Flowering Plants (06)
December 22, 2005
Garrya ×issaquahensis 'Pat Ballard'
This inflorescence of 'Pat Ballard' tassel bush (or silk tassel) is not fully developed – hints of flowers emerging from behind the bracts can be imagined, but the reason for the common name is not readily apparent from this image. Instead, please see the University of California Botanical Garden's page on Californian waterwise plants for the flowers of the male parent of this hybrid. For close-ups of the flower, you can see some nifty SEM (scanning electron microscope) images in a paper on Garrya floral morphology (note: PDF): Liston, A. 2003. A new interpretation of floral morphology in Garrya (Garryaceae) . Taxon. 52:271-276. The paper goes into great detail on the structure of the flowers and how misinterpretations of the floral morphology have hampered understanding of the evolutionary relationships.
For a horticultural perspective on the plant, including the origin of its name, please see Bellevue Botanical Garden's Plant of the Month entry for it. The site doesn't allow direct linking to taxon pages, so you'll have to scroll down and find the entry.
Botany resource link: Considering collecting plant specimens for your local herbarium? A tidy “how-to” guide with tips on collecting and preserving can be found here: Field Techniques Used by Missouri Botanical Garden.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 1:08 AM| Comments (3)
December 21, 2005
Burchardia umbellata
There are going to be a few photographs from the Southern Hemisphere over the next couple weeks. Today's image is from Tasmania, courtesy of Sparra in Launceston, Tasmania (sparramc@Flickr) . Yes, this was via the BPotD Flickr Group Pool (original image). Sparra has a weblog dedicated to his Tasmanian nature photographs, which you might like to visit: A Photographic Essay of Tasmania.
Burchardia umbellata (milkmaids) is native to much of Australia, with the exception of the Northern Territory (distribution map). To avoid growing under stressful dry summer conditions, Burchardia umbellata sends up its leaves from an underground tuber after autumn or winter rains, flowers in spring and then concludes its yearly cycle by producing its fruit before the worst of summer arrives.
Depending on whether local summer conditions are consistently harsh or variably harsh, different populations of Burchardia umbellata exhibit different summer dormancy characteristics. For example, where the onset of stressful conditions is consistent from year to year, dormancy is obligate; it will occur year after year at roughly the same stage of the plant's life (i.e., the onset of dormancy is solely genetically determined). This confers the advantage of increased survival as a result of always avoiding stressful conditions, but loses the advantage of a potentially extended growing season which may mean larger growth, increased seed production or more storage of nutrients in the tubers. On the other hand, where the onset of stressful conditions is variable (e.g., in the highlands), dormancy is at least partially facultative – it can occur in some plants as a direct response to decreasing soil moisture, and not necessarily occur at a genetically predetermined stage of the plant's life – these plants can benefit if an extended growing season occurs, but run the risk of sudden death if conditions change too rapidly (not all plants in these populations employ this strategy - some use the obligate dormancy strategy from above). For more on the topic (and to check to see if my interpretation is accurate), please see: Vaughton, G and M Ramsey. 2001. Variation in summer dormancy in the lilioid geophyte Burchardia umbellata (Colchicaceae). Am. J. Bot. 88:1223-1229.
Photography / art resource link: Alain Briot is creating a collection of essays for The Luminous Landscape entitled “Reflections on Photography and Art”. The first in the series is available, “Art and Science”. I'll likely be following this series closely, so expect the ensuing essays to also be mentioned here.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 4:00 AM| Comments (5)
December 20, 2005
Rumex crispus
Two photographs, two photographers, two locations.
The wintry scene is courtesy of “wrygrass” of Spokane, Washington, who submitted it via the BPotD Submissions on the UBC Botanical Garden Forums (original photograph and accompanying discussion). Thank you, wrygrass!
