Monthly Archives: February 2017

Eranthis hyemalis (Winter Aconite)

It’s a bit over a week earlier in the year than the photo I posted of this last winter, but having it bloom in February isn’t at all unusual. Winter Aconite (Eranthis hyemalis) got its name for a reason. It’s a native of Europe, from southern France to Bulgaria and it’s also adapted to grow under black walnut, which produces the natural herbicide juglone (a.k.a. 5-hydroxy-1,4-naphthalenedione) that inhibits many plants from growing too close (and thus competing for resources). Eranthis is a pretty little things, lighting up an otherwise brown garden in the depths of winter. Even if this winter hasn’t been all that deep so far.

Galanthus nivalis (Snow Drops)

There have been some snow drops out in our neighborhood for over a week now. Outside the building where I work are two large areas covered with them and they are in full bloom, as well. These are on the north side of the building, on a protected slope below the parking lot, leading down to a stream. I wasn’t able to get pictures but I saw two butterflies and one very large wasp of some sort on them. I don’t think about there being many flying insects about this time of year but if there are flowers, there are bound to be pollinators. It’s been quite mild out, but this is just about when the snow drips (Galanthus nivalis) normally blooms.

Cattails (Typha latifolia)

It was another spring-like day, well into the 70s, and mostly sunny. I took a walk on the other side of W. Montgomery Avenue at lunch time, hoping to find things to photograph and generally enjoying the fresh air. Although it feels like spring, the woods are still in their mostly brown, winter garb. There were a pair of geese that seemed to be protecting a nest and they didn’t want me to get too close. I caught sight of a king fisher and small woodpecker but wasn’t able to get pictures of either. There is a small drainage pond with what appears to be a beaver lodge in it. The pond is surrounded by cattails (Typha latifolia) and that’s what is featured in today’s picture.

Yellow Crocus

I went over to Ralph’s this morning to drop off something with mom. While we were there I took some pictures of things blooming in his yard. In addition to this little, yellow crocus, there was winter aconite still in bloom (but mostly done). Also, a winter jasmine (Jasminum nudiflorum) was in full bloom with its lovely, yellow flowers all along its green stems. I also took some pictures of winterberry berries. Winterberry (Ilex verticillata) is a deciduous holly, native to eastern North America and is known for its profusion of bright red berries on bare stems that last throughout the winter.

Lenten Rose (Helleborus orientalis)

Another early bloomer, if your in the market for such things, is the Lenten rose (Helleborus orientalis). The genus name comes from the Greek words bora meaning food and helein meaning injures/destroys in reference to the plant’s toxic leaves, stems and roots which are poisonous to humans if ingested (source, Missouri Botanical Garden). There are various cultivars in a range of colors and we have a few light colored varieties in the yard. Nevertheless, I really prefer this deep wine color. The blooms are not terribly conspicuous, being mostly downward facing and often covered by the new leaves, but what you see of them makes it a plant worth growing.

Daffodil ‘Tete-A-Tete’

It was a fairly busy day today, with church as usual and then a fellowship lunch with Crusader Baptist at 2:30. I made a big batch of qaubili pilau with braised beef and we enjoyed a huge meal and a wonderful time of sharing. I took a few pictures but they will mostly be of interest to those who were there. When we got home I took a few pictures of our early daffodils, a variety called ‘Tete-A-Tete’, which have started to bloom along the side of our front yard. There will be many more to come and since it turned cool today, they will slow down a bit, but spring is definitely in the air. ‘Tete-A-Tete’ is a small daffodil classified in division XII (Miscellaneous Daffodils) and I’m quite fond of it, not least because it comes out so early and lasts quite a while.

Amaryllis

Cathy grows at least one amaryllis pretty much every year. This year she has two and although they were both growing their flower stalks at the same time, this one opened well ahead of the other, coming into full bloom before the other even started to open its buds. I took a few pictures of it this evening, doing my best to eliminate the harsh shadows on the wall behind it by bouncing my flash off the ceiling. Generally she tries to get them started early enough that they bloom around Christmas but this year didn’t get them into their pots until January, so we have them now. No complaints from me.

Schefflera arboricola (Umbrella Plant)

It rained pretty hard all day today and I didn’t get out to take any pictures. I met a few guys at Dogfish Head Alehouse after work but didn’t really have an opportunity to take any pictures there, either. So, when I got home I took some pictures of houseplants that are growing in pots in our kitchen. Many of them move out onto the back patio in the summer (or we move them, anyway) but they spend the colder months vacationing in our kitchen. There’s a pretty good amount of light from the afternoon sun so they seem reasonably happy there. They’d probably do better if the air in the house were not so dry, but they get through it. This is a Schefflera, an umbrella plant, and a fairly common houseplant. In the tropical climate of its native Taiwan it grows to 10 to 25 feet tall but as a houseplant it rarely exceeds 6 or 7 feet.