white to pinkish with four petals. Forkleaf Toothwort may be most likely to be mistaken for the very common Cutleaf Toothwort (Cardamine concatenata), which has three whorled stem leaves that are moderately dissected with coarsely toothed lobes.
Click here to view all iNaturalist observations of Forked Toothwort in Kentucky.
Glade Violet (Viola egglestonii, Special Concern)
Blooming period: March-April
Where to find it: As the common name suggests, this species is at home in the dry rocky soils of limestone glades and barrens. In Jefferson County, this species has been spotted in open glade areas along hiking trails at McNeely Lake Park.
What it looks like: Glade Violet is a “stemless” blue violet: the lobed leaves and flower stalks arise from the base of the plant at ground level, rather than branching off of a stem. The flowers are blue-purple with a striped white throat. This species might resemble other lobed-leaf violets like Early Wood Violet (Viola palmata) or even Arrowleaf Violet (Viola sagittata), but its strict preference for dry, open glade habitats can help to distinguish it from similar violets that prefer shadier, woodland settings.
Click here to view all iNaturalist observations of Glade Violet in Kentucky.
Carolina Silverbell (Halesia tetraptera, Endangered)
Blooming period: April-May
Where to find it: Moist soils in wooded floodplains, forested streambanks and ravines, in the westernmost corner of the state. On iNaturalist in Kentucky, this species has been spotted in Land Between the Lakes, and on loess bluffs along the Mississippi River including at Metropolis Lake State Nature Preserve, just west of Paducah.
What it looks like: Carolina Silverbell is a large shrub or small understory tree. The simple, ovate leaves may not necessarily draw the eye, but while in flower this species is quite noticeable: the clusters of 2-5 white, bell-shaped flowers drooping from its branches are highly ornamental. This species is endangered in Kentucky, and any new observations of it would be a very exciting find during the BotanyBlitz.
Click here to view all iNaturalist observations of Carolina Silverbell in Kentucky.
Nodding Rattlesnakeroot (Nabalus crepidineus, Special Concern)
Blooming period: August-September
Where to find it: Low woods near forested streams, uncommon in the state but scattered throughout. On iNaturalist, populations of this species have been discovered in Louisville area public parks such as Cherokee Park and Harrod’s Creek Park. In the Cincinnati Metropolitan Area, it has been spotted at St. Anne Woods and Wetlands in Melbourne and Devou Park in Covington.
What it looks like: Ironically, although Nodding Rattlesnakeroot blooms in late summer, it is far more likely to be observed in the spring. This species forms large, densely vegetative colonies, but plants without sufficient sun exposure don’t often don’t flower, and all or most of the plants in those colonies typically senesce by June. A cousin to Lactuca (lettuces), a lush colony of Nodding Rattlesnakeroot in April can look like a forest floor covered in salad greens. Although there are a few similar-looking Rattlesnakeroot species in the state, a key differentiating feature of Nodding Rattlesnakeroot’s spring foliage are its broadly “winged” petioles (leaf stalks). Because it is most visible during a narrow window of time early in the year, this species is somewhat overlooked throughout its range, so keep an eye out – you may be the next botanizer to make a new county record!
Click here to view all iNaturalist observations of Nodding Rattlesnakeroot in Kentucky.
Photo by @owenkathriner
Vanessa Voelker is a botanist with the Plant Conservation Section at the Office of Kentucky Nature Preserves. Originally from central Illinois, Vanessa worked as a lab tech for the USDA before fleeing the lab for the woods and honing her skills as a botany technician in Missouri and Indiana before coming to Kentucky in 2020. When she isn’t in the field, Vanessa is active on iNaturalist (@vvoelker) and is always happy to help with plant identification and offer pro-tips for differentiating between tricky species.