ingenuity on display

ingenuity on display

This is the kind of ingenuity you expect to see in dry, arid regions–leaves that fuse together to capture rain water. But this is not a desert dwelling plant, this structural charmer is native to the eastern United State. The “cups” of water, formed along the stems, are attractive to birds as a water source. The small yellow flowers are attractive to pollinators, and the undersides of the leaves are attractive homes for insects. And that repetitive “Y” branching is attractive to this particular nature lover. I call that a perfect trefecta. Cup plant for the win!

cup plant in winter (Silphium perfoliatum)

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right here. right now.

right here. right now.

How pleasing is repetition in nature? These stems are so similar yet just different enough to be individually interesting. Several million years of evolution have determined that this plant, in this shape, is the most perfectly tuned for its reproduction and survival. It blows my mind. The millions (billions?) of attempts at minor variations have resulted in this calaums sweet flag looking exactly like this. Right here. Right now.

calamus root stems (Acorus calamus) (sweet flag)

  • Carol says:

    Amazingly beautiful and fascinating- my first thought was “unicorn horns”

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fireworks for new year’s

fireworks for new year’s

Allium stems must be one of the showier winter garden flowers. Once again, these dried winter stems are just as interesting as their summer counterparts imho. Soon the wet snow and wind will strip them of their tethered butterflies ( dried inflorescence). Which again– did you notice? — is an umbel. I know, I know, enough about umbels. But, c’mon, look at this frozen fireworks display. It’s fantastic.

allium in winter

  • Carol says:

    Better than fireworks – they’re silent

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wetland wonder

wetland wonder

We have a lot of wetland in Minnesota. And I know, from a STILL perspective, there is a wonderland of treasures waiting for me there. This sweet flag calamus is a great example. When my friend Christine brought these to me today, my jaw dropped. What in the world? I asked. “It’s native” she said. How in the world could I have not seen this yet? I mean, wetlands are hard to traverse in summer, but in winter they are not. A spandix like that would be hard to miss. Christine gave me a handful of these…so you can expects at least one or two more photos of this striking subject.

calamus root or sweet flag (Acorus calamus)

  • Old Lady Gardener says:

    Bet you were doing your happy dance! Its simply beautiful. Can’t wait to see what composition you confidently create next ;-)

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sparrow grass

sparrow grass

My husband has been patiently planting asparagus in our yard for a couple of years now. No harvest yet…but we are hopeful. Although, I think the critters are the ones who are winning. When asparagus first emerges, slim, tender (edible) spears appear. As the spears mature, they become woody at the base while the tips begin to open and develop into airy fern-like foliage. As the asparagus ferns out, female spears produce green berries that eventually turn red. I snatched this waist-high ferned-out asparagus on one of my several walking trails this fall. i should have used it as my christmas tree.

adult asparagus ferns with red berries (Asparagus officinalis)

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