by hankinslawrenceimages | May 30, 2014 | Flowers, Saxifragaceae Family, Wildflowers
One of the wildflowers I love seeing in the spring is the Foamflowers (tiarelle cordifolia). Their delicate flowers add a sense of light beauty to the woods when they bloom.
Foamflower © 2014 Patty Hankins
Foamflowers are members of the Saxifrage family. They bloom in the woods in the early spring – frequently in moist areas along streams and creeks. I’ve also found them growing in damp crevasses in rock faces.
Foamflower © 2014 Patty Hankins
Foamflowers are easily identified by their spikes of white star-shaped flowers. The spikes grow to about 20″ tall. In the southern part of it’s range – foamflowers have several heart-shaped leaves around the base of the spikes – further north – they tend to found without the leaves.
Foamflower © 2014 Patty Hankins
Foamflowers are native to much of the Eastern United States & Canada – ranging from Maine to Ohio to Mississippi. They can also be found in Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario and Quebec.
Foamflower © 2010 Patty Hankins
Foamflower © 2010 Patty Hankins
by hankinslawrenceimages | Feb 17, 2011 | Flowers, Saxifragaceae Family, Wildflowers
(c) 2011 Patty Hankins
“At Pentecost which brings The Spring, clothed like a bride, When nestling buds unfold their wings,
And Bishop’s Caps have golden rings – Musing upon many things, I sought the woodlands wide.”
– “Voices of the Night” Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
(c) 201 1 Patty Hankins
Bishop’s Caps (mitella diphylla) are beautiful snow-flake shaped wildflower that I’ve photographed several times in Tennessee. A member of the Saxifrage family, this delicate flower is also known as miterwort – both common names derive from the flower’s resemblance to the hats worn by bishops. The Latin name – mitella diphylla – refers to both a cap (mitella) and the plant’s two leaves (diphylla).
(c) 2010 Patty Hankins
Native to most of the Eastern United States and Canada, Bishop’s Cap is an spring blooming wildflower. It prefers to grow in rich moist woods and along stream banks. They grow up to 16″ tall with several small ( 1/8 inch across) flowers on each stalk. A pair of heart shaped, three-lobed leaves grows halfway up the stalk.
(c) 2010 Patty Hankins
Native Americans found many uses for Bishop’s Cap. The Iroquois used a decoction of the whole plants taken to vomit and as a wash counteract bad luck and an infusion of the plant as drops for sore eyes. The Menominee used the plant in sacred ceremonies.
(c) 2010 Patty Hankins
All of these photos of Bishop’s Cap were taken in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
More information about Mitella diphylla is available online at
Connecticut Wildflowers
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Native American Ethnobotany
NC State University Wildflowers
Our Early Wild Flowers by Harriet Keeler
USDA Plant Profile
