Musings

By the odor, I’d say this is some kind of shrub honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.). Botanically, I have no idea what a honeysuckle rose is….

Occasionally I think about trying to compensate for the carbon emissions I cause (like when I’m on I-75, for example). I have heard about programs where you pay to have trees planted to counteract your use—they grow and take in carbon theoretically in the amount you have released by living in a modern first-world manner.

Here, though, I read that while forests can sequester carbon, (some) forests also experience wildfires. This, then, counteracts the benefits of planting the trees. Depending on multiple factors, your carbon sequestration attempt may ultimately fail—after all, the carbon is not stored if the trees burn.

BTW, did you notice the carbon emitted at the opening and closing ceremonies of the Oly Games? That big fire in the center of B.C. Place?

Oh, and, watch out for the quality of drinking and surface water here in the good old US of A; it may look clean, but don’t bet on it….

Posted at 6:24 PM | Comments Off on March march march

I judge my day pretty darned unremarkable. Dredging….

Ummm.

Here’s a photo from this day in 2007, three years ago. This spring is running later—no periwinkle (Vinca minor) in bloom yet—that I’ve noticed….

Posted at 8:28 PM | Comments Off on Periwinkle as index for spring

Yeah, this was a rainy day. Meteorologists say this storm is headed north, and will dump the white stuff in the northeast. Here, though, it’s coming down in buckets.

And, yes, those are live oaks (Quercus virginiana) festooned with Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides).

No native Spanish moss decorations in Atlanta, so you know we drove to the coast. In said storm. We saw the front three times. This photo is from the last time, when we were on the driving tour at Harris Neck. In spite of the waves of fierce precip, we saw a flock of turkeys, and, later, after dark, a small herd of deer (we were going slowly, so no worries about a deer-Prius accident).

Posted at 10:22 PM | Comments Off on Not in Kansas

As a kid growing up in central Michigan, the colors of winter were shades of grey, and white. Down here in ATL, winter has colors. Here’s some lacy decorative cabbage, for example.

Posted at 10:22 PM | Comments Off on Shades of grey

I guess this is about the northern limit of the outdoor range of the saw palmetto (Serenoa repens)—at least I think this is a saw palmetto!—but somehow it does pretty well through the winter. I get fascinated by the way the fan part connects to the stem (not correct botanical terms, I’m sure).

Posted at 10:22 PM | 1 Comment »

We sure seem to be right in the middle of the Sad Season.

I’m very sorry to hear of the passing of Robert B. Parker, who invented the detectives Spenser, Jesse Stone, and Sunny Randall.

The list of those we’ve lost in the last few days, even not including Haiti, is long. Winters, I think, are rough in general….

Posted at 6:02 PM | 2 Comments »

Our winter rains have brought pizzazz* to the lichens. I have a hazy recollection that the age of this surface can be dated by the size of the lichen (which, of course, correlates to its age), but lack detail on that bit of science**.

* The word pizzazz is said to have been invented by Diana Vreeland in the 1930s….

** Ahh, it’s called lichenometry. One of the perils of this method is the potential for a lag between exposure of the surface and colonization by the lichen. FYI.

Posted at 7:58 PM | Comments Off on Lichens green up

This is from the archives, from a year ago today. Clearly, I had planted my bulbs much earlier than this year…or in a better medium—or both!

Posted at 10:22 PM | Comments Off on Variation and continuity (bulb forcing)

Boy, it’s a mess down in Haiti, and it’s going to get worse, unfortunately. The quake caused a dust cloud from the buildings collapsing; I hope it’s less toxic than the 9/11 particulate matter in NYC….

I was going to write about food, my favorite fast meals, but that seems a tad inappropriate in view of current events. So, keeping it simple, here’re links to parmesan-rocket rollups and BBQ tofu….

Posted at 10:22 PM | Comments Off on Life is complicated

Believe you me, each time I look at the lovely bulbs I apologize to them for putting them in such crappy soil (too much clay, not loose at all).

Still, look at the fleurs to come down in the middle there!

Posted at 10:22 PM | Comments Off on Look again!