I love this time of the year in the mountains. Well who am I kidding I love all the times of the year in the mountains 🙂
But there is something very special about the month of May. Matt’s birthday is the first of May and my nephew who made me an aunt for the first time was born in May too.
The mountains are in their full glorious summer garments and there’s wildflowers and domesticated flowers a plenty to feast the eyes on.
Every May our house becomes encircled by the beautiful blooms of ivy. Every window in the house offers a spectacular view of the dainty blooms in various colors of white and pink suspended on lustrous evergreen leaves.
ivy noun
(also ivy bush, ivy tree) The mountain laurel tree (Kalmia latifolia). Same as calico bush, mountain ivy.
1883 Zeigler and Grosscup Heart of Alleghanies 196 The arborescent kalmia and rhododendron, which grow along almost every mountain stream, have a practical use. The ivy and laurel, as they are locally called attain, in some of the fertile coves, a diameter of three inches, and the roots are even larger. 1928 Galyon Plant Naturalist 7 Mountain laurel, known to the mountaineer as “ivy,” reaches its maximum development in the Smokies. It is not unusual to find arborescent laurels one foot or more in diameter and many feet high. 1982 Stupka Wildflowers 80 Usually the attractive pink or white-saucered flowers are so abundant that the mountain laurel in full bloom is one of our most spectacular plants. It flowers in May and June, the later blossoms ordinarily occurring on plants growing in the higher altitudes. “Ivy” and “calico-bush” are among its other names. 1997-2001 Montgomery Coll. ivy bush (Cardwell); ivy tree (Brown).
—Dictionary of Smoky Mountain English
Granny and Pap both said ivy for mountain laurel so the usage is still alive and well in my family. I was heartened to hear a gentleman correct a youngster from the community the other day. The boy thought the abundant blooms were cherry blossoms. His elder said “No son those are ivy blooms. They bloom ever year about this time.” Hopefully the young one will remember.
There’s a great quote from the book Tall Woman by Wilma Dykeman about ivy.
“I’ve always thought the ivy was about the prettiest thing growing here, the way it clings to the mountains, the way it comes in the cutover places and covers up the scars with blooms in spring.”
Every spring I’m shocked by the beauty of Ivy decorating the mountainsides. You’d think after all these years I’d get over it, but I don’t think I ever will.
Last night’s video: Our Favorite Cast Iron to Use & More Answers to Your Questions!
Tipper
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Our WV mountains are full of rhododendron and mountain laurel covering the creek and river banks everywhere. Rhododendron is our state flower, and it sure puts on a show this time of year. Lots of folks have tame rhododendron planted around their houses. We have never called it ivy, but I like that name. Your photo is, as usual, very beautiful.
Tipper, I came a cross this article about southern accents and thought you might find it interesting too. 🙂
https://apnews.com/article/migration-southern-accent-georgia-louisiana-north-carolina-1f8bfc59f869ccccaed6a87cdaa83ee8?utm_source=join1440&utm_medium=email&utm_placement=newsletter&user_id=66c4bb635d78644b3a937c6d
Regina-really interesting! Thank you 🙂
God sure does love us Appalachian women by blessing us the natural beauty of blooms we don’t even have to work for. Of course, he loves the men folk too! I don’t think any group of people feel as grounded and nestled in a place as much as we do. Where we are is so connected to WHO we are, I really don’t think we can remain true to ourselves out of here, or least not for very long. Mountain Laurel is such a frilly and feminine flower/ivy. I even think that Laurel is a beautiful name for a girl! It’s as appealing “as all get out.” TIPPER, are you familiar with that phrase? We are due some scary storms in Kentucky. Prayers for all of us to be safe no matter where you live!!!
Sandi-I have heard that 🙂 It’s a good one!
that is one beautiful flower!!!
BEAUTIFUL PICTUE OF THE FLOWERS. CAN YOU POST PICS OF A SOURWOOD TREE? THEY ARE ONLY NATIVE TO THE SMOKIES AND PRODUCE HONEY THAT IS IN HIGH DEMAND!!
Chris, we do have the right around our house so I can try 🙂 Here’s a page with a photo in case I can’t capture a good image: https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/oxydendrum-arboreum/
Unfortunately, when I think of Ivy, it’s the 3 leaf kind that irritates the skin. (Leaves of 3 let them be!)
We’re heading up to the mountains today, Black Mountain area. Looking forward to seeing the ivy. I know it will be beautiful.
I think it would be wonderful to live in the mountains and be surrounded by all of the beauty that nature has to offer. The times I have visited, I was not disappointed. Absolutely gorgeous!
Forgot to say we call them rhododendrons here in PA near the Maryland line and they are blooming here. I love them but never heard them called Ivy till I read it on your blog. They are absolutely stunningly beautiful.
