Hepatica Leaves
Round-lobed (Hepatica americana) and Sharp-lobed Hepatica (Hepatica acutiloba) are two of our earliest plants to flower, blossoming in early to mid-April, before tree leaves have unfurled, allowing the sun’s rays to reach the forest floor.
The leaves of these plants are evergreen; new ones are produced in May. They remain on the plant for a full year, through the next spring’s flowering period. (Many spring wildflowers, or ephemerals, produce leaves, flowers and fruits in a short amount of time and then disappear.) Not only do hepatica leaves photosynthesize on warm winter days (if snow hasn’t buried them), but even worn and tattered they go into high gear in the spring, photosynthesizing before the leaves of other plants have even appeared. Thus, hepatica is able to produce its flowers earlier than most other spring wildflowers. (Photo: Round-lobed Hepatica, Hepatica americana)
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