What's Blooming at Bear Run in July? - Partridgeberry

Partridgeberry (Mitchela repens), a member of the Bedstraw Family (Rubiaceae), is a trailing evergreen herb with white, fragrant tubular flowers in pairs. Its habitat is dry or moist woods and can be found along a variety of trails on the Bear Run Nature Reserve, as well as the grounds surrounding Fallingwater, the Kaufmann vacation home designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Partridgeberry is a most attractive woodland creeper with highly ornamental foliage, it can be used as a groundcover under acid loving shrubs and in terraria in the winter. The common name implies that the scarlet fruits are relished by partridges, but they do not appear to be of much importance to wildlife. Some North American Indian women drank a tea made from the leaves as an aid in childbirth.

Combine a hike through the Bear Run Nature Reserve with a visit to the “Fallingwater Homecoming“ exhibit which is open now through Sunday July 18 th from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

What's blooming at Bear Run is a monthly WPC Daily feature. Today's text source: National Audubon Society Field Guide to NA Wildflowers. Photo by WPC's Denise Miner.

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