But wait, that's not all!

No, it really wasn’t!  Once I found the pretty Dog-tooth Violets that I showed you in my last post, more treasures started turning up all around the woods. 

Another kind of flower I was keeping an eye out for were Hepaticas.  Since they are one of the earliest bloomers of the springtime, I thought I might have missed them.  I was in luck though!

In this photo, you can see the front of one Hepatica flower, and if you look carefully, you can see the back of another one behind it. 

One of the neat things about Hepaticas is that they have so many variations.  First of all, there are two kinds - “Round-lobed Hepatica”- obviously with rounded leaves, and "Sharp-lobed Hepatica” - the kind we have.  Besides the shapes, their leaves can be green, purple, or brown - and the flowers can be white, pale blue or even pink!  This makes hunting for them fun, to see what you can find. 

Now, if you saw these blooming in the woods, would you think... “that might be good for my liver?”  That’s apparently what the folks long ago who named them thought.  The name Hepatica comes from the Greek word for “liver”  and another common name for them is “Liverleaf.”  In times long past (thankfully!), people had the idea that if a plant had the shape or likeness to a certain body part, it could be used to treat that organ.  No, I do not recommending next time you have a “liver ailment” you chew on a Hepatica leaf!  
 
Something (a deer maybe?) did chew on this next plant... notice the two stems with no leaves.  Also, notice how this one has a pinkish flower and purple leaves!

The next photo is interesting because it shows the Hepatica flower as well as seed heads on the same plant. 

Even the seed heads are pretty with their delicate fuzziness!

The Red Trillium were beginning to bloom nearby.

And the yellow violets were, too.  Sweet is the word for violets, don’t you think?

An hour and a half slipped quickly by while I walked slowly thru the woods delighting in these beautiful little treasures.  Then it was time to head home. 

On my way, I saw this cute cottontail and had some fun sneaking up to see how close I could get before he turned tail and ran...

                                         There he goes!