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Category: Plants

Orange-grass (Hypericum gentianoides)

Orange-grass (Hypericum gentianoides)

Yesterday’s snow managed to stick long enough for a lovely winter walk (unlike the last few snow storms that transitioned to rain before they were over and washed away all evidence of the snowfall by morning). One of the interesting things about a walk in the snow is that the stark white background makes the stalks, stems and seed heads of last year’s wildflowers even more evident. Among the much taller common evening primrose and sweet fern, even remnants of…

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Eastern white oak (Quercus alba)

Eastern white oak (Quercus alba)

By January, most deciduous trees have completely shed their leaves. Two major exceptions to this rule are oaks and beeches. If you look outside and see a tree still clinging to masses of dried, curled up brown leaves, chances are you have one of these trees.  To help you pick out the eastern white oaks (Quercus alba) from the rest, look for the following characteristics:  Light grey to nearly white bark, broken into numerous chip-like scales, sometimes with a pink…

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Pink Lady Slipper (Cypripedium acaule)

Pink Lady Slipper (Cypripedium acaule)

Pink lady slipper flowers, which bloom in early- to mid-June, are a challenge to pollinate due to their unique shape. Only bumblebees and a few other larger species of bee are up for the task of pushing through the narrow opening into the center of the blossom. Unfortunately, pink lady slippers produce pollen, but no nectar. So after repeatedly coming up empty-handed after visiting a few flowers, the bees will learn there is no reward for their efforts and stop…

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Common evening primrose (Oenothera biennis)

Common evening primrose (Oenothera biennis)

The long, four-parted woody fruit capsules of common evening primrose (Oenothera biennis) are readily recognizable even in winter. These capsules are arranged in spikes at the tip of the stem. Common evening primrose often grows as a single tall stem, 3 to 6 feet tall, but can develop multiple branches. In the case of a plant having more than one branch, each stem tip will produce a spike of flowers, and ultimately a spike of these woody capsules. The seeds…

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Nature Study Goals 2018/2019

Nature Study Goals 2018/2019

For many, New Years is a time for making resolutions. For me, it’s a great time for reflecting on what I’ve accomplished in the past year and setting intentions and goals for the new year to come in terms of nature study.  Below is a run down of how I did on my 2018 goals and what I hope to accomplish in 2019. My goals for 2018 included: Post to Seashore to Forest Floor regularly. — I managed to post new…

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Winter weeds: Swamp Rose Mallow

Winter weeds: Swamp Rose Mallow

Excited to put my new copy of Weeds and Wildflowers in Winter by Lauren Brown to good use, I spent the day hunting for unique seed heads and other dried flower parts. The seed capsules seen here were from swamp rose mallow (Hibiscus palustris) and were by far some of the most striking. Each dried swamp rose mallow seed head consists of woody five-parted capsules that appear to resemble a flower themselves. The insides of these capsules are lined with…

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Mountain laurel (kalmia latifolia)

Mountain laurel (kalmia latifolia)

Mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia) is a large, gnarled evergreen shrub, sometimes growing to the size of a small tree. Described by the Sierra Club’s Naturalist’s Guide to Southern New England as “the most beautiful native shrub,” adorned with explosions of intricate white and pink flowers, mountain laurel it is certainly much showier when it is flowering in May and June. However, given its large flat, leathery, evergreen leaves, somewhat resembling those of rhododendrons, even without its flowers it makes a…

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Dead Man’s Fingers (Codium fragile)

Dead Man’s Fingers (Codium fragile)

Most of what we call “seaweeds” are actually marine algae, not plants. Algae differ from marine vascular plants, such as eelgrass, in that they are more primitive and lack specialized structures such as seeds and flowers, although most do photosynthesize. Seaweeds are often categorized by color: red, brown or green. Codium fragile is a green marine algae that is easily identified by its thick dark green, rope-like, spongey branching form. These branches are soft with a velvety texture. Codium has…

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Porcelain Berry (Ampelopsis glandulosa)

Porcelain Berry (Ampelopsis glandulosa)

Porcelain berry (Ampelopsis glandulosa var. brevipedunculata), also known as Amur peppervine, is easily recognized by its showy clusters of pink-purple-azure berries. These colorful fruits are the reason this perennial vine was brought to the United States in the 1870s from East Asia as an ornamental groundcover. Although originally intended for landscaped areas, its fecundity and adaptability have allowed it to spread readily into wild areas, and in many cases porcelain berry vines can completely smother the native vegetation. A vine…

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Orache (Atriplex prostrata?)

Orache (Atriplex prostrata?)

Orache is a many-branched annual plant, common on coastal beaches, and along the upper edges of salt and brackish marshes. It can also be found in saline inland soils. Its weak stems produce a somewhat floppy, sprawling form. In my mind, however, this particular species of orache (Atriplex prostrata) is fairly confusing. It has numerous common names, including spearscale, hastate-leaved orache, triangle orache, spear-leaved orache, and many others, and it belongs to a fairly large genus, Atriplex, which contains between…

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