Hexastylis virginica may be?

I don't have any direct experience with Hexastylis species, but do have access to Weakley's key and BONAP maps. It is interesting that there are eleven Hexastylis species in that small corner of the US. Some of the more likely options appear to be H. heterophylla, H. naniflora, H. shuttleworthii, and H. virginica, per Internet photos. If you are serious about a specific ID, then you can use Weakley's key when the plants are in flower. Most of them flower March-May, but some don't reach anthesis until May, with flowering extended into June. The portion of Weakley's Hexastylis key that seems most applicable follows. Click the image to see it in better detail:

Did these used to be lumped in Asarum and have somewhat recently been split out? Or have they always been Hexastylis?

USDA shows that some were originally listed as Asarum, while others lack a synonym.

Thanks, jekeesl.

Thanks, all! Jekeesl, I'm going to have to get somewhere that I can print that key out, then look up the meaning of the botanic terms! Then I will know what it is. In the meantime, I just saw something from NC Botanic Garden that says the ones in our region with heart shaped leaves are most likely Little Heartleaf, Hexastylis minor. H. arifoleum is more common here but has the arrow shaped leaves.

I will gladly work on the key and learn the terms. Thanks again.

Apparently I signed in with the wrong email address to make the comment above. Sorry for any confusion.

Here is more info on Hexastylis species http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=115416

Thanks for the links, Windberry!

I didn't include H. minor in my "most likely" list, because Internet photos of that species seemed to show more acute leaf tips than representative of your plants. But since I don't know anything about the normal variability of Hexastylis species, it may be a viable option.

We have sun today. I will try to get some better photos of the leaves and flowers.

I got more photos, but haven't had time to decipher the key, jekeesl. There are some leaves that are much larger than others, and yes, they are decidedly pointy. Maybe there are two species. The photos that I post here show a small-leaved plant, yet it has flowers. None of the other plants has flowers so far. The lens cover in the picture is about 2.25 inches in diameter.

The plant here has much larger leaves which seem pointier. H. arifolia?

This is a better photo of the flowers of the first, small-leaved plant above.

I have been reading about Hexastylis flower shapes, and now realize that they are tricky to interpret. I did find an exceptional resource here: Key to Hexastylis North Carolina. As you browse through the key, you'll notice +/- symbols to the right of the species names. Click on one of those symbol sets, and it brings up photos of leaves, flowers, and even distribution maps. If you are still struggling with finding a reasonable ID, there's a link to the author, Dr. Alexander Krings (Alexander_Krings@ncsu.edu), at the bottom of the page. I suspect that he would happily help you with inquiries.