The second image is from my trip to Manitoba in early August. This was an all-too-familiar scene in 2005 in the southeastern corner of the province. Heavy rainfall through spring and early summer prevented many farmers from being able to access the fields, much less sow seed. As a result, the fallow fields instead grew “crops” of water-tolerant plants, including Rumex crispus (curly dock) – the tall reddish-brown plants – and Hordeum jubatum (foxtail barley), the tufted clumps. As an aside, everytime I saw distant clumps of Hordeum, I was reminded of flocks of sheep. I'm told I have an active imagination.
Curly dock is a native to Europe, Asia and northern Africa, but it has been introduced and naturalized throughout much of the rest of the world (see: Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN) on Rumex crispus and Pacific Islands Ecosystems at Risk (PIER) for the plant). One of its noteworthy qualities is its ability to produce an estimated 100 to over 60 000 seeds per individual plant per year (photographs). If that weren't enough, the seeds can persist in the soil for many years, have a high germination rate and, once seedlings, have a high chance to survive to adulthood.
For more on this resilient plant, see: Zaller, JG. 2004. Ecology and non-chemical control of Rumex crispus and R. obtusifolius (Polygonaceae): a review. Weed Research. 44(6):414-432.
Nature resource link: Guide to the Mangroves of Singapore (flora part of site). It's unfortunate that the images are so small in the species pages, but I suppose they are larger in the guidebooks.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 5:31 AM| Comments (2)
December 19, 2005
Cyclamen hederifolium
Ivy-leaved cyclamen (hederifolium means “leaves of Hedera”, the genus of the ivies) is native to Mediterranean Europe. The Cyclamen Society has an informative page about Cyclamen hederifolium; it includes a photograph of the plant in flower, since I missed my opportunity this past autumn to capture the flowers. Perhaps next year.
In a 2000 paper, the genus Cyclamen was removed from the family Primulaceae and placed into the Myrsinaceae (although The Cyclamen Society seems to disagree!). The rationale for the change was based on both molecular and morphological data; to read the paper that made the alteration, see: Källersjö, M. et al. 2000. Generic realignment in primuloid families of the Ericales s.l.: a phylogenetic analysis based on DNA sequences from three chloroplast genes and morphology. American Journal of Botany. 87:325-1341.
Botany / art resource link: Plant Stamps of the World via Scott's Botanical Link of the Day.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 5:06 AM| Comments (4)
December 18, 2005
Crataegus ×grignonensis
Updated December 19, 2005 at 4:30am: Added the word purported to preface the words “hybrid cross”, in accordance with the comments.
Crataegus ×grignonensis is a purported hybrid cross between Crataegus pubescens and Crataegus crus-galli. The Plants for A Future entry suggests the fruit of this hawthorn is edible, but I've also discovered warnings to not ingest the seeds.
Photography resource link: for inspiration, the wild and cultivated flowers of Louisiana by Ronnie Gaubert.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 4:34 AM| Comments (11)
December 16, 2005
Rosmarinus officinalis 'Trusty'
I mentioned last week that you could possibly find a rhododendron in bloom every day of the year in UBC Botanical Garden. I think (and others will surely correct me if I'm wrong) that the only genus of plants that you are guaranteed to find in flower every day of the year is Rosmarinus or the rosemarys.
The olfactory properties of Rosmarinus have a long-standing reputation for being memory stimulants. In “Aromas of rosemary and lavender essential oils differentially affect cognition and mood in healthy adults.” (Int. J. Neurosci. 2003 Jan;113(1):15-38), Moss et al. found evidence that partly supports this assertion, though they also discovered that the scent of rosemary seems to impair speed of memory.
For more on this plant as a spice, I'll direct you to Gernot Katzer's page on Rosmarinus officinalis.
Photography resource link: Quick Tips for Better Nature Photography by Darwin Wiggett, via Nature Photographers Online.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 2:46 AM| Comments (4)
December 15, 2005
Elleanthus caravata
Eric in San Francisco (Eric in SF@Flickr) submitted today's image of this orchid via the BPotD Flickr Group Pool (original image). Eric has hundreds (thousands?) of plant and garden-related photographs on Flickr, and it's worthwhile browsing through his sets – for example, his Erica sessiliflora from UC Berkeley Botanical Garden is amazing. Thanks Eric!
