Virginia Bluebells
I know where to find them, walked right to them on Friday, crossed Soapstone, turned left onto a springy woods trail and there they were. Early, of course. But then everything is early this year.
Tall, nodding flowers, pink as buds and becoming a heavenly blue in maturity. A blue edging toward periwinkle. A color seen less often this time of year, so dominated are we by yellows, pinks and purples.
The Virginia bluebell thrives in woodland soil, rich, loamy, leaf-strewn. There are few of these wildflowers in our woods. Which makes seeing them each spring all the more essential. I make my way to their home as if visiting a national monument or a famous painting. It’s one of my rites of spring.
Photo: Bellewood Gardens.com
One thought on “Virginia Bluebells”
I, too have a gang of bluebells that I visit every spring. At the top of a limestone bluff over the Mississippi River near St. Louis lies a secret, hidden cabin that has thousands of bluebells. Blooming usually at the same time as redbud trees, my annual visit usually includes sitting quietly on the ground, touching the bluebells and feeling appreciation for spring. The only thing that could make that better would be if I were to find some morels while I'm sitting there…