Monday, July 22, 2019

Cicada, Cicada, Cicada





            According to various sources, there are over 3000 species of Cicada's in the world. I watched one come out of it's shell many years ago. If I had been more patient this morning, and if there were a few thousand less mosquitoes around, I could have watched this one come out. As it was, I saw it emerging and thought, mistakenly, that it had got stuck and died as it did not move when I touched it. However, I did go back a few minutes later just to check and found that it had emerged and was drying before taking off to look for a mate. These photos will have to do this time.

























Sunday, July 21, 2019

Lots of Blooms - So Little Blogging



            As usual, I think of blogging everyday and don't take the time to actually do any. Following are some of the flowers, and other things, that I have put up on other platforms in the last week or two.



Canada Sanicle
aka Canada Black-snakeroot
aka Short-styled Snakeroot (Newcomb's WF Guide)
Sanicle du Canada
(Sanicula canadensis)
Found on the Grand Valley Trail near Hardy Road
in Brantford, Ontario
July 8, 2019.






Wolf Milk Slime Mold
Lait de Loup
(Lycogala epidendrum)
Found on an old log
in the RBG's Hendrie Valley, Hamilton, Ontario
July 12, 2019.





Wild Yam
Igname Velue
(Dioscorea villosa)

Female flowers on a female vine
found in RBG's Hendrie Valley
on the left.

Male flowers on a male vine
found in RBG's Capt. Cootes' Trail
in the wilderness section of the Arboretum
Hamilton, Ontario
on the right side of the photo;
July 12, 2019.




Pale Jewelweed
aka Pale Touch-me-not
Impatiente Pâle
(Impatiens pallida)
found in the RBG's Hendrie Valley Trails
Hamilton, Ontario
July 19, 2019.



Hoary Alyssum
Berteroa Blanc
(Berteroa incana)
found on the outer "wild" edge
of the RBG's Rose Garden 
on July 19, 2019.



Saturday, July 06, 2019

Three Flowers Not Often Seen



            We have found a few more new flowers or flowers that we do not see too often in the last week or so. On of the highlights was American Columbo / Frasère de Caroline / (Frasera caroliniensis). It starts life as a small rosette of leaves and comes back that way for several years, 5 to 30 years according to some sources. Then it blooms and dies. I have seen blooms a few times and this year was one of those times. There were 2 out of over 70 plants that were blooming.


            You can see a few plants under the blooming plant so there will be some blooms again, some year.

            On the way to look for the Columbo, one of the wild flower walker  spotted a very small green flower on the edge of the trail.


            I think I have only seen this plant one other time in bloom. In my wild flower guide it is called Wild Licorice. The accepted name is now "Licorice Bedstraw" / Gaillet Fausse-circée / (Galium circaezans). It was the rather different leaf pattern that alerted the person that found it for us. The flower was visible only on close inspection.


            Here is another plant that I have only seen in bloom on one other occasion. This one is Broadleaf Waterleaf in my guide book now called "Bluntleaf Waterleaf" / Hydrophylle du Canada / (Hydrophyllum Canadense).