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Botany Photo of the Day
In science, beauty. In beauty, science. Daily.
July 3, 2009
Magnolia insignis
Douglas Justice, Curator of Collections here at the Garden, took today's Botany Photo of the Day and wrote the associated entry.
As I've mentioned previously, I was recently at the South China Botanical Garden in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, for an international symposium on the Magnoliaceae. Following the symposium's conclusion, I went on a tour of southern Yunnan Province in order to see magnolias in the wild. Together with my colleague Andrew Hill, Curator-Horticulturist of the David C. Lam Asian Garden, and about 20 other scientists and magnolia enthusiasts, we saw a huge range of magnolia species in the wild and in botanical gardens. This photograph, however, is of a plant in the Asian Garden here at UBC.
Magnolia insignis is an evergreen tree growing to 30 metres in the wild. The fragrant flowers are about 12 centimetres across when fully open, and they are composed of 9 to 12 tepals. The species is sporadically distributed throughout southwestern China, Indochina, and the Himalayas between 900 and 2600 metres; it is, moreover, remarkably cold hardy (to at least Zone 7). To be honest, a few of us were wondering how last winter, with its brutal temperatures and snow, would affect the health of our Asian magnolias. Predictably, many of our M. campbellii trees lost all of their flower buds, and some even suffered branch death on their limbs; happily, however, nearly all of our mostly untried Asian evergreen species came through with flying colours. You can read more about our sizable magnolia collection in this account by the late Peter Wharton, former curator of the Asian Garden.
There is considerable debate about names of magnolias and the ranking of the various groups within Magnoliaceae. Like the majority of North American scientists, we are now using the conservative two-genus concept championed by Richard Figlar and Hans Nooteboom, which includes only Magnolia and Liriodendron. There is an elucidation of this system on the Magnolia Society web site, here. In China, a variety of systems have been proposed, and the one adopted in the recently published Magnolias in China follows the system of the revered Chinese magnolia taxonomist Liu Yu Hu, which elevates a number of sub-genera and sections to generic level. In that account, there are 8 separate genera (not including Liriodendron), and the species pictured here is classified under Manglietia Blume.
Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 7:00 AM | Comments (5)
July 2, 2009
Eucrosia mirabilis
Thank you to Lorax for posting this treat of an image in our Botany Photo of the Day Submissions Forum, and for including a brief write-up as well. With the help offered by Lorax's post, Steve Coughlin wrote this entry.
Amaryllidaceae is a family of over 800 herbaceous, perennial, and bulbous species that are distributed broadly throughout the world. Eucrosia is a genus of 8 species endemic to the dry, rocky, western Andean slopes of Ecuador and Peru. Though the type specimen of E. mirabilis was collected in Peru, it has never been recollected there, and recent research conducted by Brian Mathew and Gwilym Lewis reports the plant to be native to southern Ecuador, where Lorax took today's photo.
According to Lorax, E. mirabilis—which means 'wonderful' Eucrosia—is "often referred to as a "lost" species - botanical descriptions exist as far back as 1817, but the type specimen doesn't describe the flower well". She proceeds to write that upon her encountering mirabilis, the plant's "spectacular flowering spike was about 50 cm tall, with white stamens projecting a good 10-15 cm. further than the green umbels. Flowers appeared before leaves after the dry season. It's an Ecuadoran native, thriving in biomes that get a distinct dry season (which is what stimulates blooming)".
The plant, which here hovers as elegantly as the upper part of a cat's eye, has large, fleshy bulbs that are able to survive longs periods of environmental hostility, though often without visible growth. It excels in warm temperatures and well-drained soil, and flowers in late spring and early summer, subsequently growing petiolate leaves that reach up to 30 cm. in width.
Source:
Mathew, Brian and Gwilym Lewis. "Eucrosia mirabilis." Curtis's Botanical Magazine 2.23 (2006): 157-162.
Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 8:48 AM | Comments (9)
July 1, 2009
Acer macrophyllum (Bigleaf Maple or Oregon Maple)
Thank you to ngawangchodron for posting Today's Botany Photo of the Day, chosen specifically for Canada Day, on our Flickr pool. Steve Coughlin wrote the entry. (Original Image)
Though often classified in the family to which they give their name, Aceraceae, Maples are more properly considered part of the related Sapindaceae, which consists of 140-150 genera and between 1400 and 2000 species—trees, herbaceous perennials, lianas—that are distributed widely throughout the world. Generally, these species have pinnately compound leaves, small flowers, and dry, fleshy fruits.
