Plants

Wildflowers

Mark Lehman

Over 1000 species of vascular flora inhabit the 15 square miles of Colonial National Historical Park. All the major vegetation groups are represented. Beaches, forests, tidal wetlands, streamside communities, and open fields define the character of the park and give the visitor sweeping views over the rivers and into the enclosed woodlands.

In first sign of spring is seen when the maple flowers give their tree a red glow. Early spring wildflowers like golden ragwort and mayappleare abundant in the woods along the Colonial Parkway. Then Redbuds and Dogwoods bloom on either side of the roadway, creating an avenue of white and pink blossoms.

The tall, purple-headed Yorktown onion blooms in early summer along the Yorktown portion of the Colonial Parkway and in the battlefields. In Yorktown, fields of thistle attract hundreds of goldfinches in the summer, and in the fall the fruits of persimmon litter Jamestown Island.

The Colonial Parkway and the park tour roads traverse many of these plant communities. Tall mixed native and non native grass fields include a variety of wildflowers, growing tall enough to provide cover for newly born fawns, and food and nesting sources for birds requiring open field habitat. The edges of the tour roads are lit with golden blooms of wingstem and goldenrod and animals are quickly eating the ripe pawpaw fruits that have dropped from the trees. By frost, persimmon fruits are quickly eaten by a number of mammals.

Road bridges cross extensive marshlands and parallel sandy beaches vegetated with grasses and wetland plants. From the Jamestown Island tour road bridges all cordgrass fills the marshes while arrowhead and pickerel-weedbloom along the edges. Calico asters brighten the roadways until late fall. Many fern species form drifts along the waterways in the park.

Several federally-listed threatened and endangered plant species have been identified within the park, and are being closely monitored. Among them are pondspice,mountain camellia, sensitive joint-vetch, and gaping panicgrass.