So it is … important often to ignore or forget what men presume that they know and take an original and unprejudiced view of nature – letting her make what impression she will on you – as the first men and all children and natural men still do. For our science so called is always more barren and mixed up with error – than our sympathies are.

Thoreau, Journal, February 28, 1860

EPHEMERIS

FOR THE SECOND WEEK OF MIDDLE SPRING

The Twentieth Week Of The Natural Year

When Trilliums Cover the Hillsides

The Golden Goldfinch Moon remains in its fourth quarter throughout the period, finally becoming the new Rhubarb Pie Moon at 8:29 p.m. on April 14.

MARKERS FOR THE ADVANCE OF MIDDLE SPRING

Part II

April 16: As star magnolias lose their petals, the pink magnolias take their place.
April 17: Yellow wintercress brightens the fields of the township.
April 18: Bird migrations peak with the arrival of whip-poor-wills, red-headed woodpeckers, catbirds, cedar waxwings, yellow-throated vireos, meadow larks, indigo buntings, scarlet tanagers, Baltimore orioles, cowbirds, kingbirds, and more than a dozen varieties of warblers.
April 19: Strawberries flower in the gardens of Yellow Springs. Watercress
and golden ragwort bloom in Jacoby swamp, and bluets flower on the ridges
of John Bryan Park.
April 20: Large-flowered trilliums fill the North Glen hillsides. Wild blue phlox and wild geraniums come in along the woodland paths, prophesying Late Spring in only ten days.
April 21: The first parsnips bloom in South Glen. Leaves of the rose of Sharon, ginkgo, elm, tree of heaven, black walnut, pussy willow, box elder, sweet gum, ash, locust, and mulberry start to show.
April 22: More birds pass through the Glen: white-throated sparrows, ruby-crowned kinglets, yellow-rumped warblers, black-and-white warblers, palm warblers, Nashville warblers, swamp sparrows and hermit thrushes.
April 23: Wild black raspberries come into bloom along the bike path. Pick their fruit in 60 days.
April 24: Daffodils, grape hyacinths, scilla and windflowers decline as the early wildflowers of Middle Spring end their seasons.
April 25: Azaleas, lilacs, snowball viburnums and bridal wreath spirea blossom in the village as garlic mustard advances across the woodland floor.
April 26: Yellow-bellied sapsuckers mate as buckeye trees and red horse chestnut trees come into bloom. Admiral butterflies hatch as Jack-in-the-pulpit appears near the Cascades.
April 27: Bright yellow celandine flowers in the alleys: its sap is deep rusty gold. Common fleabane begins its season in the roadsides. Rare golden seal flowers deep in the woods of the North Glen.
April 28: Hepatica sprouts new leaves as it comes to the end of its cycle. Thyme and horseradish flower in the herb garden.
April 29: Clematis vines bring flowers to local trellises. The wood hyacinth, star of Bethlehem and lily-of-the-valley replace tulips and daffodils in the garden.
April 30: Shy wild ginger opens its blood-red flowers beside the tall nodding trilliums in the Glen when honeysuckle flowers perfume village streets. Korean lilac bushes complement the fragrant honeysuckles, ushering in Late Spring.