rockbreaker, Boombridge

There are a number of what I call "signature plants"—species that do something so significant at a certain time of year that I use them as parts of a natural calendar. The one I've long termed "Virginia Rockbreaker" is definitely one of them. The plant was once considered a member of the genus Saxifrage, which is Latin for "rock breaker," and refers to the plant's habit of growing in soil pockets on boulders. This made it seem as if the species had the magical ability to shatter stone. Of course, the real rock-breakers are the lichens and the mosses that are breaking down rock into soil, and once they've done their work, the "rock-breakers" can take advantage of the incipient soil situation. What botanists now call Micranthes virginiensis—it's no longer considered a member of the Saxifrage clan—is an evergreen plant, but right now, it's simply hanging on. The signature part won't take place until late winter, when I'll begin to see the beginnings of flower buds. By April, M. virginiensis will be signing its John Hancock on the rocks in the form of exquisite and early white blossoms.