This genus contains about a dozen species of shrubs and small trees, each with fruits that can be used to make a lathering soap.
This humble plant is easily overlooked, both in its quiet early blooming and later leaf unfurling. You can find it in wetlands and riverine forests in the NE quarter of the US, up into Canada.
This is the typical “red-breast” found in the United Kingdom and much of Europe, completely unrelated to the “red-breast” found in America.
This tree has large, opposite, palmately compound leaves and pyramids of flowers around May. It is often planted in parks and along city streets.
This WHITE little plant completely lacks chlorophyll and is often mistaken for a fungus or mushroom. In truth, it is a parasite of fungi that feed on tree roots, and is often found in the shade beneath beech or maple trees.
This velvety rootbeer-colored, moist-looking, rubbery-textured, somewhat cup-shaped edible fungus grows on trees and downed logs
This hairy little plant with 5 pointy petals is native to the Mediterranean region and is both edible and medicinal
These plants CAN be a nuisance, with some species having stinging hairs… BUT they are edible and highly nutritious, with various other uses as well!