Acer is a genus of about 125 species, most of which are deciduous trees, though there are also evergreens and shrubby species. The genus tends to establish dense root systems, and is primarily distinguished by its oppositely arranged, mostly palmate leaf configuration. Maples flower in late winter or early spring, and their vivid fall foliage often draws vast amounts of urban dwellers into the countryside. Beyond their popularity as ornamentals, Maples also serve as parts of collections, as integral parts of local tourism industries, as timber, as raw materials for the production of musical instruments, and, of course, as sources of the sap that is eventually converted to maple sugar and maple syrup.
Acer macrophyllum, the tree featured in today's photo, can grow to a height of 30 metres and to a trunk diameter of 1.5 metres. When mature, its trunk is sheathed in an intricately interlaced bark of dark brown. As its name suggests, A. macrophyllum grows the largest leaves of any Maple. Trees generally establish in moist soil near water and are adapted to growing under a canopy. Bigleaf Maple's hard wood is used in the production of furniture, instruments, veneer, and other commercial products as well.
Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 7:00 AM | Comments (13)
June 30, 2009
Kalanchoe delagoensis
S.Q. Mehdi posted today's Botany Photos of the Day in our Flickr Pool. Thanks once again to S.Q. for a set of wonderful images. (Original Images)
Crassulaceae is the fourth largest family of succulent (water-retaining) plants. Structurally, the family is the simplest among succulents, consisting of plants that, in general, vary quite little in quantity of sepals, petals, stamens, and carpels. Interestingly, Crassulaceae is, in spite of this structural simplicity, the most diverse succulent family in terms of habitat and climate tolerance, with the native conditions of different genera and species varying from arid deserts to moist marshes, and endurable climates ranging from searing heat to gelid sub-zero cold.
Kalanchoe, a genus of about 130 species, consists mainly of flowering shrubs and herbaceous perennials, though it boasts some annual and biennial species as well. The genus is native to Madagascar and to tropical regions of Africa and Asia.
Kalanchoe delagoensis is commonly known as 'mothers of thousands' and 'chandelier plant'. The species is native to Madagascar, though it is now naturalized in many tropical countries, where it is cultivated as an ornamental. Historically, K. delagoensis has also fulfilled the more practical role of a versatile medical treatment for infections, rheumatism, inflammation, and hypertension. That said, gardeners should note that this power to heal is matched by a power to harm: as many unfortunate grazing animals have experienced, the plant contains poisons (bufadienolide cardiac glycosides) that, if ingested without treatment, induce cardiac arrest.
The plant—which in today's photo seems either painted in pastel or molded from dusty terracotta—generally grows to a height and spread of 1 metre. It thrives in sandy soil with abundant water, adorning itself in waxy green leaves and dangling cylindrical flowers of pinkish-brown. The plants are viviparous, meaning that small plantlets are produced on the vegetative tissues (in this case, on the margins of the leaves). These plantlets drop to the ground, spawning the prodigious amount of offspring that accounts for the first common name mentioned above.
Primary Source:
Rowley, Gordon. The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Succulents. New York: Crown Publishers, 1978.
Posted by Stephen Coughlin at 3:55 PM | Comments (10)
June 29, 2009
Caridocrinum giganteum var. giganteum
Just under three years ago, on 3 July 2006, Daniel featured the recently-bloomed giant Himalayan lily, Cardiocrinum giganteum, on Botany Photo of the Day, and aptly referred to the plant as a "hallmark" of the Garden's collection. In the cool, breezy air of last Friday morning, after passing the towering giganteum stem that still stands in the stairway of our administration building, Tom Wheeler welcomed the plant's fragrant flowers back into the garden, and recorded the encounter on the film of his camera. Thank you to Tom for sharing today's lovely photo. Steve Coughlin wrote the entry.
Cardiocrinum—another herbaceous, bulbiferous member of Liliaceae—is a small genus conventionally split into three species: Cardiocrinum cathayanum, Cardiocrinum cordatum , and Cardiocrinum giganteum. The genus is distributed broadly throughout the sub-alpine regions of northeastern India and Nepal, through several parts of China and northwestern Myanmar (Burma), and into Bhutan as well. Cardiocrinum species generally grow in forests or on hillside slopes, where they excel in a combination of shade, humid air, and moist soil.
Cardiocrinum giganteum, first collected in the second decade of the 20th century, is native to elevated forests at 1200-3600 metres. The plant's hollow green stem reaches its apex at a height of 3-5 metres and spreads its large, leathery, and heart-shaped leaves out to a diameter of around 100 centimetres. In mid-summer, an ensemble of large trumpets, creamy-white or green and internally streaked with red or purple-red, unfold from the lengthening raceme. The plants die after flowering, leaving behind small offsets that will flower some 3 or 4 years later.