Elleanthus caravata is (at the very least) native to Venezuela, Guiana, French Guiana, Surinam and Brazil (sources: The Genus Elleanthus and Stewart and Griffiths' “Manual of Orchids”). I've found another source claiming a distribution in (only) Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia. No other reference makes that latter assertion, so I mention it as a possibility that needs confirmation from someone with access to more orchid information than I have available to me.
Today's plant presents another mystery. What is the derivation of caravata? I'd welcome any suggestions, because both Douglas Justice and myself came up empty-handed. The clues of importance are that the plant was originally described from a specimen collected in French Guiana. The author of the original plant name (or basionym), Serapias caravata, was Jean Baptiste Christophore Fusée Aublet, a French botanist. A placename? A derivation of a French word from the 18th century? Thoughts?
The photographed plant was cultivated by Bruce Rogers, also of San Francisco.
Invasives resource link: One Hundred of the World’s Worst Invasive Alien Species is a subset of the Global Invasive Species Database. It's not restricted to plants, but of the plants that are listed, one has been featured on BPotD.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 12:00 AM| Comments (14)
December 14, 2005
Arbutus unedo f. rubra
Strawberry tree is native to Mediterranean Europe, western France and southwest Ireland. The origin of the disjunct population of plants in Ireland seems to remain a matter of debate, with some lay references suggesting a human origin, some suggesting a post-glacial advance into Ireland from France when the English Channel was dry and others advancing the notion that this plant existed on Ireland prior to the the Ice Ages and survived that era. I'm certain I had read a research paper a couple years ago that suggested what I thought was a fairly definitive answer, but I haven't been able to track it down yet, so expect an update to this entry.
To read more about Arbutus unedo, see strawberry tree from the BBC's Gardeners Corner and Arbutus unedo from the Plants for a Future site.
In other news, Tangled Bank #43 is up and running on the Rural Rambles weblog. If you're new to Tangled Bank, it's a collection of recent science-based writing from weblogs around the world hosted by a different weblog every other week. It's a great way to be introduced (or reintroduced) to other weblogs with a science focus.
Natural history / evolution / art resource link: Of all the links I've suggested in BPotD, I would argue this one is in the top-ten “must-sees”. Long-time natural history illustrator Carl Buell has started a weblog entitled Olduvai George. There are only a few entries so far, but it's already apparent that Olduvai George is something special. If you comment on any of his entries (and you should, to encourage him to continue), please tell him you were sent via BPotD!
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 3:21 AM| Comments (26)
December 13, 2005
Erysimum menziesii subsp. yadonii
Thanks again to Dale from California aka Dfunk@Flickr for today's image of Yadon's wallflower from Monterey County in California. As before, Dale shared the image through the Botany Photo of the Day Flickr Group Pool (original image). Much appreciated, Dale.
Erysimum menziesii subsp. yadonii is endangered, so it is likely that this image is the closest that you and I will ever come to seeing the plant – it doesn't seem to be in cultivation. From what I've been able to discern, it is found in only one locale in the world (the coastal sand dunes near Marina, California). It has the dubious distinction of receiving California's highest designation for endangered organisms, S1.1. The .1 means “very threatened”, while S1 means “Less than 6 Element Occurrences (EO) OR less than 1000 individuals OR less than 2000 acres”. Lastly, an EO is defined as “an area of land and/or water in which a species or natural community is, or was, present”.
The name of the plant honours two botanists, Archibald Menzies (1754-1842) and Vern Yadon. Yadon is a resident of the area and former director of the Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History.
Photography / nature resource link: the nature photography of Michael Brown – in particular, check out the flora gallery linked to from the bottom left of the page.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 2:21 AM| Comments (2)
December 12, 2005
Aquilegia formosa
This photograph was taken only a few steps away from this Populus tremuloides in June.
