The Shirley Miller Wildflower Trail

 

After several years of absence, I returned this week to The Shirley Miller Wildflower Trail in Northwest Georgia in preparation for a field trip I am co-leading next month. It’s been a while since I went; I think my last visit was in 2017 because I blogged about it twice – two visits, one month apart. 

We’ve had some warm days lately so I was curious if there would be a lot of flowers; this visit closely matches with my February 19, 2017 visit in terms of what was blooming.

Sharp-lobed liverwort (Hepatica acutiloba)

The site is publicly accessible although it requires a pass (same as for any WMA). I usually get a Fishing License; it costs $15 and is good for a year but you can also get a one day pass. You reach the parking area via a narrow dirt road that contains significant ruts so consider your vehicle choice carefully. You used to have to drive over a stream to reach it; they’ve built a small bridge over that now. Parking is in an open, graveled field that can be fun place to see early butterflies puddling for minerals.

The trail is part boardwalk and you can see most all of the plant types from there. For the adventurous and the able, there is a dirt path with roots and rocks that you can continue on until you reach the waterfall, but it is not required. From the parking area, you can also walk up the much wider trail that goes all the way to the top of the waterfall (it is called the Pocket Loop Trail). There are some different plants on the Pocket Loop Trail and it is easy walking; the top has a nice area for picnicking by the gurgling stream so bring lunch and something to sit on.

Here are some photos of what we saw on both trails; the Hepatica shown above is on both trails. On the Boardwalk trail, some of the tiniest flowers are up and some of the popular flowers (like Virginia bluebells) are just barely starting:

Claytonia caroliniana

Erigenia bulbosa 

Stellaria pubera

Mertensia virginica

On the Pocket Loop trail, the soil is a little drier:

Viola rostrata

Erigeron pulchellus

And even without flowers, you can find dried Hydrangea blooms, cool evergreen ferns, evergreen foliage of other plants, and mosses of all kinds.

Hydrangea arborescens will bloom in May

Walking fern

A fern duo at the top of the falls

Left to right: Heuchera, Sedum, Erigeron, Aquilegia

If you want to look ahead as to what you might see in March, check out my March 2017 blog post or my March 2012 blog post.

If you’re interested in other wildflower walks, check out this book about walks throughout Georgia. The Shirley Miller Wildflower Trail is their #1 recommendation.

February 2026 Moment in Nature

You can be surprised that I chose this for my #momentinnature. This is not a native plant. It was brought here as a result of a long path of botanical explorations that date back hundreds of years. Daffodils (Narcissus) have their origins in the Mediterranean (read more here). Bulbs like daffodils and tulips were part of a lucrative trade in the Netherlands in the 17th century.

European settlers brought them here and planted them in places where they persist even long after the humans have left, fooling some folks into thinking they are native. Here you can see the native American beech foliage in the woods behind this clump, giving all of it a naturalized appearance.

These particular ones haven't outlasted the humans yet. They are in my new yard (and they are in abundance!), planted by the original owners as many as 30 years ago. Deer don't seem interested in them.

So while they are not native, they bring a smile for many folks when they bloom in the winter (the earliest species often do bloom in winter here), their bright flowers appearing to defy the winter weather.

Enjoy the moment.

Goldenrod Gets Its Moment

 

Solidago petiolaris

Goldenrod needs to be in more gardens! Its late summer and fall blooms are very important to resident and migrating pollinators such as the Monarch butterfly. Yet, its message of positivity doesn’t always reach the gardeners. Instead, a fear of aggressive behavior (and the ridiculously inaccurate assumption that it contributes to allergies) keeps people from using it in designed landscapes.

A new trial garden report for goldenrod was released recently by Mt. Cuba Center as part of their ongoing efforts to evaluate native plants for gardens. This is their sixteenth report and two more are in-progress. These 3-year trials focus on the Mid-Atlantic region, but many of the species in their trials are native to Georgia as well. 

I have written about some good goldenrods for Georgia in 2011 and again about a particularly available species in 2023.

The report’s overall assessment on aggressive species is that “only a handful of the evaluated Solidago could be categorized as aggressive, and even these plants can be used to great effect in naturalistic gardens.” This was a full-sun trial but in the Mid-Atlantic that even includes our shade-tolerant species Solidago caesia. Several of the species of Euthamia were included. Of the 70 plants tested. Some of them were straight species, some of them undescribed (listed at the genus name only), and some were cultivars.

For beginners, the report includes a lot of useful information about plant structure (see photo above), taxonomy, habit, and care. Each of the top 13 performers has a detailed description (see example below). There is also a downloadable spreadsheet that I found very useful. Sun exposure, moisture, height, bloom time, insect activity, and even deer browse impacts are shown for each species in the spreadsheet.

I encourage you to read the report (and some of the other reports!) and get inspired, ready to incorporate some goldenrod into your garden this spring. Goldenrod (Solidago) is a keystone perennial for Georgia gardeners and your impact on supporting the local ecosystem increases with your use of it.

January 2026 Moment in Nature

Wintry weather happens. When we're prepared, it's nice to have a seasonal sprinkling to remind us what winter is all about. So far, that seems to be what's happened this time, similar to what happened last January. 

Now, all this is really just a collection of tiny ice pellets, but it looks like snow and makes for a very seasonal #momentinnature. This particular photo is from my porch and is as close as I want to get because all paths to get closer are sheets of ice. Be safe out there!

