Gentle snow fell in Northwestern Minnesota in early October this year, providing a wintertime preview. Surviving winter temperatures far below freezing is a big challenge for plants and animals. Today’s post focuses on how trees make it through — with some scenic pictures of the recent snow. Trees are largely comprised of water, a critical …
Category Archives: useful knowledge
Understory; Shrubbery #3, Sumac and Honeysuckle
Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina) and Smooth Sumac (Rhus glabra) Two species of sumac are widespread in Minnesota, Staghorn Sumac and the slightly more common Smooth Sumac. Staghorn Sumac bushes are larger, have fine hairs on their branches, and fuzzy fruit. The pictures below are likely a mix of Smooth and Staghorn Sumac. The tart fruit …
Continue reading “Understory; Shrubbery #3, Sumac and Honeysuckle”
Patterns in Conifer Growth
Annual growth is reflected by patterns seen in the branches of conifer trees. Robert Knudson, a local biologist, points this out in a terrific YouTube video about our Northern Minnesota conifers. Pictures in this post illustrate two of the patterns featured in his presentation. Annual growth of Balsam Fir The pictures above show buds of …
September Wildflowers
Asters (genus Symphyotrichum and Eurybia) Asters are very prevalent along the roadsides here in mid-September. Minnesota has many species of Aster, within the genus Symphyotrichum the Minnesota Wildflower website lists 19! The first two asters shown in the slideshow below have white petals. I believe the first of these shows the Panicle Aster and the …
Hops and Brewing
Cascade Hops (Humulus lupulus) Humulus lupulus, or hops, is a perennial viney plant in the hemp family. Its cone-shaped fruits are one of the four key ingredients in modern beer (water, malted grain, hops, and yeast). Hops add bitter flavor and provide anti-microbial protection for beer. A wide variety of herbs have been used throughout …
Old Technology; Is Newer Necessarily Better?
Departing from the usual for one post to advocate an unconventional method to mow lawn — the old-style, non-motorized reel mower. I got one of these mowers for the first time about four years ago, and was surprised at how well it worked. Since then, I’ve used this type of mower a lot; the images …
Continue reading “Old Technology; Is Newer Necessarily Better?”
Useful Knowledge
The previous posts have information that may be interesting, but is not exactly critical stuff to know. This post attempts to correct that by providing info that is at least somewhat useful. A Highly Noxious Plant Western Poison Ivy (Toxicodendron rydbergii) Poison Ivy is recognized by groupings of three oval pointed leaves, its woody stems, …
Early June Wildflowers
Walking dogs once or twice daily, you notice that there is a huge variety of flowering plants along the roadsides in the Minnesota lake country. Also, as the spring and summer goes on there is a procession to the flowering, from one type of wildflower to another. All very interesting, but up until this year …
