The terminal flower cluster of Field Mustard (Brassica campestris). While I love finding interesting, rare, and unusual plants sometimes it’s fun to take a closer look at some of the common weeds that grow in urban areas. The walkway around the Courtenay Airpark is a place where introduced species are common. I’ve found a cosmopolitan collection of Eurasian plants, garden …
Introduced Species
Slug’s Eye View
I took Clara and Alden for a strolling adventure in Seal Bay Regional Park today – a complete circuit around the main swamp starting and ending at the Hardy Road parking area. Most of the trail was pretty good except for the bit between the swamp and the main trail between Hardy Road and Bates Road. The swamp is filling …
Purple Dead-nettle
Purple Dead-nettle (Lamium purpureum) forms carpets over the ground. Last summer I wrote about some of the invasive species of plants that I was noticing on my walks around the Courtenay Airpark Lagoon. This area was heavily altered by human use and at one time it was a sewage lagoon. The number of invasive plants that grow along the pathway …
Searching for Littlenecks
Mudflats and Purple Martin nest boxes at Comox Bay, British Columbia. I was a little better prepared for mudflat exploration at the end of the second day of the workshop at the Filberg Lodge in Comox, British Columbia. After my experience on Saturday, I wore my rubber boots and was ready to spend an hour or so out in the …
Celebrate the “Holly” – days
English Holly (Ilex aquifolium) – berries and evergreen leaves make for a striking holiday display. As we creep ever closer to Christmas it’s appropriate to think a little about the plants that are part of seasonal celebrations. One of those is English Holly (Ilex aquifolium), a striking shrub with glossy, spiked evergreen leaves and beautiful red berries. A non-native, ornamental …
Varnish Clams
Walking on the beach at Goose Spit in Comox this weekend got me thinking about clams. I always enjoy sorting through seaweed in the strand line. Often I take a closer look at shells that have washed up on the shore before returning them back to the beach where I found them. On this walk I found several “old-friends,” including …
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, …
White Cockle
White Cockle | Silene latifolia ssp. alba Walking the riverside walk along the Puntledge River in Courtenay is a great place to see all sorts of invasive, introduced plants. Lately I’ve taken to strolling our two young children around the Airpark Loop. I always keep my eyes open for interesting plants and birds. The Airpark Lagoon is excellent for migrating …
A Tale of Two Tansies
Common Tansy | Tanacetum vulgare Common Tansy Up at Paradise Meadows today I had the (unfortunate?) opportunity to photograph some common tansy (Tanacetum vulgare) growing along the roadside. Common tansy is an invasive perennial that grows in disturbed places, road edges and stream banks. WeedsBC reports that the common tansy is problematic especially in areas like interior BC so it …
Awesome Asters
Aster sp. This wonderful seed-head was one of many in a field full of tall weedy dandelion like asters in front of the old Hamilton Mac Laing house in Comox. Unfortunately my 2 year-old son only allowed me to take a couple of photographs before it was time to move on!