Dahlonega loves festivals, and the Mountain Flower Art Festival has become a much anticipated spring celebration in this North Georgia town. An important element of this festival is the Garden Expo sponsored by the Georgia Mountains Master Gardeners. In addition to plant sales, educational programs, and children's crafts, the two-day Garden Expo offers visitors an opportunity to enjoy leisurely nature walks led by experts in native flora. Unfortunately, a very late-season prolonged freeze hindered the wildflower display. Nevertheless, walk attendees found many interesting native plants to inspect, admire, and learn about.
The first walk on Saturday morning was led by North Georgia College and State University professor Mark Davis. Mark holds a PhD in biology, and is self-taught in the field of botany, motivated by his love of plants. Mark led a dozen participants on a little-known trail bordering the Chestatee River, and uncovered for everyone a fascinating plant world hiding along the way. The Mountain Laurel put on quite a show with masses of pale pink blossoms. Mark educated everyone on the difference between Mountain Laurel and Rhododendron, a previously unclear
distinction for those not from the area. He pointed out Climbing Hydrangea, and made sure we knew how to identify Poison Ivy, which was in plentiful supply. Just in case anyone brushed against the Poison Ivy, Mark showed us
Wild Impatiens, which are rumored to be an antidote if crushed and rubbed on the skin. Many small treasures were also discovered, such as Little Brown Jugs (the southern version of Wild Ginger) and Jack-In-the-Pulpit.
The Saturday and Sunday afternoon walks featured Lumpkin County's new Yahoola Park Trails. Georgia Mountains Master Gardener President, Marilyn Oberhausen, also a professor at North Georgia College and State University, led both of these walks. The Yahoola Park Trails offer approximately 1.5 miles of hiking in moderate terrain, and feature shelters, log benches for resting, and a composting toilet along the way. A kiosk at the base of the trails provides a map, as well as photos and descriptions of wildlife and plants which may be found along the way, plus walking sticks for hikers to borrow. In addition to some of the same plants found along the Chestatee River trail, Marilyn identified many other interesting wild native plants such as Indian Cucumber, Black Cohosh, Indian Strawberry, Star Flower, Rattlesnake Plaintain, and Partridgeberry.
Yet more improvements are planned for the Yahoola Park Trails, and the Georgia Mountains Master Gardeners are looking forward to hosting walks on these trails again at next spring's Garden Expo. We would love for you to join us!
by Susan Lancaster, Master Gardener
Editor’s Note: The photographs of the plant materials were provided by Rosalie Jensen, Master Gardener and wildlife photographer. Also, special thanks to Jack Anthony, noted local photographer and author, who provided the Yahoola trail rest area photo used in this article.
