We’re experiencing an interesting time with Covid-19 racing around the globe. We’re sheltering in place, social distancing, working from home, and adjusting to our “new normal” to stay healthy and protect those we love.
While life is feeling a little stressful and uncertain, the persistence and steadiness of nature can be encouraging and comforting. The natural world is springing to life this year in the same, steady way it does every year; flowers and leaves are breaking through the soil and stretching toward the sun, birds’ calls are echoing across the sky as they return from their winter grounds, and there’s a general hum of food-gathering activity in the mammal and insect communities.
Right now, I think we’re all seeking joy, and comfort. I’m finding those in observing the seasonal changes happening around me. Nearly every day for the past 6 weeks I’ve visited local wildlife management areas, county parks, and my own backyard, safely keeping my distance from other people, but finding little joys in nature. I’m sharing some of what I’ve found, in the hopes that it’ll inspire you to find joy and comfort in the natural world where you are too.
Spring Ephemerals Emerge Earliest
After a long winter, some of my favorite things to find are the spring ephemeral flowers. Poking up from the brown leaf litter, their colorful blooms and bright green leaves are a welcomed sight! True spring ephemerals are plants that complete their entire above-ground lifecycle within a few weeks, before the trees and shrubs leaf out and shade the forest floor. They emerge, bloom, go to seed, and then die back to just their underground parts by early summer.
Every day seems to bring new blooms. So far, I’ve found snow trillium, dutchman’s breeches, bloodroot, and sharp-lobed hepatica.
Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis), April 11th Snow Trillium (Trillium nivale), April 19th Dutchman’s Breeches (Dicentra cucullaria), April 13th Sharp-lobed Hepatica (Anemone acutiloba), April 11th
Cold Weather Adaptations
In southern Minnesota, my home base and where I’ve been doing these observations, snow storms can happen into April. That’s exactly what happened when a storm rolled through earlier this month, dropping a few inches of snow.
While out on my daily nature walk, I saw flowers poking up from the snow and it got me wondering, how do these early flowers survive the cold snaps? Look closely at the sharp-lobed hepatica photo (above) and you’ll notice they are incredibly fuzzy. After a little research I discovered that the hairs help to insulate these plants from the cold, helping them survive frost, and spring snow.
Bloodroot (below) also has a noticeable cold weather adaptation. On warm, sunny days the leaf and flower open fully. But at night, and on cold days they both close. This protects the plant’s reproductive organs, and the stem. I was lucky enough to find a newly-sprouted bloodroot, in both the open and closed stages.
Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis), April 11th Bloodroot’s flower closes while the leaf curls around it and the stem to protect them from the cold.
Find Your Joy
We’re going to get through this pandemic. Right now, we’ve just got to find ways to encourage, and comfort ourselves to make these times a little easier. To accomplish this for myself, I plan to continue focusing on the little joys I can find in nature. I’m excited to keep watching my small corner of the world spring to life as more plants sprout, flowers bloom, and animals return.
I hope that you’re able to find your own joy and comfort during these uneasy times too. And maybe if you’re still looking, they could come from observing nature and reflecting on its steadiness.
Be safe, stay well, and find joy!
