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We'll take it
Mar. 25th, 2015 07:32 pm
Signs of spring are scarce and buried, but you can always count on witch hazel.
Signs of spring are scarce and buried, but you can always count on witch hazel.
My friend
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dedhamoutside and I co-led an Urban Nature Walk in the Dedham Town Forest (previously seen here). This sign is relatively new. On the one hand, it's nice for the town to recognize the Town Forest; on the other, now it's more visible for use and abuse. We set out with the intention to find mushrooms and other living things!( Read more... )
May Urban Nature Walk at Cutler Park
Jun. 2nd, 2014 07:50 pm
Yesterday we held the May Urban Nature Walk despite the technicality that it was June first. We went to Cutler Park, a 600 acre marsh on the Charles River. We had more participants than any previous walk, I suspect, although it's hard to tell because some people arrived later and some left early! There were three small children, one teenager, and two dogs. All present were enthusiastic nature lovers, including people who knew a lot about plants, reptiles, birds, insects, mushrooms, and so on. These photos are mostly about the people--I can't wait to see everyone's pictures of all the cool creatures we found.
( Read more... )
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Out like a lamb?
Apr. 5th, 2014 08:22 pm
On the last day of March 2014, a witch hazel blossom wears a coating of cold drizzle.
3:00 snapshot #1537
Feb. 8th, 2014 05:54 pm
The Bird's World building--the oldest building at Franklin Park Zoo.
Winter-blooming witch hazel, through my misty lens.
Urban Nature Walk in the Arboretum
Mar. 17th, 2013 05:56 pmThis month I want to make up for missing an Urban Nature Walk in February by having an extra one in March. That extra one is today, an easy stroll through the Arnold Arboretum, our local tree museum. The next one is March 31st at Quincy Quarry.
A friend asked me beforehand, what's in bloom at the Arboretum? Well, it's very early in the year still, but the skunk cabbage is blooming!
( more arboretum )
A friend asked me beforehand, what's in bloom at the Arboretum? Well, it's very early in the year still, but the skunk cabbage is blooming!
( more arboretum )
Urban Nature Pictures 11/06
Nov. 7th, 2010 08:20 am
Smooth sumac at Stony Brook Reservation. I actually went to the Stony Brook Reservation twice yesterday. This shot is from the afternoon, when I went with Alex and Alexis, and the sky was blue for a little while. The rest of the set is from the morning, when I went with just Charlie and it was colder and grayer.
( Read more... )
Urban Nature Pictures 3/18
Mar. 18th, 2010 08:43 pm
Riverway footbridge. I'm kind of amazed that I never used this view in the Muddy River project. I guess it's kind of hard to see the river.
Nearby is some witch hazel.
Urban Nature Pictures 2/13
Feb. 13th, 2010 07:51 pm
Witch hazel with Sears building in background.
I keep wanting to post pictures of the monumentally huge red oaks in the Riverway, but they are hard to capture in a photograph. This is the closest I've come yet. This tree is about 200 years old, give or take a few decades.
Winter conditions (let's be honest) make us look harder for the beauty and life. We stumbled upon a whole row of witch hazels that we had no idea were there. Since these are blooming in the fall, there's a good chance they are the native plant American Witch-hazel Hamamelis virginiana. (Putting that Sibley book to use right away.)
( Read more... )
Pictures from work
Feb. 23rd, 2008 09:51 amWhen I worked at Drumlin, I posted pictures from work all the time. With all the restrictions on what I can publish regarding my work at the zoo, I haven't posted hardly any.
This past Monday was rainy and very warm--it reached 60 degrees. Here are some pictures from Monday:
I keep finding hidden groves of witch hazel in unused parts of the zoo. ( Read more... )
This past Monday was rainy and very warm--it reached 60 degrees. Here are some pictures from Monday:
I keep finding hidden groves of witch hazel in unused parts of the zoo. ( Read more... )
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365 Urban Species. #038: Witch Hazel.
Feb. 7th, 2006 06:57 pm
Urban species #038: Witch hazel Hammemelis x intermedia
There are very few flowers to see in February in New England. Fortunately, clever arborists and landscapers have provided us with this hybrid of Chinese and Japanese witch hazel shrubs. These bright yellow flowers are on a cultivar named "Arnold's Promise," introduced by Boston's own Arnold Arboretum. Several other varieties are cultivated for different flower colors and other attributes.
The native North American witch hazel H. virginiana blooms in late October into November. It's slow growth and love of rich, undisturbed soils make it a rare urban plant. (Another, more rare witch hazel H. verdana blooms in early spring, but is confined to the high pH soils in places like the Ozarks.)
Asian witch hazels are pollinated by the winter moth Operophtera brumata, an insect that has become a conspicuous (and invasive) urban species in its own right. American witch hazels are pollinated by those insects that are still active in mid-autumn: midges, and possibly some bees and beetles.
Extract of witch hazel is one of very few herbal remedies that persists as a mainstream over the counter product.
( more pictures )
