Apetala1 is Active!

With all the good weather we had in February it would be hard not to notice the Crocus, Daffodils, Vinca, and Hellebores in full bloom all over the area. These are blooming earlier than usual due to our on-going warm and dry period. Flowering Plum trees, Star Magnolias and several varieties of Camellias are adding their bright colors as well.

So how do these flowers know that it is time to bloom? We think the weather, length of day, soil temperature, and other factors are involved. But it was not until 2005 that botanists learned that the blooming process is actually controlled by the plant's DNA. A lone master gene called Apetala1 triggers the reproductive cycle of the plant, thereby starting the bloom process.

Aptala1 generates the proteins that in turn signal over 1000 other genes that are involved in the flowering process. The Apetala1 gene is essentially a bio-computer that gathers data from many other genes about external conditions and then executes a "bloom" command to get things going. Who knew it was this complicated? I certainly did not.

Meanwhile, in the wildflower world, we've noticed Indian Plum, Willows, Bittercress, Speedwell, Red Dead Nettle, and Oregon Grape showing their stuff. Indian plum (Oemleria cerasiformis) is one of our native early bloomers in the area. Hairy Bittercress (Cardamine hirsuta) is not native but is widely growing around the valley. Early willows at Jackson Bottom are opening their catkins and releasing pollen as well.

Even with the relatively warm days, the nights are still cold, so I don't expect the wildflowers to get too far ahead of the game. However, our snow pack numbers are very low for this stage of winter. Local meteorologists are saying the Mt. Hood area snow pack is a mere 9% of average this week. One possible upside to the lack of snow in the mountains is that the good hiking trails should be open sooner this year. We shall see. Here's a quick rundown of what we saw in the past week.

Indian Plum at Jackson Bottom: also called Osoberry, it produces small purple fruits in summer which was/is consumed by many native peoples and birds alike.

     

Hooker's Willow at Jackson Bottom: there are several dozen willows that can be found in Oregon and this is one of the early bloomers.

     

Hairy Bittercress in our yard: The leaf structure on these remind me of a snowflake, due to their symmetrical growth. The leaves have a peppery flavor and can be added to salad. The flowers are on a stalk about 3 inches above the leaves. The flower cluster shown below is about 1 cm wide.

     

Birdseye Speedwell (Veronica persica) in our driveway: First noted in the U.K. in 1825 this is one of hundreds of species in Veronica. The plant is now naturalized throughout the U.S. It's another tiny bloom that is hard to spot unless you get down close to the ground - like a bird!

Tall Oregon Grape (Mahonia aquifolium): I've posted on this native before, but of interest in this photo is the dark red holly-like leaves. It's common for Oregon Grape leaves to turn red in winter and then back to dark green in spring. Apparently at least part of this plant knows it is still winter!

Captured on 2/23/2015

Red Dead Nettle (Lamium purpureum): one of my favorites, because of its odd name and because the tiny flowers resemble orchids. The weedy, non-native has a long history of use as an astringent and diuretic among others.

Roadside Red Dead Nettle among Vinca, Storksbill,
and Cleavers: a weed forest in the making!

So to wrap up this time, let's hope for continued warm, dry weather. I'll be dusting off my other cameras and macro lens soon, ready for another season of exploring the natural world!