Distributed throughout western North America, the specific epithet (formosa) for red or western columbine means “beautiful”. Apt.
According to Parish, Coupé and Lloyd in Plants of Southern Interior British Columbia, the word columbine is a derivation of the Latin columbina, meaning “dove-like” (Columbina passerina is the scientific name for the common ground-dove). Parish et al. write: “The arched petals and spurs of the flowers resemble a quintet of doves arranged in a ring around a dish (a favourite device of ancient artists).” I can see the resemblance, but I don't think I would have imagined it on my own.
As an aside, please note that if you come across the epithets formosana or formosanum, they have a different and unrelated meaning: of Formosa, or, using the modern name for that island, of Taiwan.
Botany resource link: Plant Physiology Online is a supplement to a printed textbook, but much of the writing can still be used without the context of the accompanying book, such as How Water Climbs to the Top of a 112m-tall Tree.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 2:00 AM| Comments (2)
December 11, 2005
Brassica oleracea [Capitata Group] 'Melissa'
![Brassica oleracea [Capitata Group] 'Melissa'](http://www.ubcbotanicalgarden.org/potd/brassica_oleracea_melissa-thumb.jpg)
![Brassica oleracea [Capitata Group] 'Melissa'](http://www.ubcbotanicalgarden.org/potd/brassica_oleracea_melissa_bw-thumb.jpg)
'Melissa' savoy cabbage is an F1 hybrid. For a brief explanation of the debate surrounding open-pollinated, heirloom, and hybrid vegetable seeds, check out “Heirlooms versus Hybrids: A Common-sense Approach”, an article by Renee Shepherd on the site of Brooklyn Botanic Garden.
For the black and white version, I repeated the same steps as I did for Rosa filipes 'Kiftsgate', except I instead screened the red and blue channels in the first step. I'm quite happy with this particular technique for generating images that have some dimensionality.
Photography resource link: Abstracting the Landscape via The Luminous Landscape.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 12:00 AM| Comments (4)
December 10, 2005
Rehderodendron macrocarpum
Today's BPotD entry is number 250, so I thought I'd share a plant in the same family as the first entry (Melliodendron xylocarpum), the Styracaceae.
Rehderodendron macrocarpum (interpretative sign) is native to southeast China and Vietnam (Flora of China entry | illustration). The genus name commemorates the German-born taxonomist Alfred Rehder, a former curator of the herbarium at the Arnold Arboretum.
The pictured fruit takes over six months to mature. This is perhaps not surprising, considering this 9cm long woody-shelled fruit develops from dainty 2cm long flowers. Despite blooming profusely with thousands of flowers, only a few of the flowers develop into fruit at UBC Botanical Garden – maybe a dozen to two dozen each year.
This was one of the favourite plants of the late Dr. Gerald Straley.
Botany resource link: Overview of Barley, via Oregon State University's BarleyWorld.org. “Think Barley!”
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 4:18 AM| Comments (3)
December 9, 2005
Rhododendron thomsonii subsp. thomsonii
It is almost possible to find a rhododendron in bloom every day of the year at UBC Botanical Garden. This species, Rhododendron thomsonii, has a few flowers emerging now. Many of its flower buds, though, were hit by the cold weather and aborted, littering the ground beneath the rhododendron with brussel sprout-sized green blobs. Fortunately, flowers in December aren't the only reason this native to southeast Asia captures winter interest. Particularly striking on rainy or misty days are the stems with their reddish peeling bark on a background of greenish-lavender.
You can learn a bit more about Rhododendron thomsonii subsp. thomsonii via the American Rhododendron Society.
Photography resource link: More serendipity today. I often browse through the photo critique galleries on Nature Photographers Online. Generally, I frequent the flora forum, but occasionally dip into the earth, sea and sky (landscapes) forum. While doing so yesterday, I discovered the work of Adam Gibbs and his stunning landscapes of western North America. He also takes great flora photographs (a runner-up in the Plants category for Wildlife Photographer of the Year in an exhibition at the Natural History Museum in London). Please note – if you browse through the main galleries on his site, use the unmarked navigation arrows below each set of images to advance to the next set of images (each season has 3 or 4 pages worth of photographs, but it isn't immediately obvious).
