At this time of the year it’s very difficult to find anything in bloom. Fortunately (and I say that tongue in cheek in this case) there are still a few introduced members of Asteraceae in bloom that can be counted on to add a bit of colour during an otherwise dreary West Coast fall day. Spotted Knapweed (Centaurea stoebe ssp. …
Leaves
Sea-watch
In my quest to find the volunteer pink sand-verbenas at Florencia Bay in Pacific Rim National Park Reserve I spent a good deal of time walking along the line of driftwood looking at plants growing amongst the beach logs. In addition, I looked at plants growing on the upper level of the beach itself. While I didn’t find pink sand-verbena, I did …
Radish Riddle
On one of my many trips out to Florencia Bay to look for the Pink Sand-verbena that had been reported a couple of weeks ago I stumbled upon another unusual looking plant that initially had me stumped. It was a single plant, somewhat scraggly looking with white flowers and pinnately lobed leaves that were quite bristly. This lone straggly looking …
A Pair of Pacific Parsleys
Pacific Water-Parsley (Oenanthe sarmentosa) can be found growing in wet places along the South Beach Trail in Pacific Rim National Park Reserve. Earlier this month I photographed Pacific Water-Parsley (Oenanthe sarmentosa), a plant that grows in wet places along the South Beach Trail in Pacific Rim National Park Reserve on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Today I was out with a …
Cow-parsnip Caution
Cow-parsnip (Heracleum lanatum) is a distinctive looking plant. Dense thickets of Salmonberry (Rubus spectabilis) and Thimbleberry (Rubus parviflorus) line parts of the South Beach Trail in Pacific Rim National Park Reserve . However, at this time of year they are the dramatic flower heads and leaves of Cow-parsnip (Heracleum lanatum) overshadow other plants. The large umbels are in various stages …
Dune Tansy Revisited
Dune Tansy (Tanacetum bipinnatum ssp. huronense) can be found along the edge of the beach at Schooner Cove in Pacific Rim National Park Reserve. While out at Schooner Cove last week I decided to check out the small sand dunes for a number of dune plants. It was here at the top of the beach that I found two species …
Fragile Oaks
It’s that time of year when leaves are falling to the ground and trees are doing their best to set their progeny up for the spring. I was poking around some Garry Oaks (Quercus garryana) looking for invertebrates and discovered several acorns in the leaf litter. Garry Oak | Quercus garryana Garry oak are the only native oak trees west …
Black Spots on Bigleaf Maple Leaves
Bigleaf Maple | Acer macrophyllum It’s that time of year when the Bigleaf Maple (Acer macrophyllum) leaves are changing colour and falling to the ground. I’ve always noticed the small, circular imperfections on maple leaves at this time of year and have wondered what they were. On the weekend I took a walk in Miracle Beach Provincial Park with my …
Tansy Ragwort
Tansy Rawort (Senecio jacobaea) Early in September I wrote about two tansies that occur in British Columbia. Last weekend while at East Sooke Regional Park looking for turkey vultures I found a species of Senecio growing in an old farm field. Tansy ragwort (Senecio jacobaea), like the common tansy, is an introduced plant from Eurasia. It does well in fields, …
Shootingstars
Delicate colour of shootingstar leaves. I was fascinated by the colour of the leaves of Jeffrey’s shootingstar (Dodecatheon jeffreyi) alongside a cold sub-alpine stream this week in Paradise Meadows, Strathcona Provincial Park. The leaves were a stark contrast to the dark water and grey day and a beautiful sign that winter is not far off. Fall leaves of Jeffrey’s Shootingstar …