ANN ARBOR—They’re going wild in Southeast Michigan. They started blooming in April and some of them won’t stop until September. The wildflowers along Michigan’s streams and highways, in the meadows and woodlands and wetlands, and especially in the University of Michigan Matthaei Botanical Gardens’ Helen V. Smith Woodland Wildflower Garden, are presenting the soft white of Rue Anemone and delicate greens and purple-browns of the Jack-in-the-Pulpits heralding the summer white of Culver’s Root and the vibrant blue of Great Blue Lobelia at season’s end in August and September.

“The Gardens is a wonderful place to learn to identify woodland wildflowers,” says Liz Elling, visitor programs Coordinator at the Gardens. “There’s a great diversity of labeled plants in a relatively small area. Visit it early and often to watch the plants develop through the growing season. See the whole life span, from shoot to bud, flower, and finally fruit or seed.

The Helen V. Smith Woodland Wildflower Garden is a showcase of more than 100 species of wildflowers, woody plants and ferns that grow wild in the southern Great Lakes region and includes native species and European and Asian exotics with Appalachian species that are hardy and have naturalized in the southern Michigan woods. Adjacent to the Garden are “spontaneous” areas of native plants that have established themselves and are typical under an oak forest canopy. A native plant is one that has been found in the area since before European settlement. An exotic refers to plants that have been introduced since settlement times, usually those that have escaped from cultivation.

Some of the favorite “natives” in the Garden are Mayapple, Michigan Lily, Touch-Me-Not and Great Blue Lobelia. Among the Appalachian gems in the Garden are Black Snakeroot, Jacob’s Ladder, Trillium and Virginia Bluebells. Representative ferns of Michigan include the Christmas, Cinnamon, Maidenhair, Royal, Ostrich and Sensitive ferns. Among the woody plants are the Flowering Raspberry, Yellowwood and Witch-hazel.

For more information about native plants, Elling suggests contacting the Wildflower Study Group at Matthaei (313-998-7061), the Natural Areas Heritage Program in Lansing (517-373-1263), or the Michigan Chapter of The Wild Ones (313-763-0645). She also recommends Smith’s “Michigan Wildflowers,” “Michigan Flora,” Vols. I-III by Ed Voss and Houk’s “Eastern Wildflowers.”

Matthaei Botanical Gardens also offers many relevant adult education classes throughout the year. For more information about the classes, special events and sales, contact the Gardens at (313) 998-7061.

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