I noted from his profile on the Natural History Museum site that he lives in Burnaby, which is also my home. Curious, I had to look up his address in the phone book. No more than five blocks away... (and less than a block from my previous residence!). Small world.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 3:01 AM| Comments (4)
December 7, 2005
Rosa filipes 'Kiftsgate'
One of these days, I'm going to figure out a way to take technically-proficient photographs of the 15m+ (45 feet+) high roses, clematis and other woody climbers in the garden. The challenges are many, including line of sight (the Asian Garden doesn't lend itself well to specimen shots of trees and tree-climbing vines, since it's within a second-growth native forest), perspective and blown out colours from the sky or reflections from the flowers. For the time being, though, I hope you can appreciate the lowest 2.5m of this climbing rose, Rosa filipes 'Kiftsgate'.
I didn't get a chance to visit Kiftsgate Court Gardens in Chipping Campden, UK, when I was in the Cotswolds a few years ago. If I had, I would have seen the original 'Kiftsgate' rose, purported to be the largest rose in England: 27m x 30m x 17m high (80 feet x 90 feet x 50 feet high). You can read more about that rose from the Kiftsgate Court Gardens site: The Kiftsgate Rose (includes a photograph of the flowers).
For the black and white image, I used the technique described in this BPotD entry on the Asian Garden (there's also a link to a how-to article in the comments section for that entry). In this case, the green and blue channels were screened at 100% to create a new alpha channel. I then processed the new channel and the green channel with the soft light calculation at 100%.
Botany / art resource link: A BPotD reader, Dave, sent along this link: The Romance of Orchid Discovery: The John Day Scrapbooks, an online exhibition from Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Along with a bevy of orchid information, you'll want to investigate the galleries.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 2:07 AM| Comments (6)
December 6, 2005
Dichroa febrifuga
It's been grey, cloudy, somewhat snowy and (relatively) cold for much of the past few weeks locally. Yesterday's photographic expedition into the garden centred on finding some colours other than grey, green or white. Today's image of the fruit of Dichroa febrifuga or Chinese quinine, certainly qualifies. To see the flowers, you can check out this previous BPotD entry.
Dichroa febrifuga is not well-known in Western cultivation, though it is one of “the fifty fundamental herbs” in Chinese medicine according to Duke and Ayensu's Medicinal Plants of China (via the Plants For a Future Database). Its common name of Chinese quinine hints at its antimalarial properties (quinine was used to treat malaria). However, the principal antimalarial alkaloid present in this plant, febrifugine, is far more toxic to parasites when compared with quinine. Unfortunately, this particular chemical also has more potent injurious side effects. Synthetic analogs to febrifugine are being researched to replicate the antimalarial benefits without causing other difficulties (see: Jiang et al. 2004. Antimalarial Activities and Therapeutic Properties of Febrifugine Analogs. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy 49(3): 1169).
Botany resource link: Botany Online: The History of a Science (scroll down to table of contents) from the University of Hamburg's Botany Online program. The complete text is available only in German, but the first forty-five chapters have been translated into English.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 12:00 AM| Comments (3)
December 5, 2005
Calamagrostis nutkaensis
Thanks to Dale from California aka Dfunk@Flickr, you and I get to enjoy this image of Calamagrostis nutkaensis from Crocker Grove in California. Dale shared the image through the Botany Photo of the Day Flickr Group Pool; you can see the original image here if you are interested in a larger version. You might also like to check out Dale's other photograph of Crocker Grove.