Today, the flowers hang quite close together, like members of a swaying choir pushed shoulder-to-shoulder. The fact that they have just arrived combines with our knowledge of their transience to make us ever more attentive to the sweet subtleties of their aromatic melody.
Posted by Stephen Coughlin at 9:07 AM | Comments (12)
June 27, 2009
Calochortus superbus
Today's Botany Photo of the Day was taken by Friend of the Garden Ian Gillam. He grows the flowers under cover at his Vancouver home. Steve Coughlin wrote the entry.
Calochortus, a genus of over 70 herbaceous species, derives its name from the Greek for "beautiful grass". The genus is a member of the lily family, and is renowned for its showy flowers, which rest elegantly atop single stems that rise from perennial bulbs. Calochortus species all have a single basal leaf, inflorescence-supporting bracts, and a perianth composed of three sepals and three petals. These petals and sepals vary from each other in terms of size and colour, and, in this, Calochortus is unique among members of Liliaceae. Though its occurrence seems to be centered in California, where 40 species grow in the wild, Calochortus is in fact quite widely distributed along the western coast of North America, extending from the southern parts of British Columbia through to the northern tip of Guatemala and as far east as the Dakotas. One species, Calochortus nuttallii, is the state flower of Utah.
Calochortus superbus —the species featured in the striking chiaroscuro of today's photo—was first collected in California's Yosemite Valley in the early years of the 20th century. This non-invasive species—commonly called the superb mariposa lily—is endemic to California, where it grows in open meadows, valley grasslands, and foothill woodlands. Generally reaching a height of 40-60 centimetres, C. superbus flowers in late spring and early summer, and enjoys full sun and well-drained soil. Though the plant goes dormant in the summer, it is hardy to zones 7 through 11 and can survive at fairly high altitudes as well (up to 2400 metres). The stems generally bear 1 to 3 upright flowers that take the shape of a small cup; each of the overlapping petals is blotched at the base with a chevron of deep purple or brown surrounded by vivid yellow, though the species exhibits a broad diversity of colour. The exterior of the petals is generally the same colour as the interior, and, as if to pique the curiosity of passersby, it displays a faint, alluring shadow of the intricate internal design.
Source:
Gerriten, Mary and Ron Parsons. Calochortus: Mariposa Lilies and their Relatives. Portland: Timber Press, 2007.
Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 7:00 AM | Comments (17)
June 26, 2009
Ribes rubrum 'Red Lake'
Eric La Fountaine took today's Botany Photo of the Day in our food garden. Douglas Justice and Steve Coughlin co-wrote the entry.
Ribes is a genus of about 150 deciduous flowering shrubby species—the currants and gooseberries—which are primarily native to temperate areas in the Northern Hemisphere, with a few species occurring in South America. Gooseberries are differentiated from currants on account of their spiny stems and often larger fruit. Though they have acquired a measure of notoriety as hosts for the dreaded white pine blister rust (their cultivation actually remains prohibited in some U.S. states), Ribes species—red and black currants in particular—nevertheless have a rich and diverse history as raw materials for human pleasure and practice: the plants have been grown as ornamentals, and they have been used as astringents, as treatments for rheumatism and fever, and as antidotes for digestive, kidney, and hormonal problems as well. Interestingly, the common designator, "currant," is actually a misnomer, and is thought to have derived from a historical mutation of the Anglo-Norman French "raisins de Corauntz" (grapes of Corinth): the dried fruits of Ribes are easily mistaken for the tiny raisins that were famously exported throughout Europe from the Greek city of that name.
Ribes rubrum (red currant) cultivars, which can grow to a height of nearly 2 metres with a spread of almost 3 metres, were first produced in large quantities in France and Belgium in the 17th century. This rugged species is hardy to zone 6 and enjoys loamy soil combined with either full sun or partial shade. The plants need good air circulation in order to overcome their susceptibility to mildew. The small, pendulous flowers of 'Red Lake', which bloom in late July, are a somewhat unimpressive green-yellow, but they soon enough develop into the sour, fibrous, and vitamin C-rich red berries that are used in preserves, puddings, and pies. Of course, humans are not alone in their appreciation of this sapid little fruit. Birds of all kinds love the berries, and they therefore lay vigorous siege to the plants in order to reap this tart reward. Depending on where Ribes is sited and for what purpose it is grown, this siege can be either to the gardener's delight or to her despair.
Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 7:00 AM | Comments (14)
