A Nut is Born

For the past few weeks, I have been reminded that our mild winter continues as the purple crocus pop up and the daffodils reach full bloom. Native plants like Indian Plum are also blooming. Then it hits me as I reach for the Cetrizine hydrochloride pills: the hazelnut tree pollen is back! It gives me fits every year as nature takes its course and the pollen is cast to the wind and sticks to me like a dusting of flour. I do love our little neck of the woods here in western Oregon but it is also the hazelnut orchard capital of the Northwest, and those of us with allergies do pay for that! But I still savor just about anything with hazelnuts, from cookies to coffee, so I grin and bear it between sneezes and try not to go nuts.

A few of last year's harvest from our Hazel tree.

Hazelnuts come from the deciduous Hazel tree which is in the genus Corylus. There are fewer than 20 species in the genus and only one is native to western Oregon, the Western or California Hazel (Corylus cornuta var. californica). Most orchards in our area are growing cultivars of Corylus cornuta. Because the nuts are so popular with birds and squirrels, as well as humans, the trees have spread outside of orchards, so you may have one growing in your backyard or might see them in our local natural areas. The naturalized Hazels tend to be large shrubs rather than trees.

Hazelnuts (or filberts as they are sometimes called) and humans go way back. There is evidence of hazelnut harvesting and processing some 9000 years ago in Scotland. I wonder if those natives had allergies?! On the bright side, the nuts are very nutritious, are easy to grow and harvest, and they keep well after harvest. According to OSU, the first planted hazelnut trees in Oregon were at Scottsburg in 1858. Currently, there are about 35,000 acres of cultivated trees in Oregon. Imagine how much pollen that is!

But more relevant to this post are the tiny female flowers on the hazel tree that emerge shortly after the pollen begins to rain down. This year they appeared about two weeks ago (2/10/2015).

In late winter, the trees begin to produce male catkins, which around here usually open up by the first week in February. Upon opening, that nasty yellow pollen is released to the air. Meanwhile, the tiny pinkish flowers emerge on the twigs near the catkins. These flowers look like miniature sea anemones and are about the size of a pencil eraser. The flowers draw moisture from the air, making them sticky and when pollen from the catkins lands on it, a nut is born, so to speak! The nut grows through summer and is ready to harvest in the early fall.

Modern hazelnut harvesting is a fascinating process unto itself, but I won't dwell on it here. You can look that up if interested. In the mean time, I'm tired of sneezing, so I'm heading out to get some hazelnut ice cream!

Male catkins ready to open. The catkin is
about 2 inches long.

Female flowers about two weeks after above photo.

Flower with opened catkin. 

Flower with bud.

Our tree has several hundred of these tiny but colorful flowers.

Links:

OSU Hazelnut Page

Oregon Hazelnut Health Benefits Site

OSU Extension Info About Hazelnut Orchards

The Annual Moss Issue

Back by popular demand, it's the annual Moss issue! Don't worry, this post is not about swimsuits in the tropics - it's about that short green stuff that grows all over western Oregon in the winter shade - a.k.a., Bryophyta.  What's a card-carrying wildflower fanatic to do in January, but to resort to posting about low life, non-vascular plants like moss?! In fact, after several field trips capturing all manner of moss, I may start a new series called "Fifty Shades of Green."

Getting back to the subject at hand, one could ask, "what good is moss?" When it gets on your roof or in your lawn, you may take a dim view of moss and that is completely understandable. But moss does actually have a few good features, such as using it for plant DNA research; and for many commercial uses by florists, nurseries, and decorative gardens. And in a pinch you can use moss as a sponge! Dried peat moss can be used as a soil additive, insulation, and for growing mushrooms. For additional moss factoids, go to last year's issue (link below).

Even though we are having a warmer than normal winter in our area, the moss is doing quite well, as you can see by these photos, all taken in the past few weeks. As we did last year, a few of the photos are posted here - if you just can't get enough moss, please visit my photo website (link below) or better yet, take a walk in one of our local nature parks, where you will find plenty of moss!

     

     

     

"The Mother of All Moss Walls"

In closing, I'll leave you with "Moss," a poem by Bruce Guernsey, as seen on the Poetry Foundation website:

How must it be
to be moss,
that slipcover of rocks?—
imagine,

greening in the dark,
longing for north,
the silence
of birds gone south. 

How does moss do it,
all day
in a dank place
and never a cough?— 

a wet dust
where light fails,
where the chisel
cut the name.

Moss by Bruce Guernsey: The Poetry Foundation

Links:

2015 Moss Gallery

2014 Moss Issue

Uncommon Ones

To me, the word "uncommon" is a strange one. It means "not common," which is sort of obvious. In the mid 1500's they said "not possessed in common." I suppose that explains why at some point the phrase became "uncommon." It still sounds odd to me, especially when used in a sentence with "not." Such as, "it is not uncommon to sneeze in the spring." Why not just say "it is common to sneeze in the spring?" But I digress...

