FINDING BEAUTY IN THE ORDINARY PHOTOGRAPHY
  • Home
  • About
    • Meet Amanda
    • Gift Registry
    • What to Expect
    • Client Love
  • Portfolio
    • Maternity Client Closet
  • Investment
  • Blog
  • Contact Me & Book
  • Shop | Fine Art

Blog

Pitcher Plant hunting | Pensacola, FL

4/24/2018

2 Comments

 
Picture
Springtime in northwest Florida brings many beautiful things, but my personal favorite has to be the pitcher plant.
This next stop in my "Exploring the Gulf Coast" series" won't take you too far from home at all. The area around Pensacola, FL is home to several bogs that provide the perfect environment for these fascinating, carnivorous plants. The specific species shown throughout this blog (and most commonly found along the northern Gulf Coast) is Sarracenia leucophylla.
Picture
"Sarracenia leucophylla has nodding, brownish-red flowers and clusters of erect, hollow, pitcher-like leaves. Each leaf is colored at top with reddish-purple veins on a white background and topped by an erect, roundish, wavy-edged hood.
It is highly variable with respect to its height, with plants in some localities reaching almost 1 meter (3.3 ft) in height, while in others, plants can be diminutive. A seldom seen 30 centimeters (12 in) tall dwarf form is endemic to Garcon Point n Santa Rosa County, Florida."

There are 3 areas of varying accessibility within a 30-45 minute drive where you can see these beautiful flowers blooming in the wild. And, since I KNOW you're not going to pick them or harm them in any way, I'll share those with you.
Picture
My personal favorite place to view pitcher plants (and where all of the above pictures were taken) is at the Garcon Point Water Management Area in Milton, FL. To get here, take Hwy 281 (Avalon Blvd) south like you're going to go over the toll bridge. Take the LAST possible left before the toll booth at the sign for the Garcon Point Water Management Area South. Park your car, coat yourself in sunscreen and bug spray, and put on your galoshes. Did I mention that before? Yeah, you're going to need galoshes because you'll be walking through water between 2 & 10 inches deep depending on how recently it's rained. Pitcher plants grow in a bog! My galoshes also give me a (false) sense of security regarding snakes that I really appreciate.
Picture
Picture
In case you didn't believe that I actually wear galoshes. :)
At the trail head you'll see this map. You're going to follow the trail to the left the whole way. There will be 2 forks and each time, you'll stay to the left. Not far after the 2nd fork is the pitcher plant bog.
The trail starts out winding through a coastal woodland with and sandy path.
Picture
As you continue, the trail will narrow a bit and you'll see blue blazes on some of the trees marking the trail. The ground will change from sandy to dirt/mud and the trees will thin.
Picture
Picture
The walk itself is beautiful, but you know you're getting close to the main event when the trail starts looking like the picture to the left.
Picture
Picture
Not interested in donning galoshes and hiking through the brush? Then Tarklin Bayou State Park in Pensacola, FL or the Pitcher Plant Loop Trail at the Graham Creek Nature Preserve in Foley, AL  are two other great places to view pitcher plants.
The 1/2 mile one-direction trail at Tarklin Bayou State Park is pet-friendly paved and board-walked trail ending at a pier overlooking Tarklin Bayou. Along the way, you'll cross over the top of a pitcher plant bog with ample opportunity to observe the plants from above.
If you watch carefully, you may even get to watch one capturing it's prey like the picture at right.
Picture
However you decide to check out these amazing plants, just remember, leave them as they are. "The plant is a listed vulnerable species on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The greatest threat to S. leucophylla, as is the case with most Sarracenia species, is loss of its unique wetland habitat to development along the Gulf Coast, as well as forest succession that was historically kept in check by natural wildfires.
2 Comments
Diane Payne
4/25/2018 06:52:46 am

Well done. I almost feel like I've been there.

Reply
Jim Dexheimer
3/9/2020 12:29:56 pm

Hi Amanda,

Thanks for the wonderful blog. I am from Wisconsin and have been a fan of bogs for many years.We have only one pitcher plant and a couple of sundews. Your photographs and descriptions have motivated me to drive south to see Florida's bounty. I have one question. I found one reference to Sarracenia blooming west of Tallahassee in mid-April. Has that been your experience at Garcon Point and Tarklin Bayou?

Thanks again.

Jim

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    Amanda is the prop buying, location scouting, mom-bun rocking, flip flop wearing, owner/ operator/ and woman behind the camera for Finding Beauty in the Ordinary Photography. 

    Categories

    All
    12 Months Portaits/ Cake Smash
    Birth Photography
    Bridal Portraits
    Child Portraits
    Christmas Portraits
    Engagement Portraits
    Exploring The Gulf Coast
    Family Portraits
    Maternity Portraits
    Milestone Portraits
    Miscellaneous
    Motherhood
    Nature Photography
    Newborn Portraits
    Photography Education
    Portrait Tips
    Senior Portraits
    Wedding Photography

    Archives

    March 2022
    January 2022
    February 2021
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    January 2018
    October 2017
    August 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    December 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    May 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013

I proudly provide
Family Photography, Newborn Photography, Maternity photography, Fresh 48 photography, Senior Portrait Photography, and Milestone Photography in Pensacola, FL, Cantonment, FL, Perdido Key, FL, Pace, FL, Gulf Breeze, FL, Navarre, FL, and Pensacola Beach, Florida and Orange Beach, AL, Gulf Shores, AL, Foley, AL,, Fairhope, AL, Daphne, AL and Spanish Fort, Alabama..
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
  • Home
  • About
    • Meet Amanda
    • Gift Registry
    • What to Expect
    • Client Love
  • Portfolio
    • Maternity Client Closet
  • Investment
  • Blog
  • Contact Me & Book
  • Shop | Fine Art