News from Black Prong Adventures Trail Riding
Each month Trail Manager, Emily Galka, highlights flora and fauna that she observes in the Goethe State Forest that surrounds the Black Prong Resort. Goethe State Forest Species of the Month: Loblolly Bay (Gordonia lasianthus)
I was out riding on the northwestern trails, just off of Griffis road the other day when I came across an interesting plant that I was unfamiliar with. At first I thought it was a type of magnolia as it was a small tree with large white flowers, but upon closer inspection I realized it was not. The leaves were small ovals with smooth edges, but the flower almost looked like a giant apple blossom. I used my app “Seek” by iNaturalist, which immediately identified it as Loblolly Bay.
I learned that this is a native species that is found from the Gulf Coast up to the coastline of Virginia. These trees are rather small but definitely noticeable with their beautiful flowers and are often used for decorative gardening. The wood can also be used for cabinetmaking, the pulp for paper making and historically the bark was used to create a red dye that can be used as a tanning agent. The flowers bloom from July to September and are fragrant and attract native pollinators. They like to grow in acidic, swamp pinelands, so I hope I might find them in other places in the Goethe.
Emily Galka (shown with her horse Lisa) is Black Prong’s Trail Riding Manager and resident naturalist.