In the plant world, most guidebooks use a classification system to indicate how likely you will be to find a certain plant. The classifications I have seen in several books progress as follows: common (or abundant), uncommon, rare, threatened, endangered, and extinct. Most of the plants I come across fall into that "common" category and that is fine with me; I don't really go out of my way to look for rare plants. On the other hand, I'll be the first to admit it is rewarding to find plants that are not "common." As I mentioned in a previous post (Finders Keepers), finding something special is probably just human nature.

In any event, here's a quick overview of the "uncommon" blooms I came across in 2014.

Giant Purple Wakerobin (Trillium kurbayashii) - Rare

Stumbling across this remarkable, rare native plant was a pleasant surprise indeed! It is supposed to be at home near the southern Oregon coast and northwest CA, but at the end of March, we found a small colony growing at Jackson Bottom Wetlands near the Tualatin River. The three large, dark purple flower petals stay straight up, unlike the white, curved, Western Trillium.

Henderson's Checker Mallow (Sidalcea hendersonii) - Rare

This attractive mallow was also spotted at Jackson Bottom Wetlands in late May.

Meadow Checker Mallow (Sidalcea campestris) - Uncommon

One of our regular walking/jogging parks near home is the Cooper Mountain Nature Park. They don't allow dogs, but it's a large, hilly park, with several miles of trails. We spotted this uncommon native in mid July just off the trail on an afternoon walk. 

Lindley's Clarkia (Clarkia amoena ssp. lindleyi) - Rare

This little spring bloomer is one of several named after William Clark of the Corps of Discovery. This particular sub-species is rare and was probably planted in an effort to keep it going. Seen at Jackson Bottom Wetlands in late June, 2014.

White Rock Larkspur (Delphinium leucophaeum) - Endangered

This was the most surprising find of 2014 if I had to rank them. See my earlier post about this unique plant. Finders Keepers.

Washington Lily (Lilium washingtonianum) - Uncommon

I've only seen a couple of these growing in the wild. One small cluster was seen on the Iron Mountain loop trail in July. The odd thing is that they look very similar to lily plants you would buy at the garden shop to plant in your yard. These natives are named after Martha Washington and can grow up to 8 ft. tall!

Northern Water Horehound (Lycopus uniflorus) - Uncommon

The Lycopus genus is in the Mint family, which has nearly 7,000 species. Needless to say, it took me a while to track this one down! The only place we have seen this plant blooming or otherwise was at Lacamas Lake near Camas, WA, in mid August. As the name suggests, it prefers shady, moist, areas, where we found it, along a three-mile long trail. The plant is about three feet tall, but the flowers are tiny, at 1/4 inch wide.

Wild Geranium (Geranium oreganum) - Uncommon

Over the past two years we have spotted this native beauty just a few times. They usually start blooming in spring and go until mid-summer, but we found this one in the Columbia Gorge near Oneonta Creek in August. The flowers are about 1.5 inches wide.

     

And last, but not least, I wanted to add this one just for grins. It's a common Bachelor Button (Centaurea cyanus) in a local field. It caught my eye because the colors mutated a bit and I have never seen one like this before. These guys are not native to our area and some consider them noxious, but I try not to discriminate here. The typical blue one is on the left, the mutated one on the right.

   

     

Links:

Native Plant Society of Oregon

Oregon Flora Project

Wildflowers of the Pacific Northwest

Going Postal

When I was a kid, it seemed like stamp collecting was all the rage - at least with older adults of the day. Sure, I did have a stamp album that was about three inches thick with many blank pages and even more blank spaces to put the prized stamps as I acquired them. Well, as you can imagine, I was more interested in outdoorsy things, especially since we lived in a warm tropical climate. About 99% of the blank spaces stayed blank and then the album vanished from my radar.

I certainly don't claim to be a stamp historian; but thanks to the Internet, my stamp interest quotient has picked up lately, so I gathered some interesting dates and milestones about postage stamps! Here's why: nearly every country in the world that issues postage stamps, has a wildflower series, or multiple issues featuring flora and fauna over many years! Now that's something to write home about!

Colorful U.K. Wildflower Issue

So briefly, here's how they came to be:

As you may have guessed, some of the earliest still life paintings feature plants and wildflowers. The simple ones go back to 70 AD, and from there improved over the decades until hitting their stride in the 1300's. From there, artwork depicting flowers took on a life of its own. Lowly artists created magnificent designs for their rich clients or for royalty.

It was not until the mid 1400's that technology of the day enabled printing books on paper. This became a game-changer for the botanical art world. Many of the first printed and bound books featured plants and flowers for botanists, doctors, religious leaders, and students.

