Highlights

Mayflower is our Massachusetts’ State Flower and Nova Scotia’s Provincial Flower. Growing close to the ground it is often mistaken for a forb or herbaceous spring wildflower. Mayflower is actually a shrub with woody stems that trail along the ground or, at the most, rise only two to six inches in height. It grows very slowly, spreading out in a circular pattern from the parent plant.

Mayflower leaves are evergreen, leathery, alternate and broadly oblong. The flowers are small, half-inch four petaled trumpets, white to deep pink, in clusters and very fragrant. The older the blossoms, the stronger the scent.

Mayflowers are pollinated by forest bumblebees attracted by the sweet smelling abundant nectar. In Massachusetts they bloom in April and early May. Fruits are a dry capsule one-quarter inch in diameter filled with tiny seeds.

The name “Mayflower” was bestowed on this shrub by the Pilgrims at Plymouth, Massachusetts, who named it after their ship. Although human development has made the shrub rare today, back in 1620 it was very abundant in sandy forest clearings. The ship, itself, carried the name of an entirely different flower that in England blooms in May.

Mayflower’s range is from Newfoundland to Georgia, west to Iowa, north to Canada’s Northwest Territories.

It grows best in pine forest clearings in moist, rich, acidic, sandy soil.

Mayflower blossoms were used by Indians to flavor maple syrup, various beverages and in salads.  New England country children often chewed the spicy, sweet blossoms in the spring.

THE HARTFORD FERN:

The Hartford fern, also known as the climbing fern, looks like no fern you’ve ever seen.

The Hartford fern is our only native fern species that grows as a vine. Often mistaken for a species of ivy, a close look shows that those are fronds growing from the vines …not leaves.

Hand-shaped pairs of fronds grow along the vine. The terminal end of each vine bears the more delicately-divided fertile leaflets that bear the fern’s spores.

The Hartford fern is an endangered or threatened species in most of its historical range. In Massachusetts it is listed by the Massachusetts Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program (NHESP) as a “Species of Special Concern.” The logo of the NHESP is this fern.

Hartford fern populations are rare and localized. To thrive, the Hartford fern requires an extremely moist, very acidic, sandy soil with a sparse pine-oak forest and an understory that allows plenty of sunlight to reach the forest floor. There are only 34 sites where this fern can be found in Massachusetts.

Colonies of Hartford ferns can be found from New England down the Appalachian Mountain range and east to the Atlantic coastal plain.

Along with prince’s pine, ground pine and Polypody fern the Hartford fern is evergreen and was gathered commercially for Christmas wreaths and decorations during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The first American plant protection laws were passed in Connecticut to save this species from commercial exploitation back in 1869.

There is one small colony of this fern in The Southeastern Massachusetts Bioreserve. It is losing ground due to maturing forest canopy and dirt bike abuse. Active management should be implemented to save this unique species.


Hartford fern vines trailing along ground.

 
Hartford fern’s palmate fronds.