Spring is springing and a sure sign is the greening of my yard. The days above 50° entice me to explore my yard after the long winter. Yes, I look for the wildflowers that peek through the ivy. I adore the warm spring days that bring forth wildflowers: spring beauties, trillium, hepatica, mayapple, Dutchman breeches, and Celanese poppies. Under green leaves I can spots violets - purple, white, yellow, and variegated. The hellebores has been blooming since early February and welcome the wildflower company.

I hope you take time to look for our natural wildflowers. Broad Ripple Park (especially in the woods or by the river), Holliday and Marrott Parks, and Butler gardens and woods will surprise the daily walker with blooms to be identified and savored. There are several resources that can help you if you want to know what you are seeing. First, there are assorted field guides to wildflowers that you can check out of the library or purchase for your home reference shelf. There are apps for android and iOS with the most reputable being the Audubon Wildflower digital guide. Identifying fragile spring wildflowers no longer has to involve picking flowers and bringing them home for identification. Exploring the woods for blossoms has met the digital age.

Another amazing digital asset in this area is a gem, Friesner Herbarium. Butler University Libraries and the Friesner Herbarium launched a website showcasing the Herbariurm Specimen Digital Image Collection of over 19,600 dried, pressed, and preserved plants specimens. Check it out at www.butler.edu/herbarium. This project celebrates the life of Dr. Ray Friesner who was a botany professor for more than 30 years at our neighboring university. The collection features plants collected throughout Indiana including ferns, orchids, and sunflowers along with bean buttercup, figwort, mint mustard, rose, lily, pink, carrot, and forget-me-not families. IUPUI University Library created the digital images of the Friesner Herbarium Collection. This site also has an inventory of Marion County wildflower locations and a Spring Wildflower Checklist.

You may also want to take advantage of wildflower walks at Holliday Park (www.hollidaypark.org). Did you know that Butler University offers a Campus Tree Walk? A map and identification of the trees you will see on the campus can be found at www.butler.edu/herbarium/indexwalk.htm. This site even has photos and an online lesson about how to identify trees.

Indiana Native Plants and Wildflowers Society (www.inpaws.org) promotes the appreciation, preservation, conservation, utilization, and scientific study of the flora native to Indiana. Its mission is to educate the public about the value, beauty, diversity, and environmental importance of indigenous vegetation. This advocacy group has guarded our native resources and encourages every citizen of Indiana to enjoy our landscape and plant native plants in their yards.

Finally, one other announcement fits with this column. There is a movement afoot to create a special garden in Broad Ripple. The Bill Brink Memorial Garden will be a landscaped linear oasis honoring the memory of the life-long Broad Ripple resident and friend who passed away in 2011. It will reflect Bill's passion for the great outdoors, native Indiana plants, wildlife, art, and Broad Ripple Village. There will be a variety of plant habitats including a rain garden, forest wildflowers, and a prairie as well as benches, public art, and lighting. Bill was a special nature friend of mine going back to the days he was an original photographer at Eagle Creek. If you want to find out more about this project whether to donate or volunteer, go to http://brva.org/2013/11/contribute-to-the-bill-brink-memorial-garden/.

The joy of looking for wildflowers of spring is a wonder. The plants can peek out through your yard, sidewalks, along roads and farms, and unlikely places in and around the Village. They are hardy and self sustaining. Their blooms welcome us to a new season of rebirth and hope of bountiful growth. Step out and see what you find along the paths of Broad Ripple. Savor their beauty, share your finds with others, and rejoice that the winter is over!