It’s that time of year when we’re all getting extra antsy for the green-up, and eager to see those spring flowers in full bloom. But keep your eyes peeled in the days leading up to Wildflower Week 2021, there are wonders to behold well before peak bloom!
As tiny new leaves and buds emerge from the ground, before those chloroplasts kick into high gear, the familiar favorites can display a range of spectacular colors and incredible details. You may need to crouch down with a magnifying glass, but you’re in for high drama on a small scale:
Dutchman’s breeches (Dicentra cucullaria)
Check out the foliage and buds of this Dutchman’s breeches, unfurling in surprisingly fiery hues. If you squint, you could almost mistake it for a dragon.
Snow trillium (Trillium nivale) 
Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis)
The delicate, subtle detail of Snow trillium venation offers a remarkable contrast to this Bloodroot leaf, coursing with vibrant red sap and looking as robustly vascular as a human heart.
Spring beauty (Claytonia virginica) 
Cutleaf toothwort (Cardamine concatenata)
The gracefully balletic spring beauty and cutleaf toothwort emerge in tones of rose and magenta; you can often catch these tiny dancers just peeking out of the leaf litter in early March.
Are you spotting any of these miniature marvels yet? No need to wait for Wildflower Week, feel free to upload your earliest spring observations to iNaturalist and share them with us!