Even before the printed book, humans had been sending letters to each other for personal, business, and political reasons. Just read a Shakespeare play! Typically these letters were delivered by private carriers, directly from the sender or agent to the receiver. So much of this was going on, that by the mid 1500's some countries recognized a need for a central postal service. In the U.K., the first King's Postmaster was appointed in 1517. Even in the "colonies" here, we had a rudimentary postal service in 1691.

So now we fast forward to 1800's in the United Kingdom. People had been using postal services with ink stamps, purchased as you go, so to speak. The breakthrough came in May of 1840 when the first "adhesive" stamp was issued in the U.K. It cost a penny and showed Queen Victoria (of course!). It was lovingly called "Penny Black" because of its single black color.

Then in 1847, the U.S. issued its first two stamps, a 5 cent one with Franklin and a 10 cent one with Washington. Fast forward again to 1962, and we have the first U.S. issued stamp that features a real wildflower. At least as far as I can tell with my limited philatelic knowledge.

Since then, several other U.S. issues have followed, with the "mother of all wildflowers" issue coming in 1992. This one features a mint, unused sheet of 50 stamps depicting wildflowers from each state and comes with a nice companion coffee table book that adds photos and information about the flowers.

     

     

As printing technology improved and postal services became more artistic and broadened their subject matter, wildflowers became icons of national pride for each country.

So, in a post filled with fast forwards, we come to 2015. What better way to express my love of wildflowers and nature than by making my own stamp!? You have probably seen home-made stamps on greeting cards or perhaps have your own. Mine features the Western Bistort, one of my favorite native plants here in the west. In summer, the stark white blossoms can cover entire hillsides at higher elevations. It also reminds me of many of my most enjoyable hikes with family and friends.

     

Now all I need to do is use these stamps before the rates go up again!

Wait, there's more....

If I said "the colorful blooms of summer are now just a distant memory," you would probably think I was about to try my hand at poetry. Well don't worry, I know my limitations and I won't subject you to that fantasy!

On the other hand I do just happen to have a backlog of wildflowers in my virtual bucket, waiting to be shared in this blog! Actually, there are many, so in the spirit of not lingering in the past to excess, I've compiled a small batch of my favorites in this post. I'm pretty sure these have not appeared here before, but I won't notarize that!

For you poets out there, I hope these blooms will inspire you during the next few months!

Large-Flowered Collomia (Collomia grandiflora)

This native plant can reach 40 in. tall, with fountain-like clusters of blooms at the top. The funnel-shaped flowers are about 1 in. long and have five petals. The flower color is a unique, flesh-to-salmon color not seen in many other plants. We spotted these at Jackson Bottom in late May.

     

Common Centaury (Centaurium erythraea)

Centaury is native to Europe, but has naturalized itself throughout the west. I have a soft spot for these tiny plants because they grow profusely in our field after the high grass is mowed. The tiny pink flowers are about 1/2 in. wide, in clusters about six inches off the ground. If you weren't looking down at the ground you might miss them. They have been used in tea and thought to be high in antioxidants.

Dense-Flowered Willow Herb (Epilobium densiflorum)

There are scores of willow herb plants in the Northwest, and some are just considered weeds. This one rises above the crowd though with its long stalks and numerous blossoms. We found these natives growing at Jackson Bottom in late August.

Cape Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis)

These odd looking orange blooms are hard to miss. They are native to the Northwest and thrive in wet, shady areas, such as near rivers and lakes. The curious name comes from the appearance of the leaves when underwater. The leaves and stems can be ground up to treat skin irritations. Also called Spotted Jewelweed and Orange Balsam. 

Along the Lacamas Lake trail in mid-August

California Tree Poppy (Romneya coulteri)

You are correct if you guessed this guy is not native! It grows mostly in southern California and northern Mexico. However, we found this one growing in full sun on Holly Hill Road by a mailbox! (9/07/2014) Looks like it did well in our hot, dry summer weather this year (2014). The blooms are striking, measuring 4 - 5 inches across and look like crepe paper. It is also called "Fried Egg Plant!"

     

Everlasting Pea (Lathyrus latifolius)

Unlike the native Steppe Sweetpea, this one is not native. But you have probably seen in growing along our county roads and in other disturbed areas. I found these at the Wortman Park disc golf course in Newberg in early September. They are weeds by most accounts, but they do have a certain appeal.

Pea with shy spider.

Curlycup Gumweed (Grindelia squarrosa)

There are over 100 gumweed variations worldwide and in our area there are at least four. We found acres of these blooming at Jackson Bottom in late August. Positive ID is tricky, so they might be the native Willamette Valley Gumweed (Grindelia integrifolia). Indigenous peoples have used gumweed for rashes, burns, and pulmonary problems, as well as chewing gum due to the plant's resin. Livestock won't eat gumweed, so ranchers consider them as troublesome weeds.

