There is something magical about walking into the rich, shaded retreat of Southern Appalachian woodlands. The air is moist, the forest floor is soft and damp, mosses tint the scene with luminous hues of green, and lush vegetation of diverse sizes keeps your eyes moving from one marvelous shape to another. If you are lucky, the shamrock-shaped leaves of the Wood Sorrel will have added to the enchantment of the place by creating a carpet that covers nearly every inch of ground, its lumps and folds marking where the plants have grown upon rocks, boulders, and fallen trees. Be sure to linger here, investigate your surroundings a bit more, and the natural world will reward you with a delectation that will elude the casual visitor. Look beyond the Wood Sorrel's pink-veined petals and you will find the plant's hidden secret. Located below the leaves and close to the base of the plant is a cleistogamous flower, a blossom that never opens up, but self-pollinates and produces another set of seeds to help insure propagation of the species. Wood Sorrel is also known as Sour Grass, a reference to the oxalic acid (hence its genus name of Oxalis) that imparts a somewhat tart, lemon-like taste to its leaves.