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By Kelly Bahl

Outreach Teacher/Naturalist

May is the perfect time to explore surrounding woodlands for a plethora of flowers that can be only found for a couple of weeks in the early springtime. These flowers are called spring ephemerals, meaning they only last for a very short period. Spring ephemerals are racing against the clock of the canopy of trees making leaves and blocking out much needed sunlight. Which is why there is a massive bloom of flowers in forests before the trees leaf out.

There are so many different varieties of spring blooms out there of various sizes, colors, and flower shapes but one super unique flower is Dicentra cucullaria, or Dutchman’s Breeches. In the bleeding-heart family, Dutchman’s Breeches receives its name from the funny shape of the flowers that look like pairs of pantaloons hanging on a clothesline.

The flower petals fuse together making access to the flower’s nectar tricky to access. Luckily, there is a native insect that can pollinate and reach the nectar just fine. Queen bumblebees which are the only bumblebees that overwinter, emerge in early spring and are on the hunt for plenty of food before they start their own little hives. If you see a humungous bumblebee flitting around, it is probably a queen. They have a long tongue that is the perfect size and length to reach in the Dutchman’s Breeches funny shaped flowers to reach the nectar inside.

Dutchman’s Breeches have a fern-like leaf pattern and a stalk of 3-10 “pantaloon” flowers that reach a height of up to 12 inches. The pantaloon is comprised of two triangle petals fused together. The flowers and leaves start to bud underneath the soil to be ready to go once temperatures start to warm up. It springs up fast and flowers for a couple of weeks before they disappear once more.

The seed pods this plant makes have a coating that ants have deem delicious. Ants will carry the seeds to their nest, where they will eat the outer part of the seed and then that seed will root in the rich soil of the ant hill, far away from where it began. A symbiotic relationship for seed dispersal. Be sure to check out your nearest forested area for these blooms before they’re gone for the year.

May at the

Nature Center

Today: Planetarium Open House, 1-3 p.m.

Today: Sola Fide Observatory Open House, 9-11 p.m.

May 9: Cedar River Astronomy Club, 8-9 p.m.

May 10: Arbor Day Event – Ruby Auditorium, 10 a.m.  to 1 p.m.

May 17: Sola Fide Observatory Open House, 9-11 p.m.

May 24: Canoe/Kayak rentals begin for the season

May 26: Interpretive Center and Canoe/Kayak rentals CLOSED, Trails remain open