Requested Recipe: Sugared Cranberries

At our November 11, 2015 Chapter Meeting Betty Truax served Sugared Cranberries and several people asked how to make them.  They are easy to make!   Put them in a jar with a pretty ribbon and bring as an unusual and tasty hostess gift.  — Enjoy!       2 1/2 cups sugar plus extra to coat them with later 1 1/2…

Read More

Viola pedata (Birdfoot Violet)

Viola pedata is commonly called Birdfoot violet because the daintily divided leaves are deeply cleft into three to five parts that resemble a bird’s foot. Standing from 3-6 inches tall, this violet has few if any pubescence (hairs). Viola pedata blooms from mid to late spring as well as occasionally in the fall.  There are two color…

Read More

What We Saw on the VMI Bluffs Field Trip (04/19/14)

  On April 19, 2014 Jefferson Chapter had a wonderful trip to the VMI bluff and Maury River floodplain.  Ruth Douglas led 18 of us to see the many unusual plants there.  The area has a wonderful combination of limestone soil; a cool and moist north facing slope, too steep for deer or logging; and…

Read More

Plants being offered at our 2014 Plant Sale

Jefferson Chapter, Virginia Native Plant Society’s ANNUAL NATIVE PLANT SALE  NATIVE PLANT SELECTION (Partial Listing) April 27 (Sun.), 2014, 1:00 – 3:00 PM IvyCreek Natural Area, Barn 1780 Earlysville Rd., Charlottesville Plants listed have been potted by the Jefferson Chapter members from propagated plants (not collected from wild areas).  Many additional species beyond those listed…

Read More

Plant Sale Profile: Aquilegia Canadensis

Native throughout the piedmont and most counties in Virginia, Aquilegia Canadensis (Wild Columbine, Eastern Red Columbine) can be found in dry forests, woodlands, barrens, and rock outcrops; shell-marl slopes, bluffs, and shell middens in the Coastal Plain. Although most numerous on subcalcareous, calcareous, and mafic substrates, in the higher mountains it is more tolerant of…

Read More

Plant Sale Profile: Trillium grandiflorum

Native to Greene and Nelson, Trillium grandiflorum known as Large-Flowered Trillium or Great White Trillium, is one of the showiest trilliums in Virginia.   It grows in cove forests, mesic to dry-mesic slope forests, northern hardwood forests, Northern Red Oak forests, and seepage swamp hummocks; most characteristic of and numerous in (but not restricted to) soils…

Read More

Plant Sale Profile: Chrysogonum virginianum

Another plant being offered at our native plant sale this spring is Chrysogonum virginianum.  Common names for this plant are Goldenstar, Green and Gold, and Golden Knees.  Chrysogonum virginianum is a nice groundcover that actually will tolerate some light foot traffic. With golden yellow blooms (1- 1.25 in wide) from Mar – Jun this plant…

Read More

Plant Sale Profile: Lobelia cardinalis

Lobelia cardinalis, commonly called Cardinal Flower was the Virginia Native Plant Society’s Wildflower of the Year in 1991.  This is one of the showiest of the red blooming native plants in Virginia, blooming from July to October.  It is found throughout the state, including the entire piedmont. Lobelia cardinalis is found in floodplain forests, alluvial…

Read More

Plant Sale Profile: Claytonia virginica

Claytonia virginica is a member of the family Montiaceae (formally Portulacaceae – in case you’re looking for information regarding this plant in an older reference). The genus is named for John Clayton, 1694-1773, who was a Colonial plant collector and tobacco farmer in Virginia. Common names are Spring Beauty, Virginia Spring Beauty, Eastern Spring Beauty.…

Read More

Plant Sale Profile: Mertensia virginica

Mertensia virginica is a member of the Borage (Boraginaceae) family. Commonly called Virginia Bluebells, its also known as Virginia Cowslip, Roanoke-bells, Eastern Bluebells and Lungwort Oysterleaf. When the leaves emerge they are a lovely shade of purple, quickly turning a medium green as they increase in size. Although the flowers are usually light blue, persistently…

Read More