Chicago Nature NOW! Alert
April 22, 2022
(Earth Day Edition)
“Weekly Wildflower Forecasts Featuring
Chicago’s Best Weekend Getaways & Nature Trips”
Plan the Best Nature Walks & Getaways Around Chicago!
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It’s Earth Day. And the springtime blooms are exploding!
This is also the week when, according to our data,
Virginia bluebells are most likely to reach peak bloom.
NEED THE LATEST BLOOMING NEWS, NOT JUST A PREDICTION?
THEN HELP US CROWDSOURCE IT!This FREE ChicagoNatureNOW! wildflower forecast is a prediction of the flowers that may be blooming during this week of the year. It’s driven by my one-of-a-kind proprietary database of local blooming events that I began compiling in 2003. But Mother Nature is mysterious. She follows her own secret schedule. Blooming dates can vary widely. For some of our followers, these weekly predictions will be enough. However, if you want to be rewarded with the latest news about what’s blooming where, then you must help us crowdsource that information by joining our ChicagoNatureNOW! Explorers crowdsourcing community. There’s no monetary cost to become a ChicagoNatureNOW! Explorer, but in return for this valuable news, you must share what you find at our showcase preserves on our private ChicagoNatureNOW! Explorers Facebook group. Just take a few pictures with your smartphone and tell us what you found. Due to the size of a group, everyone receives a lot even though each person only contributes a little. In other words, you’ll receive much more than you give. And the group is also a place to learn and ask questions about nature. CLICK HERE TO REAP THE BENEFITS OF JOINING OUR CROWDSOURCING TEAM OF EXPLORERS.
WILDFLOWER FORECAST & HIGHLIGHTS to help you plan your outdoor adventures into Chicago’s Woodlands:
APRIL PUTS ON THE SPECTACULAR SHOWS OF VIRGINIA BLUEBELL AND LARGE-FLOWERED TRILLIUM. But are they blooming now? According to my database, there’s a good chance of catching both performances this season. If you don’t want to miss these magnificent blooms, then click here to learn about being an Explorer. But nature isn’t about flowers. It’s about the experience. Explore and discover a preserve from the list below. Be open to nature’s unexpected gifts, whether it be a colorful, awe-inspiring bloom, the mysterious squeak of two rubbing trees mimicking the cry of a baby animal, or the life-affirming odor of skunk cabbage. All of these things will open up your life to a world of wonder and intrigue.
Now is the time to be on the lookout for two spectacular shows, that of the Virginia Bluebell and large-flowered trillium. The best blooms of Virginia Bluebells take place at O’Hara Woods, Pilcher Park, and Messenger Woods. Our database shows peak bluebell bloom happening anytime between April 2 and May 6. The former was in 2012 when it was 85 degrees in April! It puts on the most breathtaking performance of early spring. The oceans of blue are proof that Chicago nature offers beauty that rivals the national parks. Experience the magnificence with your eyes, as well as your nose, as the scent of these azure flowers fills the air with a sweet fragrance that some people liken to Froot Loops cereal. Instead of listening to “some people,” I did a little experiment of my own. I took the cereal into the field and compared its scent to the flowers. Find the bluebell photos below to learn what I found.
The breathtaking show of large-flowered trillium usually corresponds closely to that of the bluebell, peaking just slightly after. These magnificent blossoms put on the best shows at Heron Rookery Trail (at Indiana Dunes National Park) and at the nearby J. Timothy Ritchie Preserve that’s owned by Shirley Hines Land Trust. These alabaster beauties also grow at Messenger Woods in Homer Glen, Meacham Grove in DuPage County, Harms Woods in Glenview, and Captain Daniel Wright Woods in Mettawa. And speaking of trillium, the elegant and ethereal prairie trillium flowers in most of our woodlands.
The earliest of our spring ephemerals may be gone or well into their blooming cycle. Many of them are colored white, including bloodroot, false rue anemone, rue anemone, spring cress, white trout lily, Dutchman’s breeches, cutleaf toothwort (our Plant of the Week). Spring beauty is white with pink stripes, and sharp-lobed hepatica offers a beautiful palette ranging from white to lavender to purple.
The yellow blossoms of marsh marigold may still be blooming at many preserves, including Pilcher Park, Bluff Spring Fen, Trout Park, Captain Daniel Wright Woods, and at McClaughry Springs Woods in Palos Park (across the stream from the parking lot). Along the trails of our fine woodlands, check for yellow violet, swamp buttercup, yellow trout lily, buttery wood betony, and the shy drooping blossoms of large-flowered bellwort. You should be able to see some some red in the form of the aforementioned prairie trillium. And as for the hues of blues, our common blue violet is extremely beautiful when growing in a clump amidst its heart-shaped foliage. And, as mentioned before, one of the biggest flower shows of the year is a celebration of blue, as a sea of Virginia Bluebells flood the woodland floor.
