Each year, as March moves into April, spring tempts us with its erratic presence. One day is 70 degrees and the Cardinals and Song Sparrows are busy singing in the brush. The next day is blanketed with snow and the Junco is busy scratching the ground for seed, just as he has done all winter. Just as sure as one calendar page turns to another, spring will eventually be upon us in earnest.

Each April, the woodlands of Peoria undergo a rapid, and fleeting change. There are many among us that consider a walk in the woods this time of year as a pilgrimage. It is a time to shed the long winter to find the rebirth of life. Spring sunshine warms the soil and bring forth life after a long season of dormancy. Spring wildflowers are abundant along the trails in most of our wooded parks and nature preserves. The ephemeral nature of spring wildflowers demand that an observer hit the trails early and often to seize the opportunity. The lifecycle of many of these wildflowers last only a couple of weeks at most. Many individual plants only bloom for a day or two, and once they produce seed, they go back to sleep for another year. As soon as the tree canopy is fully leaved-out, the forest becomes shaded and the spring wildflower season is over.

One of my favorite spring ephemerals is the Snow Trillium (Trillium nivale). It is the earliest blooming of our native trilliums. They are appropriately named; with flowers that are snow white, and the fact that there will likely be another snowfall while they bloom. They are uncommon, so it is a bit like a treasure hunt to catch them in bloom. Other spring wildflowers manifest their beauty in sheer numbers. Virginia Bluebells (Mertensia virginica), can carpet acres of woodlands with their verdant green leaves and sky-blue flowers. Individually, they are beautiful, but en masse, they are spectacular.

Here in central Illinois, we are blessed with several areas where spring wildflowers abound. Forest Park Nature Center’s Valley Trail is easily accessible and home to many spring ephemerals. Trails through Detweiller Park’s woodlands, and Singing Woods Nature Preserve offer a bit more of a hiking challenge, but the reward is worth the trek. We also have the Illinois River Bluff Trail, which runs from Detweiller Park (on the south end) all the way to Camp Wokanda (on the north end). This route can allow a hiker to spend the whole day exploring the hills and hollows of our Peoria Park District.

Having these parks is a legacy left to us by past visionaries and environmentalists. The future of these parks can now be a part of your legacy. Recently, former Community Word Managing Editor Clare Howard and David Zalaznik put together a beautiful poster of Spring Ephemerals with photos from our local parks. They received a grant from the Illinois Arts Council to fund the project. The poster is available at several areas around Peoria, including Forest Park Nature Center, and the Noble Center for Park District Administration in Lakeview Park. All proceeds from the purchase of the poster go directly to the Peoria Park District’s Legacy Fund, which funds projects to care for our parks, trails and natural areas.

There are several opportunities to explore our parks with a naturalist this spring. Hikes to search for signs of spring take place at Forest Park Nature Center at 10 a.m. Saturday, April 9 and at Tawny Oaks Field Station at 10 a.m. Saturday, April 16. There is also our Annual Earth Day Festival which is held at Forest Park Nature Center from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, April 23. For more information on these events, contact Forest Park Nature Center at (309) 686-3360, or visit PeoriaParks.org.

Spring can be as fleeting, or ephemeral, as the wildflowers that grace our forests. Soon the long days of summer will be upon us and we will need to turn to the blooms of the sunny prairie to get our “flower fix.” Take some time out of your hectic schedule to explore our woods and get to know our spring ephemerals. In searching for wildflowers, you might just find out how to bloom, yourself!