The tutor shares a nice find from his walk home today: an American sycamore tree. Sometimes, identifying a tree, one can’t get so close as one might like: the tree might be on private property, so the viewer can’t inspect …
Lifestyle: remote tree identification: American sycamore Read more »
The tutor brings up an oft-seen ornamental in populated areas of Vancouver Island: the California poppy. California poppies are hardy plants on Vancouver Island fields, and they’re perennial. They’re typically around 40cm tall, with netted foliage that isn’t very noticeable. …
Lifestyle: plant identification from a field guide: California poppy Read more »
The tutor shares a couple of terms he recently learned. In a forest setting, mast can refer to food dropped from trees and bushes, such as acorns, nuts, or berries. Masting refers to the trees’ production of the mast, but …
The tutor shares the answer to a question he’s long harboured. Generally, red oak acorns take two years to mature. Does that mean the tree drops a crop of acorns only every second year? According to Cathy Blumig of outdoorlife.com, …
Oak trees: do red oaks produce acorns every year? Read more »
The tutor researches the effects of juglone from black walnut trees. Juglone is a toxin produced by the black walnut tree; it’s found throughout the tree and in its leaves, shells and nuts. Apparently, to humans eating the walnuts, the …
The tutor discusses a find yesterday that has him guessing. Yesterday, clearing foliage from between some paving stones, I noticed an orange flower. In fact, it was going to seed: the petals had collapsed, but still clung to the pistil. …
Botany: can creeping buttercup flowers be orange? Read more »
The tutor is glad to offer a botany post. The past school year, I walked home most weekdays from my wife’s work after dropping the kids at their school, then delivering the car back to her. (She works at a …
Lifestyle: plant identification from field guide: sulphur cinquefoil Read more »
The tutor identifies a familiar plant from the yard. I didn’t know it was herb-robert, but I’ve worked among it for years. In the yard, it grows along fences or buildings, always the shady side. Herb-robert is attractive, with fern-like …
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The tutor gladly makes a decision about this one. For weeks I’ve been studying a plant in the yard, trying to make an ID. The plant in question consists of several stems that seem connected. They are ankle height, with …
Lifestyle: plant identification from field guide: small-flowered forget-me-not Read more »
The tutor shares another field find. Gravel boundaries can be very fruitful places to find wild plants. So it is with the particular location that yielded rose campion back on June 7. Growing there as well, today’s specimen: curled dock. …
Lifestyle: plant identification from field guide: curled dock Read more »