A Quiet Walk through Witt Swamp Preserve, Norway Maine

-Tom

Prince's Pine, aka Pipsissewa

Before I left Ohio for our trip to Maine, I was speaking with one of our preserve managers about the Prince's Pine or Pipsissewa, Chimaphila umbellata. This tiny little shrub in the heath family grows less than a foot tall, and has seemingly become quite rare in Ohio (not that it ever was common).  I've never seen it here, and after my conversation with our manager at Conkles Hollow, I learned it no longer occurs there either.  I happened to wonder upon on my exit from the Witt Swamp Preserve in Norway Maine, owned by the Western Foothills Land Trust. What's funny, is that in my excitement headed into the swamp, I completely missed the giant patch right at the entrance.  I spotted it on the way out, and thought how lucky I was to see a plant that has become quite rare in Ohio.  Have you seen this denizen of acidic habitats?  If so, where?

-Tom

Red Aphids- Genus Uroleucon?

This year, I haven't found any of the yellow colored, non-native Oleander aphids, but we do have a fairly nice colony of these red aphids.  Perhaps these belong to the genus Uroleucon?  It seems there isn't much information readily available about aphids. Perhaps aphids are the next big thing.  Do I see a aphidapalooza festival in the future? Probably not, but they are fascinating creatures, though. These individuals are feasting on my double flowered green-headed coneflower, Rudbeckia laciniata 'Hortensia'.  This Victorian era "heirloom perennial" has been passed through our family- our clone originated from relatives in northeast Indiana.  Calling it an heirloom perennial seems to be a bit out of place, however, since I also read that it was affectionately known as "the outhouse plant".

-Tom

Spring has Sprung

Spring has sprung my friends.

-Tom

A Quick Nature Walk

 

May 29, 2012- Delaware County, Ohio.

--Tom

Maine Glow

While we were visiting Megan's parents in Maine this past holiday season, I did what I always do there- I take plenty of photographs.  Since I've been going there five years now, I have to make a conscious effort to find new images.  It's SO easy to just take the same pictures year after year.

One late afternoon, just as the sun was dropping, I decided to walk through the woods surrounding their home..  The dominant trees of this particular area are balsam fir, white pine, hemlock, red oak and yellow birch.  Even though the light was really great, I couldn't find a subject that was interesting enough to my eye.  I then turned around, and noticed the small but specatular patches of light where the setting sun came through the forest.  I used my telephoto lens to single out these areas of reflected and refracted light, shooting straight into the sun.  Making sure I didn't look through the camera at the sun, I snapped several images that I was really happy with.  I've never quite made this type of photograph before here, but I am really pleased with these.  Yes, there are  plenty of lens flare, normally considered a "problem", but to me, the technical flaws are what makes these images interesting.

No matter what you're doing, be it looking for rare plants, searching for wildlife, or photographing the natural world, take time to look at things a different way- you never know what you might find.

-Tom

Autumn Leaves

Thank you to River Mud, Scott, and Beyond my Garden for chiming in on yesterday's barrier island post.  Today, it's just pretty pictures. Happy fall.

-Tom

Mountain Goldenbanner, Thermopsis montana

Let's continue exploring the Rocky Mountains, shall we?  At 8000 feet up, spring comes much later than it does in Ohio.  It was awesome to be there in late June but to see many "spring" wildflowers.  Perhaps the flower I photographed the most was the mountain goldenbanner, a member of the pea family.  It was everywhere in meadows at lower elevations.  At the time, I wondered why this species was so prevalent even though the park has a large elk population that has grazed many areas to the point where they need to be fenced off to exclude the elk.  After a little research tonight, however, I learned that several members of the genus Thermopsis, including this species, contain toxic alkaloids.  The elk don't touch it.

I'm almost ready to wrap up looking back on the rocky mountains.  Look for a roundup of the various animal species that we encountered that I haven't yet shown this weekend.

-Tom

During July 2011, I'm writing about my late June trip to Rocky Mountain National Park.  I hope you enjoy this brief swing to the western U.S.

Flora of the Alpine Tundra

We're continuing yesterday's exploration on the alpine tundra of Rocky Mountain National Park. The park experienced heavy snowfall this past spring, and the alpine regions continued to receive new snow into the last week of June. It doesn't take long, however, for the liliputian flora of the tundra to respond to a warm up. These plants have a growing season that might last three months. They've got to flower and produce seeds in that short amount of time. All of these species literally hug the ground like a carpet draped across the mountain tops.

