Leave it to Cleaver

Did this ever really happen?

Those of us old enough to even remember the TV show "Leave it to Beaver" usually have a definite opinion about it: you probably either loved it or hated it. I actually don't remember ever watching it, since I never even watched any TV until they put one in my college dorm living room. We all piled in there to watch the weekly Batman series - the original, funny one! But I digress...

I'm willing to guess that most of you have seen Cleaver (Galium aparine), in your yard or elsewhere, and that you are not fond of it. It's one of our notorious, crawling weeds here in the Northwest. This stuff must have been designed by a genius because it grows in poor soil, in sunny or shady areas, and produces thousands of sticky seeds, that love to get on your socks in late summer. Our cats frequently carry around enough Cleaver seed to stick to the side of the house....

Four to eight Cleaver stems radiate out from the central root and can reach several feet in length. They grow right over other plants, due to the thousands of sticky hairs covering the stems and leaves. Luckily, they are not toxic like stinging nettles.

All is not lost though. Cleaver is edible, but best when cooked to eliminate the sticky hairs. Being a member of the Rubiaceae family (same as coffee), the dried seeds can be roasted and used as a low caffeine beverage in place of coffee. And finally, this lowly weed has quite a few medicinal uses for skin ailments, is a diuretic, and a mild sedative.

So, in conclusion, in spite of the mentioned benefits of Cleaver, you probably don't want to "leave it to cleaver" unless you: a) have goats; or b) have geese. Apparently geese really like the stuff - so much so that in some areas it's called "goosegrass."

Growing up a stump fence.

Leaves, flowers, and hairs.

Stem tip and tiny white flowers.

Massive spread of Cleaver on top of Vinca major.
This covers about 1/2 acre, under trees.

More Shady Characters

His face is weathered and wrinkled by years of harsh exposure in the field, hunting for yet another renegade shady character. Today he's on another mission to capture these shady lowlifes. After driving up a remote, unmarked gravel road, he spots the trail head and rolls to a stop. He squints as he silently steps out of the old beat up four wheel drive that has not seen soap in a decade. In total silence, he makes a slow, calculated, 360 degree survey of the area, looking for any signs of trouble. The mist hangs heavy in the air and the familiar smell of dirt and decaying trees gives him a sense of place. He reaches into what used to be the back seat and pulls out his trusty old army surplus bag that has more stains on it than a TriMet bus floor. In the bag his armor of choice: two digital cameras, one macro lens, a tripod, and a handful of memory cards. No cell phone, no GPS - just a coffee-stained paper map and a compass he got in boy scouts, years ago. He swings the bag over his shoulder and takes one last look around before vanishing into the dark forest, in search of shady characters...

And so it begins again for Macro Man - sometimes with his canine companion with the super-hero nose; other times it's just him and and a hunch. The shade-loving woodland wildflower characters just keep coming out. Seems like every outing these days has him stooped over, examining some type of bloom. I suppose this is better than those geezers who walk around all day with metal detectors, although they probably do have a better ROI, all things considered.

So here's the mug shots of the latest shady characters. See if you can spot the rogue misfit in this lineup!

=======================================

This pretty face will lead you astray every time, so watch out. They can be as tall as 3 feet, commanding a good view of the surroundings:

Smith's Fairybell - Prosartes smithii - native

Another regular shady character, this ground cover character can be used as mosquito repellent if need be:

Vanilla Leaf - Achlys triphylla - native

If you want to be enchanted, this might be the ticket. Just be careful about what lurks below it...

Enchanter's Nightshade - Circaea alpina - native

Be on the lookout for crusty hangouts like this one. Stop in for a beer and mingle with the locals to get the current pulse:

Life at the bottom can be fruitful...

These large blossoms stand out on the forest floor, distracting you from impending danger...

Columbia Windflower - Anemone deltoidea - native

One of the easiest characters to miss, these Starflowers hide in the shadows, trying to evade capture:

Pacific Starflower - Trientalis borealis ssp. latifolia - native

The rough and tumble waterleaf is a tough one, so keep your eyes peeled near this guy:

Pacific Waterleaf - Hydrophyllum tenuipes - native

They say the gold miners ate these guys for salad. I just can't picture a miner eating any kind of salad...

Miner's Lettuce - Claytonia perfoliata - native

Hanging out near small clearings, these bright faces grab your attention right away. They look strangely familiar, always a bad sign...

