NPS Barb Stewart

A bloodroot drips with dew in the early spring.

May 9-10, 2009
Click here to download the Wildflower Weekend Program Schedule (pdf, 20 kb).

Take a day or two to appreciate the diversity of wildflowers growing here in the Blue Ridge. More than 1,300 species of plants thrive in Shenandoah National Park, a mountain island surrounded by farmland, towns, and expanding developed areas. The park is a haven for native woodland wildflowers. For more information about Shenadoah's wildflowers click here.

Here you can take time to observe. See how flowers rely on butterflies, bees, birds and other animals to pollinate them and spread their seeds. Watch the daily battles taking place over a plant's resources.

Contemplate a wildflower and you might discover your own connections to the natural world.

“Men do change, and change comes like a little wind that ruffles the curtains at dawn, and it comes like the stealthy perfume of wildflowers hidden in the grass.” -- John Steinbeck

Help to ensure that wildflowers will be around for generations by leaving them unharmed. A flower that is picked can miss a chance to spread thousands of seeds. A plant that is dug up is gone forever, and the loss affects all things connected to it. If you love ‘em, leave ‘em!