Have you ever thought about the behaviour of plants? It might look like they are just sitting there, slowly growing, but there is a lot more going on than meets the eye!
Let’s talk about the Canadian Anemone. If you are walking after supper you might miss glimpsing these beautiful flowers. However, in the afternoon they are spectacular. That’s because they close up for the night to protect themselves from the cold. However, Yellow Salsify demonstrates a very different behaviour. Do you like naps?—they do. Sometimes they are called Go-to-bed-at-noon because they close up around lunchtime to avoid the mid-day heat. Two very different plants—two very different behaviours. Keep adventuring. You are Always in my Prayers. Love Mom. Canadian Anemone location: NPT near line 81 Yellow Salsify Location: NPT behind the Barber St. Apartments
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Beautiful find with the Columbine NPW KB—we are hoping to see some of that this weekend. I think that it is special that you found something hummingbirds like.
The yellow one is Yellow Rocket. The other (according to Ray’s app) is some sort of Deadnettle. Keep adventuring. Ray & Diane Who decides what is the best or the most beautiful? The only difference between a Garden Plant and a Wildflower is that someone decided which plants THEY thought were the most beautiful. They planted them in their gardens and kept growing (propagating) the ones they liked best.
Both of these flowers are a type of Solomon Seal. They are very different plants, but they came from the same scientific family (Asparagaceae). One is a Wildflower—One is a Garden Plant. One is along the North Perth Trail—One is planted in my garden. I’m not going to tell you which is which. I’m going to let you decide which one is “more beautiful." Tons of new Wildflowers out there. Keep Adventuring. You are Always in my Prayers. Love Mom. The scientific name of this wildflower is Lamium Galeobdolon (LG). Usually, we call a wildflower by its common name. We have been surprised at how many different common names a single species can have! The LG can be called a yellow archangel, artillery plant, aluminum plant, yellow weasel-snout, or even yellow dead-nettle. If you could only pick one, which would you choose?
Keep adventuring. We found this beauty in Listowel Memorial Park—along with the warm weather many new wildflowers have arrived. You are Always in my Prayers. Love Mom. Some see weeds—I see wishes—and rabbits see a tasty meal.
Did you know that bunnies love dandelions? Not just the leaves, but the flowers, and blow balls too! This little fellow was on the North Perth Trail. We watched him for quite a while. If you look closely, you can see the dandelion bits hanging out of his mouth. There are great things to find close to home. Keep adventuring. You are Always in My Prayers. Love Mom and Dad A couple of cool things. This past March, in Bangkok Thailand, artist Stacey Stuart had a solo exhibition ALL on dandelions😄 The second COOL part is that Stacey is my niece😄 Stacey’s abstracts speak to that part of our heart that makes us want to wish and imagine. Lately, things have been a little tough—but also a lot good. I think we could all come up with a wish--even if it is only a tiny one. Blow balls are perfect for wishing. I took a BIG breath and slowly blew the seeds onto my WishCard. It felt good...it felt hopeful. Can you see what my wish was? What would you wish for? Thinking of you all. Keep safe. You are Always in my Prayers. Love Mom. How to make a WishCard 1. Get a piece of black or colour paper (I used Bristol board) 2. Take a glue stick and rub it all over one side 3. Blow your dandelion seeds onto the glue 4. Make a wish—share it on your card if you want Caution: messy crafting—best done outside Whether you call them seed heads, blow balls, or dandelion clocks—they have sprouted all over our lawn. Now we have to wait for the wind to spread the seeds so that we can have an excellent crop next year.
I took a little walk around the yard before lunch. I found the whole life cycle of a dandelion. There was everything from buds to parachutes. Here’s a challenge—can you find all of the stages? Keep adventuring. You are Always in my Prayers. Love Mom. Sometimes they are hard to spot, but when you do see Jack-in-the-Pulpit it feels like you have found something special. There are tons on them along the Stevenson Tract.
Jack-in-the-Pulpit are NOT carnivorous plants. However, once a bug flies in they do have a bit of a hard time finding their way out. This is great for the tiny flowers inside because it means they get super pollinated. One of their favourite pollinators are fungus gnats—and the more time the gnats spend inside the plant instead of flying at hikers is a bonus! By the way, although Jack-in-the-Pulpit is not endangered, it is being threatened by my Garlic Mustard. What do you think of Jack-in-the-Pulpit—just a little too weird or strangely beautiful? Keep Adventuring. You are Always in my Prayers. Love Mom. Note: Carnivorous plants eat bugs by trapping them and benefiting from their nutrients Do you have a cat or kitten? Does it make sense that this unusual wildflower is called Pussytoes?
We haven’t seen a lot of Pussytoes, but there is a nice patch of female plants near the Listowel Memorial Park Trail. Yes, that’s right—there are both female and male plants. Now, that said, female plants are excellent at reproducing on their own. Late Spring butterflies and moths are some of the frequent pollinators. We hear Pussytoes can have spectacular seed balls; so we are going to keep an eye on this patch! Keep Adventuring. You are Always in My Prayers. Love Mom. |
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Ray & Diane HomewoodSharing the Blessing of Travel Archives
August 2021
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