This was originally published in Asheville's Mountain Xpress in August, 2017. August is one of our peak months for Blue Ridge Orchids. A late summer orchid h...

As the buds split and the tree leaves unfurl, tiny caterpillars and other invertebrates hatch out to feed on the new growth. Migrating songbirds (many millio...

I often hear Ovenbirds in the woods around here. Some say they sound like "tea-cher, tea-cher, Tea-cher, TEa-cher, TEA-cher, TEA-cher!" Their song is certain...

I started hearing katydids this week. Right now there are just a few male adults--the early members of an orchestra beginning to warm up. By next week their ...

I was tromping through the woods the other day and came upon this little cup nest (literally the size of a medium-sized tea-cup) with two eggs in it. It turn...

This individual Galax plant follows the same bloom pattern as the Galax population as a whole. Just as the flowers on the bottom of the stalk are wide open a...

I thought these Dutchman's Breeches (Dicentra cucullaria) were looking mighty nice as they began to bloom. Then I noticed the drops of water hanging off the ...

(Clockwise from left: Some of the first ramps to emerge in the Smokies this year (3/9); Early ramps in the Toe River Valley (3/11); A ramp plant sending up i...

Remember the Oconee Bells (Shortia galacifolia) that I wrote about in the phenology post? The ones in my neighborhood (2700') started to bloom just before th...

What will happen to the plants and flowers that are tricked into opening early during this shockingly warm February? I’ve heard this question a lot this wint...