2025 in Pictures

I take a lot of pictures throughout the year and not all of them make it into a blog post. At the end of the calendar year, it’s a good time to reflect on the beauty of nature as well as share some of the extra pictures. I believe that each day is an opportunity to find and appreciate something beautiful in the native plants and creatures of Georgia. 

In January, we had a bit of cold weather and the seedheads on the native Clematis virginiana in my yard turned into exquisite ice sculptures. February was strangely quiet for me plant-wise, but I found this photo that I snapped in or near the elevator at Kennestone Hospital. My best friend had fallen and broken her ankle and arm; I was there to visit. I found this natural treatment (it looks just like you'd stepped into a Piedmont woodland) quite soothing and thought what a good idea it was to do this in an otherwise stressful environment.

Clematis virginiana

Fake window at hospital

Seeing a favorite flower return is always special. In March, my twinleaf (Jeffersonia diphylla) bloomed and delighted me just as much as the first time it did. [Honestly, I'm always glad the moles/voles missed it.] This spray of parsley hawthorn (Crataegus marshallii) flowers was just perfect at my friend's house in April.

Twinleaf

Parsley hawthorn

We were in Europe in May and I snapped several dozen photos of wild common daisy (Bellis perennis); it is their most beautiful "weed" and I hope they appreciate how adaptable it is (it looks great in lawns there and loves masonry cracks). Come June, I was admiring the Great Laurel (Rhododendron maximum) blooming in my side yard. I didn't know then it would be our last spring together.

Common daisy, Amsterdam

Rhododendron maximum

July was a glorious bloom event for my devil's walking stick (Aralia spinosa). It had between 14 and 18 flowers this year. August is always a time to appreciate the Joe Pye Weed (Eutrochium fistulosum). Those flowers are much beloved by Eastern tiger swallowtails and bumble bees; I always use it for the Pollinator Census counting to illustrate how attractive native plants are for pollinators.

Aralia spinosa

Eutrochium fistulosum

By September I was getting ready to put our house on the market. As I worked in the yard, I was excited to see the Florida fern caterpillar (Callopistria floridensis).  Speaking of Florida, we take more trips to Florida now to visit our granddaughter and in October I begged my husband to stop on the side of the road to admire the late-blooming Helianthus (no worries, he always says yes).

Fern caterpillar

Helianthus angustifolius

As I was walking around the yard with the new owner of our house in November, we found something I had not seen before: a Joro spider laying eggs in the curve of a deciduous leaf (Hydrangea barbara). And finally in December, we stopped by Fort Yargo State Park (just 15 minutes from our new house) for an exploratory visit. I look forward to visiting it and other nearby natural areas in 2026!

Another 100 spiders?

Fort Yargo State Park

Wishing you a good year in 2026 and more native plants and critters in your daily life.

December 2025 Moment in Nature

We all love flowers in the growing season, but there is beauty to be found in the dormant season. As I was walking through my woods, I spied this flower-like structure. It is the spent seed pod for tulip tree (Liriodendron tulipifera), an important native tree of both new and old forests.

It seemed like a wooden flower, and its tan color fit in well with the other shades of brown around it. Everything in this picture is in a state of decay, and their fading parts will nourish the forest for another year or more. This area has very rich soil and earthworms are abundant. The previous owner told me that he always blew the leaves into these woods; 30 years of decay has brought richness.

Enjoy and appreciate the dormant season. It has a role to play as well. And look for your #momentinnature.

Make Your Gifts Count

 

The environment is under more stress than ever – both from natural causes and human-inflicted wounds. The choices that each of us make – millions of us! – can make a difference and we can apply that to choosing gifts. I’ve written about holiday gifts before and you can read those posts here for more ideas. But funding for many environmental causes is at risk or diminished. A choice to support them can make an impact.

Clematis at Black's Bluff Preserve (The Nature Conservancy property)

This year I’d like to suggest that putting our money where our mouth is would be a great way to make our gifts count. Of course these recommendations should be considered in light of the recipient, but you’d be surprised how many people are tired of gifts that only satisfy the moment. This is especially true for older folks who often say “Give me something I can consume or use up.”

Gift ideas include donations in honor of someone. “Hey Nana, I donated to The Nature Conservancy in your honor and in celebration of all the hiking we loved to do. They’ll help preserve more wild spaces for future hikers.” Or “I got my love of nature from you and I want to help you support environmental issues so I donated to the Southern Environmental Law Center in your honor.”

Give them a membership in a like-minded organization. “Dad, I know you love native plants so I’ve gifted you a membership in the Georgia Native Plant Society. They are championing native plants and their habitats right here in Georgia plus this way we can attend some rescues together.” “The Georgia Botanical Society is an active organization that supports learning about native plants and has a great annual journal; I got you a membership for 2026 so you can get to know them.”

Give them a plant or gift certificate to a native plant nursery and then plan a time when you can plant it with them. For some people, just the offer of help in the garden is a very meaningful gift. “Let’s go in March and get something for that shady spot you’ve had trouble with. I’ve got some ideas.”

Or inspire a budding naturalist with a subscription to PBS “So you can watch all the nature shows you want!” Or donate to GPB (Georgia Public Broadcasting) to support media without bias (NPR).

We don’t have to stress ourselves to find just the right tchotchkes. Give the gift of nature and hope by sharing your love of the natural world. No tariffs, no plastic, and all the money goes towards good things. By the way, many of these suggestions can be executed even at the last minute by using their websites. Print the confirmation and slip it into a card or send via email.