And let’s not forget the textured lushness and shapely foliage that typify vernal season: wild leek, mayapple, skunk cabbage, and wild ginger. Wild leek is the one of the first plants to sprout, with a spray of swordlike leaves that make up a large percentage of the woodland greenery. You should now find mayapple with leaves that resemble an open umbrella, or a closed umbrella when they first sprout. Seek out the the sprawling leaves of skunk cabbage in the wet and muddy areas. Great displays can be found at Pilcher Park, Trout Park, Black Partridge Woods, and Bluff Spring Fen. And notice the heart-shaped leaves of wild ginger and its fuzzy burgundy flower hiding underneath. As an interesting history lesson, wild leek is the plant that gives Chicago its name. In the late 1600s, Potawatomi Indians who paddled the area rivers were commonly heard yelling “Chicagoua!” after catching a strong whiff of chicagoua, or wild leek, growing prolifically along the wooded banks. Wild leek is part of the onion family, hence the Chicago nickname, “The Big Onion.”
NOTE: It is illegal to remove this plant, or any other plant, from any preserve in the Chicago region.
SPRING WILDFLOWER GETAWAYS AROUND CHICAGO:
I’ve ranked the preserves on this week’s list based on the information predicted by my one-of-a-kind propriety database of wildflowers blooming events, starting out with the best or “Go!” The “Go, if You’re in the Neighborhood” section is for sites that are worth visiting if you can’t make it to the top-rated preserves.
LIKELY, THIS WEEK’S BEST CHOICES (“GO!”):
O’Hara Woods Preserve in Romeoville: The spectacular display of Virginia bluebells usually begins around this time, though it can vary between April 2 and May 5. This will be the top preserve to visit when the Virginia bluebells reach their peak. The preserve was once called Dynamite Woods because the site stored explosives during World War II. You can still see the crumbling bunkers, but they’re being taken over by woodland plants. Around this time, the white flowers of cutleaf toothwort should be exploding like sparklers across the woodland floor. Walk towards the stream along the south end of the preserve, and you’ll find Dutchman’s breeches (that look like white, puffy overalls), spring beauty, skunk cabbage, mayapple, wild leek (Chicago’s namesake), and Virginia bluebells.
Heron Rookery Trail at Indiana Dunes National Park: Begin your stroll at the west parking lot. This woodland usually blooms earlier than most of our other preserves, but it can also be flooded by waters of the adjacent Little Calumet River. You may find sparkles of sharp-lobed hepatica, rue anemone and false rue anemone, Dutchman’s breeches, cutleaf toothwort, purple cress, bloodroot, and spring beauty. Look for patches of spear-like foliage that resemble green spotted trout. In there, you may find magnificent blooms of yellow trout lily. The otherworldly burgundy prairie trillium may also be flowering by now, and so might the bright-yellow swamp buttercup that wade in wet and muddy areas . The lush, sprawling foliage of wild leek, mayapple, and wild ginger greatly enhance the springtime experience. Sometime between the middle of April and early May, large-flowered trillium puts on a grand show. The display of trillium is even better at the nearby J. Timothy Ritchie Preserve which is owned by Shirley Hines Land Trust. The gently rolling landscape and river appeal to me at Heron Rookery Trail. But Timothy Ritchie is a great complement to Heron Rookery Trail.
Raccoon Grove Nature Preserve in Monee: The preserve puts on a show with a rich variety of flowers throughout the month of April and into the second half of May. Look for the whitish pink expanse of spring beauty and myriad other wildflowers, including Dutchman’s breeches, false rue anemone, rue anemone, bloodroot, cutleaf toothwort, and surprisingly large colonies of flowering white trout lily. Adding to the color palette, you may see common blue violet, the golden hues of common yellow violet and swamp buttercup, and the strange and wonderful maroon tones of prairie trillium. Also, experience the jade hues and lush patterns of wild leek, mayapple, and wild ginger that add to the springtime mix. This preserve offers a nice display of Virginia bluebells, but not an overwhelming ocean like other preserves. Note that many spring flowers don’t open up at the break of day. They are awakened by the light. On cloudy days, they may remain enclosed safely in their buds. Fortunately, when closed, the Dutchman’s breeches cannot close and the white petals of toothwort are still visible and continue to twinkle.
Black Partridge Woods in Lemont: This preserve makes me happy with its lushness and many patterns and shades of emerald foliage, especially the swords of wild leek, umbrellas of mayapple, hearts of wild ginger, sprawling skunk cabbage, and stars of soon-to-bloom wild geranium. Hidden amongst the jade hues, try to find the beautiful floating foliage of early meadow rue. See if you can still spot the shimmering petals of bloodroot, sharp-lobed hepatica, cutleaf toothwort, false rue anemone, spring beauty, and the occasional Dutchman’s breeches. Search for the azure tones of common blue violet and woodland phlox. And seek for the shy drooping yellow blossoms of large-flowered bellwort. This is usually the best time to find Virginia bluebells blooming, with the largest display located west of the creek.
