Pussy willows give us that happy go lucky, gosh I’m glad it’s spring feeling but skunk cabbage….well, skunk cabbage reminds us that spring is also really earthy and ripe as well as a bit mucky and stinky.

Skunk cabbage is named for the amazingly yucky and skunk like smell that permeates the air if the plant is broken. This is easily achieved by stepping on it, something most people won’t do more than once. To say that smelling a skunk cabbage is an experience you won’t soon forget is an understatement.

They do look pretty cool, though. Eventually they will have big lush green leaves but right now they are just starting to push up through the mud in swampy wet areas. The flowers are very cool and I will post some pictures later as the plants come into bloom.