This week features a harbinger of Spring, Eranthis hyemalis or Winter Aconite. The latin represents Er=spring and Anthos=flower. It’s one of the earliest flowers to appear in the Midwestern spring, often peeking out through the melting snow. The yellow petals are surrounded by a collar of leaf-like bracts, which intrigue me the most.
The green leaves emerge after the flowers, which are unique even once the flowers are gone.
Of course, even the leaves aren’t around for long. Winter Aconite is grown from little tubers planted in fall. After blooming in spring, it disappears back into the ground to store up energy for next year. Soak the tubers in water overnight before planting. The tubers will naturalize with time in optimum conditions, which are sun to part sun and slightly moist.
I’m working at printmaking and trying to improve my carving skills. Here’s my image of this delicate flower.
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