Prairie Smoke

I had written last weekend about our failed attempts at a hiking trip, and how we were thwarted by the hail. The main draw to that particular preserve, aside from the pleasure of exploring new territory, is the unique habitats and rare plants supported there. Of particular interest was the Geum triflorum, or prairie smoke. I last saw this plant many years ago, in Michigan, and was eager to lay eyes upon it again.

Luckily I have a job that takes me to some pretty cool places. It was actually how I first found out about this preserve, conducting field work on private land nearby. I ate lunch in the parking lot and went back to work before I ever hiked the trails. I haven't been getting out in the field as much as I would like this time of year, just one day this past week and one day scheduled for next week.


However, that one day this week was a good one. Coworker and I stopped by the preserve on our way home for the day and I was able to snap a few pictures. Prairie smoke is not uncommon in the west, but is quite rare at the eastern edge of it's range, and I had never seen it before locally. These are exciting times! For the most part, we missed seeing it in flower, but for this particular species, the fruiting stage is most dramatic. Witness...