Photo by Kyle Obermiller
The warm weather has arrived, and North Carolina is now a beautiful shade of green. The birds are building their nests and preparing to rear their young, while the rhododendrons are in full, purple bloom. Think you have to go all the way to the mountains to see some of May’s floral beauties? Think again!
There is no better place to enjoy the natural wonders of this season than at Triangle Land Conservancy’s Flower Hill Nature Preserve. The steep north-facing slopes of Flower Hill, a 10 acre tract in Middlesex, North Carolina, actually create a disjunct mountain community, a micro-environment friendly to Catawba rhododendron, galax, and other mountain flora that need a cooler, wetter climate to survive. In fact, these plants represent North Carolina’s easternmost Catawba rhododendron community! The ecology at Flower Hill is so unique that the naturalist who first recognized its geological abnormality actually called it a “Freak of Nature.”
Purchased by the Triangle Land Conservancy and open to the public since 1993, Flower Hill offers visitors a quick escape to the high country, without the three-hour drive. For new visitors who want to see the preserve for the first time, or frequent walkers who want to learn something new, TLC is offering its annual “Rhodo Ramble” at Flower Hill on Saturday, May 2 at 10 a.m. Led by, Donna Wright and Jon Stucky, this walk will provide participants with an up close and personal view of the flowers that gave the preserve its name.
Registration is free and required, and can be found here. In addition, by attending the Ramble participants will automatically have completed one of the five hikes in TLC’s new Hiking Challenge. Register for the challenge here and complete your first walk at Flower Hill!
Photo by Kyle Obermiller
