Tuesday, January 31, 2012

39: peeking

returning Swiss Chard (Beta vulgaris subsp. cicla var. flavescens)

Sunday, January 29, 2012

37: so ferny!

yesterday, after i got home from work, we went on a walk through the woods behind our neighborhood.  i  really liked this ferny-looking moss:

Moss, probably a Thuidium sp.

Saturday, January 28, 2012

36: sporophyting

as i arrived at work this morning, i was struck by the way the sun lit this moss and couldn't resist  capturing it...  unfortunately, i only had my phone along.  oh well. 

Moss with sporophytes, possibly a Tortula sp.


Wednesday, January 25, 2012

33: waterlogged

found on a quick walk around a trail at a local park during a homeschool recess playdate...

Green filamentous Algae, possibly a Spirogyra sp.?

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

32: for the birds

today we made bird feeders using cones from one of the neighborhood Pines, and hung them on our Dogwood tree...

Pine cone with Peanut Butter, Sunflower seeds, Milo and White Proso Millet.





i'd also like to thank my lovely friend, Amy, and her Learning Photoshop experiments for inspiring me to start exploring my Pixelmator program!

Saturday, January 21, 2012

29: microshrooms

i discovered these tiny little guys on one of our Maple trees as i was looking at the moss and lichen as potential subjects...  

Mycena corticola

for reference, this is the tip of my index finger:



Tuesday, January 17, 2012

25: mystery weed

i originally thought this was a plantain, but in my research i've discovered that this lacks the prominent lengthwise leaf veins that are present in plantains.  


so, i am pretty certain that this is the edible weed Curly DockRumex crispis.





Sunday, January 15, 2012

23: beyond zebra

“So you see! There's no end to the things you might know, Depending how far beyond Zebra you go.”
--Dr. Seuss



Zebra Plant, Haworthia attenuata

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

19: holly jolly

today i visited my awesome midwife, and while i could probably easily spend an hour photographing the extraordinary amount of flora to be found in her yard, this rainy afternoon was not the day for that...  
i did capture a few images, however, and these turned out to be my favorites~

along the walkway:
Chinese Holly, 'Dwarf Burford' cultivar
Ilex cornuta
 in the waiting area:
'Lightning Splash' Moth Orchid
Phalaenopsis hybrid

orchids are my favorite flower, so i couldn't resist this beauty.
and i can promise that there will be more to come in a couple of months, when Orchids Galore! comes back to Lewis Ginter...

Monday, January 9, 2012

17: magnolia moon

not that you can really tell what the plant is, but i couldn't resist capturing the moon...

full Moon behind a Magnolia grandiflora tree

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Saturday, January 7, 2012

15: bitter beauty

Hairy Bittercress, Cardamine hirsuta
this edible weed is a member of the Brassicaceae (or Cruciferae) Family, along with Broccoli and Cabbage.

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

11: death has lost its sting

this member of the mint family is one of my favorite weeds in our lawn:

Purple Deadnettle, Lamium purpureum

closer view of the flower

its nectar attracts honeybees, bumblebees, and digger bees, and the entire plant is edible for humans, too!

Monday, January 2, 2012

10: mistaken identities

for several years we have assumed that these seedpods belonged to some Morning Glory vines, the bane of our existence in our garden area:


Honeyvine Milkweed, Ampelamus albidus

however, we apparently have two different vines~ Bindweed/Morning Glory and Milkweed, to which this pod belongs.

also, we thought the insect was a Box Elder Bug, but it is actually the very similarly colored Milkweed Bug.

Sunday, January 1, 2012

9: mini-pears

discovered this in a neighbor's yard while taking a walk with my children...

Callery Pear, Pyrus calleryana
possible 'Bradford' cultivar

i had never realized that Bradford's were just ornamental, and also considered invasive.