Exceptional Adventures in Paradise
The weather has really been doing a number on outdoor adventures this year. In February, a long-planned adventure had to be called off due to heat, in March it was so cold tender plants had to be protected, and an April panhandle trip saw weather much cooler than we like and much rainier than we hoped. But Judy and I are tough, so we didn’t cancel our trip to Topsail Hill Preserve State Park.
Continue reading “Rain and Chill Can’t Dampen a Great Trip”
On a recent trip to the Apalachicola National Forest, my friend Sharol and I were determined to find blooming pitcher plants. These carnivorous beauties are part of what make the panhandle region of our state special, and the 2020 spring bloom did not disappoint! The pitcher plants are the showiest of the carnivorous plants, and sport specialized leaves with tubular throats into which insects wander to their doom. The bog environment where the plants thrive is surprisingly poor in nutrients, so these plants have become carnivorous to supplement their diet.
Sharol’s photographer friend gave us directions to the general vicinity of some blooming plants, and on our first afternoon we drove north on SR 65. I’ll give you the same directions we were given . . . just look on the roadsides north of Sumatra. It sounds vague, but it was enough to get us where we needed to be! Once you see the first few plants, the next ones are easier to find. I saw one pitcher within 10 feet of the road, then a cluster of three just a bit farther back. Then suddenly it was as if they were EVERYWHERE!
Continue reading “Carnivorous Plants in the Florida Panhandle”Our visit to Tarkiln Bayou Preserve State Park would have never happened without a chat with the helpful park ranger at Big Lagoon State Park. She mentioned that we could see wild orchids and pitcher plants just a couple of miles away, and we jumped at the chance!
Continue reading “Tarkiln Bayou Preserve State Park”