Creeping Buttercup - Ranunculus repens - non-native

Looking like signs pointing the way home, these tricksters can have you walking in circles in no time:

False Soloman's Seal - Maianthemum racemosum - native

Now here's one that looks exotic, like it doesn't belong. They can confuse your gaze with the hundreds of tiny blossoms and petite leaves on the ground:

Foamflower - Tiarella trifoliata - native

Another sign of trouble. Keep your guard up around these guys, but look for signs of recent intrusion:

If you want the inside scoop on the real dirt, talk to these guys. Very reliable stools in my experience:

Inside Out Flower - Vancouveria hexandra - native

And last but not least, watch out for this mole. He looks like any normal, edible berry plant, but oh, so tricky. Every part of this guy is poison and will bring you down quickly:

Red Baneberry - Actaea rubra - native

OK, if you amateur sleuths picked the Creeping Buttercup as the rogue shady character, you are correct! The non-native creeper moves into the area practically unseen and eeks out a living by showing its bright sunny face in a crowd of green. This time the Macro Man shows his soft side and sits down to admire them while having his alligator jerky and four day old coffee for lunch.

But next time, who knows which shady character he will spare, or not!

Coastal Blooms

We had not stayed on the Oregon coast for several years, so it was time to head on down before the summer rates kick in! We also needed to visit Medford on this trip, so we decided to take a few days on the coast before that. We chose the tiny town of Yachats for our stay, partly because it is farther south and because it was recommended by several friends. In addition, Cape Perpetua is nearby and that has been on my Oregon bucket list for some time!

With the weather looking favorable we packed up our gear and headed to Yachats on Tuesday, May 6. The drive was pleasant, the weather good, and we arrived in plenty of time to look around and do a bit of walking and tide pooling. The three of us stayed at a small cottage on the Overleaf Lodge property, which worked out very well for us. The town is a quiet, low-key place, so we were quite happy with it.

We logged several hikes at nearby Cape Perpetua and several walks around the Yachats area as well. We had one rainy day out of the four and went to the Oregon Aquarium in Newport on that day, followed by a nice dinner and ale sampling event at the Rogue Brewery by the bay.

There were many new plants blooming, so here's the roundup:

Sea Pink (Armeria maritima)

We noticed these colorful beauties right off the bat as they were blooming all over the hotel property and along the Yachats beach trail. Also called Thrift, they contrast nicely with the dark rock formations just below where they grow.

Cow Parsnip (Heracleum lanatum)

This large, stalky plant was in bloom almost everywhere we went on this trip! We first saw it at Yaquina Head, near the lighthouse. Then, at Cape Perpetua, and all along the southern coast until we turn off at Reedsport. Then we continued to see it along creeks and farms, even along I-5. It can get up to five feet tall, and has massive white umbrella clusters of flowers. Coastal peoples ate the inner shoots like celery, but the outer layers can cause skin burns, so don't take a bite in the field!

Salal (Gaualtheria shallon)

You'll be able to spot Salal shrubs on almost any coast trail. It's like the native ground cover for places that are not completely shaded. Its little "hanging lantern" flowers are white to pink, and produce blueberry-like fruits that are edible (but not as tasty as real blueberries!). Coastal peoples have used the berries in a myriad of ways. David Douglas brought Salal back to Britan in 1828 to use as an ornamental.

False Lily of the Valley (Maianthemum dilatatum)

Another widespread blooming plant seen all over the coast. There were huge swaths of these growing under the Sitka spruce trees. They seem to like the shady, moist soil in these locations. The heart shaped leaves with an erect cluster of tiny white flowers is unique. Coastal peoples used the leaves on skin sores and to help clear eye problems; they also used the roots were chewed to reverse sterility! The small berries were mixed with other berries for a fruit salad of sorts.

Pacific Silverweed (Argentina egedii ssp. egedii)

A quick look at the Pacific Silverweed leaves and you know this groundcover is in the Rose family. The small yellow flowers resemble Creeping Buttercup, but are less dense. This native plant was highly regarded by Coastal peoples. The roots were used ceremonially, with high-ranking members of a tribe getting the longest roots, used for a variety of teas and rubbing compounds.

Wild Oregon Iris (Iris tenax)

Some books refer to this native iris as Toughleaf Iris and indicate it is rare. It seems fairly abundant to me, and we did see quite a bit at the coast, especially in forest trails. See my prior post on Oregon Iris. A nice clump of these in perfect color and bloom up on Cape Perpetua was a real find!

Spring Gold (Lomatium utriculatum)

We found a few of these growing in exposed rocky areas up on Cape Perpetua - not too far from the semi-shaded area where we saw the iris. Spring Gold is very similar to the desert parsley we found out in the Gorge last month.