Johnson’s Mound Forest Preserve in Elburn: This intimate preserve is known for its ravines that sparkle white with dense white colonies of false rue anemone that flow across the braes. But you’ll also see many other plants, as well, like cutleaf toothwort, Dutchman’s breeches. sharp-lobed hepatica, wild leek, mayapple, prairie trillium and common blue violet, and the sublime large-flowered large-flowered bellwort that also grows in colonies. In late April or early May, look for drooping trillium and large-flowered trillium.
Pilcher Park Nature Center in Joliet: Begin your hike at the nature center where you may find a lush understory of spring wildflowers. Depending on when you visit, you may find sharp-lobed hepatica, cutleaf toothwort, false rue anemone, spring beauty, purple cress, and Dutchman’s breeches. Just as beautiful as the flowers are the fresh green leaves of wild leek, mayapple, and skunk cabbage. My favorite flower-of-the-moment is marsh marigold. Look for its yellow blossoms in the low, muddy areas of the site. You can find them near the nature center and around the trail after the bridge at this GPS coordinate: 41.532780, -88.016478. While you’re there (and just about anywhere with mud), look for the large fanning foliage of skunk cabbage. They’re hard to miss. Virginia bluebells also like the mud, especially along the banks of the creek. This preserve is one of the best places to experience a vastitude of bluebells which often flowers between mid-April and the first week of May.
Fermilab Natural Areas in Batavia: The woodland adjacent to the prairie is rich in springtime ephemerals. Depending on the date of your visit, you’ll find many of the usual suspects in bloom: cutleaf toothwort, bloodroot, spring beauty, white trout lily, Dutchman’s breeches, false rue anemone, prairie trillium, and yellow colonies of swamp buttercup. And of course, these flowers will fall against a verdant backdrop of mayapple, wild ginger, and some wild leek. In May, the grand alabaster blossoms of large-flowered trillium steal the show amidst floating pink blossoms of wild geranium.
Messenger Woods in Homer Glen: This preserve exudes that green and luxuriant feeling of spring. Once spring takes hold, you’ll see a variety of blooming ephemerals amidst an emerald carpet often rich in a lacy false mermaid, mayapple, wild leek, and wild ginger. The most common blossoms that bloom in early spring are spring beauty, cutleaf toothwort, Dutchman’s breeches, bloodroot, false rue anemone, white trout lily, and prairie trillium. This preserve is known for its vast display of bluebells, which can reach peak bloom sometime between April 2 and May 6, though often in the last week of April.
“GO, IF YOU’RE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD”:
Bluff Spring Fen in Elgin: Early in the spring, the transcendent yellow blossoms of marsh marigold should be flowering alongside fresh lush colonies of skunk cabbage. Soon after, you should also find miniature canopies of mayapple and a small number of spring ephemerals. And under the shade of the oaks in the savanna, you’ll find small patches of false rue anemone. For the best views of marsh marigold and skunk cabbage, visit Trout Park for dense populations of these plants in an intimate setting. The preserve features a trail that takes you up and down the bluffs that includes a wooden boardwalk that carefully guides you through sensitive wet areas. While on the boardwalk, look for Chicago’s only native evergreen tree, the northern white cedar. Atop the bluff, you’ll find other spring wildflowers.
Somme Prairie Grove in Northbrook: Park at the main parking lot for this preserve, located at Somme Woods, and then follow the narrow trail to Somme Prairie Grove. Note that springtime starts a little later in the northern suburbs. Remain under the tree canopy to see the most spring ephemerals. Along your stroll, you should discover spring beauty, white trout lily, some bloodroot, cutleaf toothwort, mayapple, and others.
NOTE: If you can’t make it to our showcase preserves, try McKinley Woods/Fredericks Grove in Channahon, Johnson’s Mound in Elburn, Daniel Wright Woods in Mettawa, and Harms Woods in Glenview, and Oldfield Oaks in Darien, and J. Timothy Ritchie Preserve in Chesterton, Indiana. You’re bound to find some good stuff.
PLANT OF THE WEEK (Cutleaf Toothwort):
PHOTO SECTION
False Rue Anemone:
Rue Anemone:
Sharp-lobed Hepatica:
Bloodroot:
Marsh Marigold:
Virginia Bluebells put on April’s most breathtaking flower show, any time between April 2 and May 6:
Large-flowered Trillium can bloom between mid-April and early May:
Dutchman’s Breeches (or Dutchman’s Britches):
Prairie Trillium:
Mayapple:
Skunk Cabbage:
If you find this website of Chicago nature information useful, please consider donating or purchasing my nationally-acclaimed book that celebrates all of the preserves featured on this website.
—Mike