It's been a fine flowering season for Spotted Wintergreen, one of the prettiest—and, from the viewpoint of its common moniker, misnamed—wildflower in the drier areas of our woods. The spotted part supposedly refers to the appearance of the evergreen leaves, which are dark green and bear a central light stripe along the midrib rather than spots. And, unlike that other Wintergreen, from which we used to get, before chemistry came of age, that wonderfully minty fragrance and taste, the Spotted variety, Chimaphila maculata, possesses none of that aromatic oil. It's not even all that closely related to Gaultheria procumbens, so the only true part of the name is the fact that "wintergreen" refers to the habit of both species to keep their green leaves throughout the cold season. By whatever common designation, C. maculata is a stunner right now, and I've rarely seen so many of these waxy, intricate, and usually nodding flowers, with their ten pairs of curious stamens, gracing the forest floor. The local bumblebees are very, very happy to have received this natural gift.