Seashore Lupine (Lupinus littoralis)

Many native lupine types grow in the Northwest, in various habitats and elevations. This guy, like many of the ones in this post, is unique to the coast environment. It's a bit smaller than upland lupine and the flower is a bit different.

Costal Strawberry (Fragaria chiloensis)

There are several native strawberry plants in Oregon, but this one is limited to the coast. It's a hardy ground crawler with small edible berries emerging after bloom. Coastal peoples ate the berries raw and also made tea from the leaves; some tribes added Thimbleberry leaves to the tea as well. We saw these blooming in several sunny locations just a few hundred feet from the high tide mark.

Gorse (Ulex europaeus)

It's a fitting name for this spiny, tough invader shrub from Europe. As you can see, Gorse resembles Scotch Broom; not surprising as they are both perennial shrubs in the Fabaceae family. They seem to thrive in poor soil, disturbed areas, along roads in particular. The pea-like flowers smell a bit like coconut and are about 2 cm long. We saw most of these south of Yachats; and we saw a great deal of blooming Scotch Broom just about everywhere.

And finally....

After spending some time watching the waves pound their way up the Devil's Churn at Cape Perpetua, while trudging back up the trail, I spotted these small plants growing along the sea wall. They resemble Monkeyflowers except for the color and leaves. The area is moist from sea breeze and sunny, facing northwest. It is not listed in any of the coastal flower books, so it may be a tourist. If you can ID this one, let me know!

Links:

Yachats area information

Cape Perpetua information

Hawthorn

If you have driven your car or ridden your bike just about anywhere around Washington county in the last couple of weeks, then you've probably seen and perhaps smelled the blooming Hawthorn trees. The Hawthorn family is huge, with hundreds of cultivated varieties. Almost all the ones you see along roads are known as Common Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) varieties native to Europe that have naturalized over the years.

 There are several dozen along highway 219, south of Hillsboro. On our own property we have half a dozen or so in all age ranges. They seem to be extremely prolific and due to the pungent flower smell and the nasty long thorns, I can see why they survive - even the deer won't eat them! In the Fall they produce very colorful red fruits, about 1 cm wide that last into Winter. Hawthorn trees are very hardy as well and can live up to 400 years!

There seem to be two local non-native varieties, the white flowering and the pink flowering, with the white being far more common. The berries can be used for jam, but they do have large seeds; and reportedly, the dried leaves can be used as a non-nicotine tobacco - who knew?!

The Black Hawthorn (Crataegus douglasii) is native to the Northwest, but I have not seen any of those yet! Its flower is nearly identical, but the leaves are not lobed like the common variety. And, the fruits are much darker, hence the black name. Another native, the Columbia Hawthorn, grows east of the Cascades and has REALLY long thorns, 2-4 inches long - yow!

Common Hawthorn, about 20 years old.

White blossoms on above tree. Note the lobed leaves.

The namesake thorns on a three year old shrub in our field.

The pink variety, probably 12-14 years old.

Pink Hawthorn blossoms.

Berries on our trees, Sept. 27, 2014

There seem to be as many berries as there were blossoms!

Columbia Hills Nature Preserve

On our recent eastern Gorge trip to Rowena (April 29), we also crossed the river at The Dalles to visit the Columbia Hills Nature Preserve. It's a 3500 acre preserve operated by the Washington State Parks. The Dalles Mountain Ranch park is also within the preserve, so it makes for an interesting destination - especially this time of year, as the wildflowers are in peak bloom.

Sharon and I walked up the preserve's gravel road, which is the only real trail. A gate about a mile beyond the ranch marks the "trail head." The trail starts at 1250 ft and goes up (it was ALL up!) about 2.5 miles; along the way we noticed several flora changes as we gained elevation. The top of the mountain (Stacker Butte) has several radio/cell towers, but the views are very good.

We saw quite a bit more balsamroot and lupine on the lower hillsides. Going up the trail, we discovered a few new things as well.

Columbia Milk Vetch - Astragalus succumbus - native

Milk Vetch close up

Sharon ponders the vistas about 1/2 way up.

Dagger Pod - Phoenicaulis cherianthroides - native

Dagger Pod flower clusters

Giant Head Clover - Trifolium macrocephalum - native

These are about the size of a golf ball!

Hood's Phlox - Phlox hoodii - native

Bare-stemmed Desert Parsley - Lomatium nudicaule - native

Cliff Paintbrush - Castilleja rupicola - native

These flowers are about 1 inch wide and  in perfect form!

I could not find these white trees in any of the guidebooks...

Recent News about Columbia Hills Park