Happy New Year 2015

Fog at Bald Peak State Park, January 2014

Now that the December holidays are behind us, it's time to throw out the extra eggnog, put all those decorations away, and finish up the leftover fruitcake; or save it for next year! It's also time for me to start making a new calendar of the best wildflower places to visit, starting in early Spring. As most of you know, our Northwest area has many climate/geographical zones, making for a huge variety of flora to track down. Good thing I'm still a youngster!

One of my goals for this year is to explore new areas in the Northwest, both for hiking and photography. Well, we could throw in biking and disc golf as well, as all these activities are things I enjoy doing outdoors. I don't really have a wish list of specific wildflowers to find, but there are a few specific areas I want to visit this year, such as Northeast Oregon and the Northern Cascades in Washington. But then, any area that has flowers is a possible candidate for a visit.

Another goal I have is to get my wildflower journal website up and running. Such a website would allow me to index and cross-reference the plants and flowers on my ever growing list. This blog would still be ongoing, but it would live under the website as well. So, we'll see how that goes - my theory is that in winter I'll have the time to build it. But we all know how those kind of plans sometimes go astray.

In closing, I would like to let you know about a local, timely, and interesting plant-wildflower-themed exhibit at the Washington County Museum, here in Hillsboro. It's called "In the Footsteps of David Douglas," and presents a small view of his plant studies in the Northwest, circa 1825-1833. The exhibit shadows Jack Nisbet's recent book, "David Douglas, A Naturalist at Work," which I read last year. Mr. Nisbet will give a free talk about David Douglas on February 11. See link below for information.

The exhibit also features several local artists work of native wildflowers and plants and will be in the museum until May.

Exhibit wall and portrait of Mr. Douglas and Mr. Nisbet

Map of plant discoveries

Pacific Madrone by Rene Eisenbart

Links:

Washington County Museum

David Douglas Wiki Page

Jack Nisbet's Web Page

New York Botanical Garden

You're probably thinking, "who visits a botanical garden on a cold, snowy day?" Well, as you may know, I was in New York city to see my 94 year-old father in late November-early December because he had taken a tumble a few weeks prior. Thankfully, he is doing well now. His rehabilitation facility is in the Bronx, only about four miles from the venerable New York Botanical Garden. Not going there would be a major oversight in my book, so visit I did - it was a cold day with a tiny bit of snow and sleet falling, but not enough to whine about. And there were hundreds of other brave souls there as well - this is a popular spot I discovered, even in bad weather!

Haupt Conservatory Main Hall

Popular photo stop at the garden!

Most folks were heading to the annual holiday model train show, which takes place inside the huge glass Conservatory. The show is one of their main fundraisers each year. The show features scores of plant-based replicas of well know New York landmarks such as the George Washington bridge and the Statue of Liberty. It's a unique world-class attraction that draws families year after year. I watched a 30 minute show about it on PBS while here, so I got to experience it without having to wait in line for 2 hours! Most visitors buy their tickets online and get a time to show up, thereby avoiding the wait.

Garden Map

It's a short walk from the "D" subway to the garden, which has been around since 1891 and covers 250 acres in the heart of the Bronx. Even in cold weather, there are several miles of paths to walk, and countless trees to admire. I was especially interested in checking out their new Native Plant garden, which opened last year. There was also an exhibit featuring flora art and historic books which was very interesting to someone like me; and it was indoors!

Water Features at Native Plant Garden

Flora Artwork and Book Exhibit

Rare book for sale in gift shop

This vast expanse is home to 50 different gardens, featuring all types of habitats and flora. I could easily spend several days here in warmer weather. So I do hope to come back in the Summer at some point. As I walked around I actually found a few blooming things, such as a winter Camellia. The garden is also a research center, has an impressive library, and a good cafe, where I absorbed my afternoon espresso!

Winter Moon Camellia

Seeds I purchased from the NYBG seed bank...

You can read much more about this fascinating place by visiting their website and searching on the web. It's worth checking out the Holiday Train show on YouTube as well, as there is nothing quite like it. If you have been to the garden, please comment on your visit below!

Other Flora in the Area

While in New York, there were a few sunny days when I walked around the parks near my father's place in Washington Heights. Fort Tryon Park is nearby and has a good view of the Hudson River in both directions. It was designed by Fredrick Olmstead Jr., the son of the Central Park architect. It has a notable history and is very popular with the locals.

Odd welcome to the park by author Val Lewton

      

Blooming Heather

Walking Paths

Late blooming Aster

Much of the park is solid rock

Plein Air Painter

Links:

NYBG website

Wikipedia article on the NYBG

YouTube excerpt from PBS show

Fort Tryon Park Info