Bee Or Fly?

Can you tell?

Answer: Fly

Something to Pay Attention to in Autumn Besides Leaves

In every season there is something to observe, admire and learn about plants. Fall is a good time to check out what's happening with grasses.

Not a Plant But Growing on One

I don't know what species of mushroom it is yet and perhaps never will, but from this vantage point it somewhat reminds me of a scallop shell.

Benefit of Spending the Morning Weeding

The view just looking up... and down. 

After Centuries of Cultivation

After centuries of cultivation, it should be no surprise when a Japanese Maple seems like an intentional work of art and takes your breath away.

More Durable Than Delicate

Don't let the dainty looks fool you. Hydrangea bracts are more durable than delicate. Five months from now in the coldest winter when most branches are bare and you are inside much more than out, you may find them still hanging about.

Leaves of Some Things Other than Grass

It's the season we most associate with leaves again, though of course they don't all fall or change to spectacular colors worth ooh-ing and ah-ing about even and some are present on at least some plants outside in all the seasons. While none of the leaves pictured here are edibles and the spurge pictured above will actually release a poisonous, milky sap when cut that people can be highly allergic too, in a real way our lives are dependent on these leaves and the oxygen they provide.

That's kind of a heavy thought I guess, how important leaves actually are for people. And then when you think of how beautiful and varied they can also be, well it's enough to kind of knock you out, isn't it?

Bright Sun and Bright Yellow Honey Locust Leaves on the Autumnal Equinox

Clear skies and honey locusts were a welcome sight this morning, after a spell of gray and unsettled weather, and seemed perfectly timed for the first day of fall.

The Aristocrat of Fungi--Amanita

After less rain than expected following the recent hurricane, at my feet this morning I found something that looks like it belongs in the dictionary as a picture next to the word mushroom.  I'm pretty sure it's an Amanita, which I have just learned was referred to as the aristocrat of fungi in a book published on American fungi over a century ago. Going beyond genus though is way beyond my mushroom identification skills.

Black-eyed Susan's at Summer's End

The Black-eyed Susan's at summers end are more black-eyed than yellow-petaled, but still worth stopping beside for a minute or two.

Almost Autumn in New York

According to the calendar, fall will begin this Friday but the weather forecast for New York indicates that summery weather will continue to prevail for a bit. In the canopy, some leaves and trees are already changing as the daylight hours continue dwindling.

It's almost Autumn again in New York. 

What I Don't Know about Cannas Could Likely Fill Books

I have never grown a Canna Lily, though sometimes seeing them growing brings to mind part of a day one fall I spent hosing down rhizomes at Brooklyn Botanic in preparation for their winter storage.

I say what I don't know about Cannas could likely fill books because just by googling around for a bit this afternoon I have learned this plant has been cultivated for thousands of years, a species was long used for food, its seeds are used in musical instruments, and it has gone in and out of fashion it seems since the Victorian Era.

All the things I don't know yet but might discover are just another reason I love gardening and plants so much and maybe even the best reason.

New Leaves and Old on a Chinese Blue Fir

Earlier in the year, I spotted some new leaves or needles just emerging on a Chinese Blue Fir at Hofstra. Today some older needles, no longer blue-green but yellow, made this "evergreen" seem like it was sporting a bit of fall color.

This Summer's Favorite, Summerweet, at the End of the Season

Seems like every season I fall in love just a little with a particular plant and this season it was Summersweet. It wasn't just the delicious smell though or the long blooming time that reeled me in, but the potential for sweet encounters of the pollinating kind.

Red Petioled Maple

The petioles on the maple leaves are red even if the leaves themselves are not.  Most trees I have seen recently still are green, except for some red maples, dogwoods and honey locusts, which are turning now in this last week of summer. 

Chickory Blue & Goldenrod Yellow

If I were naming crayons or colored pencils, I might name them all after some flower or plant, like the chickory and goldenrod blooming by the side of the road now.

The Sunflower House at the Children's Museum

The Sunflower House at the Long Island children's museum looks like a fine place to sit and read a little book, maybe even a book titled The Sunflower House about a boy who plants some tall sunflowers in a circle. (If your legs are on the small side, that is).

Or perhaps bump into a ladybug.

There's a Good Reason Why Landscaping with Grasses is so Popular

And there's a reason why you can find so many books about how to garden with and use grasses in landscape design too. To put it simply, it's because they are gorgeous and versatile. Who in their right mind is gonna complain about the sight of pennisetum flower spikes catching the light and swaying in a September breeze?

And it's hard for me to imagine growing tired of seeing Hakonechloa mass planted somewhere.

All in the Family (& Genus): Solanaceae & Solanum

Carolina horsenettle, aka: radical weed, apple of Sodom

I passed a "radical weed" growing by the side of the road which looked to be related to and in the same family of some potatoes I've grown.

How closely related is this plant, which according to Wikipedia is labelled a noxious weed in some states though a southeastern native,  to that purple flowered potato I grew pictured below? Well the Carolina Horsenettle's botanical name is Solanum carolinense and the potato's is Solanum tuberosum, so they share the same genus too.

It's Turning Into A Weeds and Seeds Week

And maybe it's also turning into a celebrating some of the pretty packages seeds come in week too?

A Little Bit of Thistle and a Little Bit of Thastle

Oh allright. There is no such thing as Thastle.

Earlier in the week I didn't see any plumes of white hair that the seeds ride the wind with.

Today it looked like seeds were ready to fly.

Whats Going on with Queen Anne's Lace by the Side of the Road in September

Some is still blooming and attracting pollinators.

Some is going to seed.

Roadside Breakfast: Butter-and-Eggs

Like most plants, the Butter-and-Eggs I passed this morning can be called a lot of things. A roadside weed is one thing it can be called in North America. Yellow or Common toadflax is another.  And Linaria vulgaris, its botanical name, sort of makes it sound like it's being called a deplorable.

I like Butter-and-Eggs best.