Snow Trillium in West Virginia 2017

I had an opportunity this week to visit a site for Snow Trillium in West Virginia. I had been here four years ago and was fortunate to find five or six plants and a couple of blooms. When I arrived this week, I found hundreds, maybe thousands of Snow Trillium in bloom. 

        They need one of two specific set of requirements in order to grow. Here it was on limestone crevices, limestone cliffs and very steep loess deposits where the soils are sparsely vegetated, if at all with no accumulating organic matter such as leaf mold and litter.(Complete Description)

They bloom from Early to Mid-March and often come up through snow. There was plent of snow around the area but not at the actual site, they had recently been covered by snow and were many that had been damaged. 

         They are rare in most areas and I was awestruck to find the numbers I dd this year. Below are many photos and some descriptionws. 

Snow Trillium (notice Stonecrop)

Typical location, limestone with minimal leaf litter

Notice size in relation to the acorn

Typical damage on this day due to recent heavy snow

Notice the acorn cap

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Stone Crop

Snow from hike to site

At least ten plants in this picture 

Close up of reproductive parts