Mid April Forest in Southern Virginia

Jefferson National Forest, April 11, 2005
As much as I love the springtime wildflowers, I also love the forests in which they live. However, it is very difficult for me to capture a good image of a forest landscape. But, still, I must try. That's why I was so excited when I found this stream. The stream adds an interesting element to this photograph, and also provides some distance between me and the closest trees.
Spring provides a brief window of opportunity for the plants on the forest floor. Many wildflowers begin their growth before the winter's snow has melted, and end their growth when the leaves on the trees fill in overhead, producing a blanket of shade. Spring's schedule varies from place to place with lattitudue and altitude, and with annual variations in temperature and rainfall, but the pattern is much the same.
The emergence of green begins on the forest floor with the wildflower sprouts and fern fiddleheads. These small green plants are "fed" by the sunshine, which provides the energy for their growth and reproduction. Since most of these plants are perennial (come back year after year) they use this time to store up energy in roots, tubers, and similar structures, for the following year. Eventually, the leaves on the trees fill in overhead, blocking the sun and its energy, which slows the growth of the understory and triggers senescence (dormancy) in some. For this reason, some spring-blooming wildflowers are called "ephemeral" (short lived).
This photograph shows the condition of the forest during peak wildflower blooming. The snow is gone and the sun shines brightly, providing lots energy for the small sprouts to grow. The shade of summer has not yet arrived. Not only that, the mosquitoes are generally rare at this time too!