August 5, 2015

Sedges can be hard to identify. This one, at the end of the boardwalk, may be Yellow Nutsedge (Cyperus esculentus). We know that the ancient Egyptians used sedges in the genus Cyperus to make papyrus, the progenitor of modern paper and hence the basis for low-cost and easily-accessible written communication.

July 19, 2015

Jim Chatfield would want you to know your conifers. It's easy!

Pines & Spruces have ROUND needles.

• White pine (Pinus strobus) has 4 or 5 long, thin, and bendy needles in a cluster. Woody cones longer and thinner than red pine.
• Red pine (Pinus resinosa) has 2 thick, snapable needles in a cluster. Short woody cones.
• Larch (Larix laricina) is in the pine family and its needles form uniquely in whorls. Small woody cones form directly on branches.
• Spruces have very sharp needles that circle the entire branch. Norway spruce (Picea abies) branches curve upwards at the tips. Blue spruce (Picea pungens) has pretty blue-tinted needles. Large hanging woody cones.

Yew, Arborvitae, Juniper, Fir, Hemlock, Baldcypress, and Dawn redwood (not pictured) all have FLAT needles.

• Yew (Taxus spp.) are the most common pruned shrub; has red "berries" in the fall.
• Arborvitae (Thuja spp.) needles are scale-like and very flat; has small upright woody cones.
• Juniper (Juniperus spp.) has scale-like needles that are thinner and rounder than arborvitae; has small berry-like blue/white cones.
• Firs (Abies spp.) are usually larger trees and the underside of the branches is flat (that is, the needles do not circle the entire branch as in spruce...plus fir needles are flat, not round). Large woody upright cones.
• Hemlocks (Tsuga canadensis) have short needles that are white underneath (similar to fir, but hemlock needles barely overlap). Small hanging woody cones.
• Baldcypress (Taxodium distichum) has small green/gray cones.
• Dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides) has larger needles than baldcypress; branches opposite. Small hanging woody cones.

May 22, 2015

May Flowers!

Lilac (Syringa)

Dianthus next to Stonecrop (Sedum)

Stonecrop (Sedum) in flower

Sweetshrub (Calycanthus)

Iris

Lupine (Lupinus)

Flowering onion (Alium)

Peony (Paeonia)

Azalea

May 4, 2015

Bluets (Houstonia caerulea) have 4 petals, but the flower at the very bottom is an anomaly with 5 petals! Folklore says that when you find a 5-petal bluet, you can make a wish after you've eaten the flower.

Crabapples are stunning flowering trees in the Rose family. This photo is of cultivar Strawberry Parfait in full bloom.

April 30, 2015

Serviceberry (Amelanchier) flowers are somewhat similar to Pear tree flowers, but have thinner petals and there is a reddish tint to the leaves.

Norway spruce (Picea abies) male cones are small and bright pink.

April 17, 2015

It's not a dandelion! Although also in the Aster family, Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara) is an early spring flower that prefers wet habitats.

Magnolia trees show off their flowers in very early spring. Star magnolia (Magnolia stellata) is a popular ornamental tree native to Japan.

Male ash tree (Fraxinus americana) flowers have just emerged.

April 8, 2015

Monocot spring flowers in bloom:

Crocus (with slug in smaller flower)

Spring starflower

Daffodil

March 18, 2015

Alder catkins (male flowers) and last year's cones (female flowers)

Hazelnut catkins

River birch catkins

Red maple flowers

March 11, 2015

Bird's nest fungi grow on spall pieces of wood debris and are particularly common in mulched garden beds. A raindrop hitting the cup will splash the "eggs" (spore packets) several inches to a few feet.

February 18, 2015

Even when it's fiercely cold and snow-covered in the middle of February, color is still visible at Secrest: some moss is bright green and witch-hazels are in blooms of both yellow and orange.

January 14, 2015

Spotted “thunderbirds”— which appear like dark wings at the place where branches come off the main stem of a tree. Two trees in particular have these markings: paper birch (Betula papyrifera) and sugar maple (Acer saccharum).

Paper birch thunderbirds

Sugar maple thunderbirds

January 14, 2015

We had a grand stomp and crunch in the snow and came upon a bit of narrative drama: frenzied footprints dodging in circles, then darting off, and finally—wham!—some guts and wing prints in the snow.

January 6, 2015

 {This post is from Secrest Arboretum Director,Joe Cochran, who found these winter wonderland snow-plant features at the Arboretum}

Pristine snow, winds that blow, fruits for all to see.

Mercury falling, blue jays calling, no better place to be.

A Dragon’s eye, a clear blue sky, rabbits on the run

Larches weeping, Pieris peeping, and clouds that mask the sun

Bark is peeling, oh what a feeling, to be a part of this

There’s so much here, and not a fear, it’s only Ken I miss.

Dragons-eye pine in the snow 1-6-15

What are the animals doing this time of year? 1-6-15

Winterberry holly in the snow 1-6-15

Sargent weeping hemlock in the snow 1-6-15

 

Paperbark maple in the snow 1-6-15

Pieris in the snow 1-6-15

Winterberry holly and snow 1-6-15

American holly and snow 1-6-15

Evergreen holly and snow 1-6-15

January 4, 2015

January 4, 2015

Witch hazel 1-4-15

{Note: Here is an update on witch hazel blooming from David Wiesenberg of The Wooster Book Company:

It's never too early to anticipate spring. I went over to the Arboretum today to look over the stand of black and sugar maple trees in compartments D2 and D4 which I tap for sap and of course took a general look and walk around. Last fall, I started looking for witch hazels in bloom as a graduate student in entomology was hoping to gather its pollen to fill in a database. In mid-October of last year, I noticed that a few small witch hazel plants (Hamamelis virginiana) were blooming along the blacktop path by the slide and play area. I sent my friend a note of head's up.

In any event, witch hazel was on my mind this winter and I saw a few blooms right at the base of a different species of witch hazel (H. vernalis) along the path between the entrance pavilion and the Nault pond on Christmas day. As you can see, more have sprung. Now my goal will be to see one of the woody capsules catapult its seeds.

As a post script, I might mention that many of the witch hazels that are sold commercially are often hybrid crosses with Asian species. The one in our backyard, for example, doesn't look typical of either H. virginiana or H.vernalis.