I have memories of playing in the ivy bushes and coming home with a pink dress on. “You get back outside and get all that off your clothes before you come in this house!” Ivy blooms are purty and all that but their beauty does not hold up well on the backside of a scraggly seven year old mountain’s son.
I have an old iron skillet that is over 100 years old. Most precious to me because I saw my Mother use it all the time and it was her Mother’s who used it all the time too. I do remember my Grandmother frying up the best fried chicken I’ve ever tasted when I was a teen. I use it to cook in sometimes but mostly for cornbread. The reason I don’t use it all the time is that I am older like Granny and don’t have the strength in my hands like I used to. It is still one of my treasures though and I have many, many memories unfold in my mind’s eye when I look at it of happy family times. Tipper you be sure to leave Matt’s little corner of the basement alone. He is too good a feller to have to dig through others stuff to find his little bit:)
if you have’t started doing so already, you really should start collecting these columns and publishing them in periodic volumes….as lead or sole author. you/they stand distinct on your own. both as a voice and as a historical / cultural record. by all means, get a good publisher and a GOOD editor, one who deeply feels and honors your presence and that of which you speak, but do it on YOUR terms and with YOUR unique eyes and voice… having lived and read things like these myself for 50+ years, i can say that you are distinct from foxfire, all other authors and various and sundry personal / regional histories. aside from the personal value to you of revisiting and compiling them, they would benefit others. both pleasurable and informative, these collections of you and yours would represent an incredibly valuable generational and regional history on multiple levels. years from now, PhD students will be citing you and more importantly, people will still be breathing old appalachia through you.
(PS: please forgive my unpolished words-both my time and attention are fractured-my commentary suffers.)
Sean-you are very kind. Thank you 🙂
Like you, I love mountain laurel and rhododendron too. Both grow in abundance here on the Cumberland Plateau, especially in the hollers along the creeks.
We call this plant Laurel here. I always enjoy seeing the many shades of green and the many floral colors that bring ‘new life’ in the spring. As you say Tipper, definitely a feast for the eyes – plus an assortment of fragrances mixing together and wafting around us. But for those with allergies, it can be a difficult season!
Most beautiful plant . I tried to get one to grow here in north Alabama without success. I haven’t found any at plant nurseries for sale.
Mountain laurel is a pretty name for it. I had never heard it called ivy or heard of calico bush. I have learned a lot about plants I never knew about before reading your blog and seeing your videos. You are a great teacher. Thank you : )
You are indeed surrounded by the beauty of nature in those mountains.
The mountains and fields with all the glorious shades of green, sprinkled with assorted colors from flowering blooms are a sight to see. It’s God’s creation springing beautifully back to life.
There’s plenty of rhododendron and mountain laurel around these parts at this time. I’m reminded of when I was about 16 and picked mountain laurel in the national forest for my daddy… oh he liked the plant ok ( and it lived a long time) but when he asked where I got it and I told him he said “Gypsy, don’t ever take things out of the forest for that is against the law. You could get in very bad trouble.” That’s the very day I decided NEVER to molest anything living in a national forest and so far so good in my 52 years following that warning from daddy. My thinking was only that plant was beautiful and spectacular and who wouldn’t want one? Oh my y’all!!! Have a good day all and let’s get us some outdoor beauty today if we can. It smelled so good and fresh yesterday! Happy late birthday to the deer hunter…
Good Morning Tipper,
I live in Pennsylvania, but the mountain laurel (I’ve never heard them called ivy before reading this post! Interesting!) are beginning to bloom here too. When I visit Mitchell County, NC, I’m always amazed at the size of the rhododendrons all through the mountains. Bakersville has an annual rhododendron festival in June, but I’ve never been to it (yet!). I believe the Roan Mountain has the largest natural rhododendron gardens in the world. They are spectacular! Enjoy this beautiful month. I’ve always loved when the leaves all pop out, bringing privacy for the summer. It’s like the curtain has been drawn again, until Fall’s leaf drop. I love this time of year. I’m sitting here, on a misty morning, enjoying the calm, and the beautiful bird songs. My favorite, the Wood Thrust, is in good voice this morning! All is well.
Tipper, I love your writing and this time of year, too. I’m reminded of when my oldest sister graduated and moved off to Indiana. She was gone for several months before she came home for a visit. When she came, it was in early June. She remarked that when she turned off onto Poplar Springs road, she felt like she was going down a rabbit hole, the road looked so narrow and closed in.
She always came back every chance she got though!
I’ve never heard them called anything but Ivy. They seem more beautiful this year.
The mountains are full of colorful flowers and trees in may my favorite time to hunt herbals