If you have studied the flora of the east, you'll see some familiar sights. I have not taken the time to identify these particular species- please enjoy the floral show!

-Tom

I've gone to a "blogging only on the weekend" format- enjoy the week, I'll catch you next weekend and I'll have more views of the Rocky Mountains.

During July 2011, I'm writing about my late June trip to Rocky Mountain National Park.  I hope you enjoy this brief swing to the western U.S.

Ohio Spiderwort

A native Ohio plant, I can't get enough of the contrast between Ohio spiderwort's (Tradescantia ohiensis) deep purple flowers and bright yellow anthers.  This is one of the native species I've added to our back yard since moving to Worthington three years ago.  Enjoy your Sunday morning! If everything goes well for us, we'll be off on a family strawberry picking adventure to  Legend Hills Orchard.


-Tom

Plants Rock

Friday evening I was searching for creative inspiration in the back yard.  I found that inspiration in the details of plants.  Many of you know I was a botanist for the State of Ohio for seven years- I often viewed the small details of plants with a hand lens as part of my job.  Looking at the intimate structural details of plants through my camera lens on my own time is a completely different experience.  Plants are an amazing but often overlooked part of the biodiversity of our planet.

Tom

Wild Hyacinths in the......SUN!

Is that the sun I see today?  What an awesome day- you can't beat sunny, big puffy white cumulus clouds, 75 degrees, and a gentle breeze.  Especially after a week of rain, record low high temperatures, and gray clouds.  This is a patch of Wild Hyacinth at Delaware Wildlife Area.  What's strange about this population is that it grows alongside the road, and it's absolutely huge.  I've been admiring to and from work the past week, but today, I stopped and captured this 60 second landscape.

Enjoy the weekend,

Tom

Butterweed, Packera glabella

Crop field in Delaware County, Ohio

As you drive across Ohio's farmlands, are you seeing acres of yellow right now?  If so, you're most likely seeing what I like to call butterweed.  This plant is native in the central and southeast U.S., but has rapidly expanded across Ohio in recent decades.  Just take a look at the range map for Ohio from USDA Plants:

It's all over central and western Ohio, but by looking at this map, you'd think it was a rarity.  It's even showing up in my front yard as a weed!  Why has this plant expanded so rapidly?  Is it taking advantage of no-till agriculture?  Is there something else to the story?  I'm not sure, but I bet that it grows in every county in Ohio's corn belt plains, and on this map, it barely registers in a few Ohio counties.

Plants get around- they move, and they can do things that we never expect.  And that's why I think they're incredibly cool.  Look out Pennsylvania, butterweed may be headed towards you!

Tom

p.s. (I bet it's probably there already)

A Tale of Two Irises

Dwarf Crested Iris, Iris verna

Dwarf Violet Iris, Iris verna

Shawnee State forest has two native Iris species that live in upland woods- not wetlands.  These two species are relatively frequent along the roads of Shawnee State forest and may be my favorite plants in the forest.  I'm just so fascinated by Irises that live in upland woods, rather than wetlands.  Aren't they cool?  I like the dwarf crested iris so much that I purchased a nice one gallon pot from Scioto Gardens last year that is quickly spreading in my backyard wildflower garden.  I could photograph these over, and over, and over again.

Tom

Prairie Wakerobin

It looks like my Trillium recurvatum will be blooming its first spring in our back yard. Thanks Rick G!


Posted from my iPhone

Ohio Buckeye

The leaves of the Ohio Buckeye are often the first to unfurl in our woodlands.

Munroe Falls, Brust Park, and the Cuyahoga

A free-flowing Cuyahoga where the Munroe Falls Dam once stood.

Here's a post that I had lined up for late February but I never finished, so I'm presenting here as a photo essay.  These images document the after effects of 2005 removal of the Munroe Falls Dam on the Cuyahoga River in 2005. Yes, this is the same Cuyahoga that further downstream caught fire and help "spark" a great deal of new environmental legislation in the late 1960's.  What once was a stream heavily used for industry (there had been a dam here in one form or another since the 1830's) is now slowly being returned to a natural, free-flowing body of water.  Some of the plants pictured were mostly used to restore the banks around the river- some, to me, were questionable choices, while others fit in just well. 

Tom