As I was researching Pacific reedgrass, I came across two issues of Botanical Electronic News on the subject of the European “discoverer” of this plant, Tadeáš Haenke (it was certainly known to the native peoples of the region). By coincidence (a 4 in 1461 chance!), Haenke's date of birth is the same day as this entry, December 5. I highly encourage you to read both BEN 287 and BEN 288 for fascinating accounts of this Bohemian-born botanist. Frankly, his tale would make a good movie. He was born in Bohemia, trained by a Dutch botanist, permitted to be part of a Spanish expedition to explore the Pacific by an Austrian emperor, travelled as far north as northern British Columbia and died in South America. The next time you feel inconvenienced from missing a flight or connection, keep in mind that Haenke missed the two expedition boats he was supposed to be on – twice. Indeed, he missed the expedition boats when they left from Spain, by only a few hours! He finally caught up with the expedition eight months after it had left Spain. The written accounts from BEN also go into intriguing detail about the Malaspina Expedition and the fate of Haenke's plant collections.
You can also learn more about Calamagrostis nutkaensis from Calflora and the online version of the Jepson Manual.
Photography resource link: Biofoto – Forening For Naturfotografer is in Norwegian, but the gallery of photographs for your inspiration isn't restricted by language. I particularly like the images by Einar Ytrelid on page 4.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 2:47 AM| Comments (10)
December 3, 2005
Ericameria nauseosa
Updated February 24, 2006 at 2:17pm PST: Changed name from Chrysothamnus nauseosus to Ericameria nauseosa after reviewing Nesom, G and Baird, G. 1993. Completion of Ericameria (Asteraceae: Astereae), Diminution of Chrysothamnus. Phytologia. 75(1): 74-93. – Daniel
Today's photograph is courtesy of Maureen from Montana, aka MontanaRaven@Flickr, who shared it via the Botany Photo of the Day Flickr Group Pool (Flickr posting). Maureen also shares her thoughts and photographs on her excellent weblog, raven's nest, which is certainly worth your time to investigate. Many thanks, Maureen!
Rabbitbrush was previously featured on BPotD in this entry. I enjoy Maureen's photograph as a companion to the images from that entry, particularly because the colours are tonally opposite. In accompaniment to the photograph, Maureen wrote: “these are the seedheads that persist throughout the winter, giving this low growing shrub a fluffy, cloudlike character that adds winter interest.”
Photography resource link: A Great Mouth for a Picture, an opinion piece by Niall Benvie for Nature Photographers Online. “Perhaps the single most important attribute of a “fine nature photograph” is its ability to engage the viewer’s intellect as well as their heart, to lead them into lines of enquiry about what is happening beyond the frame.”
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 4:28 AM| Comments (4)
December 2, 2005
Magnolia sieboldii
Apologies for the brief writeup today. I'm still winding down from last night's presentation, which was seemingly well-received.
This particular plant was featured on Botany Photo of the Day nearly six months ago: Magnolia sieboldii. In that entry, I mention that the flowers of Oyama magnolia are pendulous. I hope it's clear that the branch suspending this flower has been manipulated to display the flower in an unnatural position.
Botany resource link: Millenium Seed Bank Project – “...an international collaborative plant conservation initiative. This worldwide effort aims to safeguard 24,000 plant species from around the globe against extinction.” The gallery of seed images has been done with aesthetics in mind. Check out Afzelia africana and Acacia cyclops.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 1:39 AM| Comments (6)
December 1, 2005
Rosa 'Harwanna'
Please note that the Creative Commons license applied to most BPotD images does not apply to this image, so permission for use (beyond “fair use” or similar provisions) needs to be sought from the copyright holder.
This scan of the Jacqueline du Pré rose is a creation of local photographer and writer Alex Waterhouse-Hayward (disclosure: Alex is the husband of one of UBC's Friends of the Garden). Alex has an upcoming exhibit in Vancouver that will include a number of super high-quality prints of his botanical scans, which he wrote about in “Getting Rid of the Box” (image gallery).
Alex writes that his methods to achieve the scan are as follows: “I placed it on my Epson Perfection 1640SU flatbed scanner. The initial scans are at 100% and 1200ppi. I have a green garden bamboo stick clamped to a lamp on my desk and I clamp (clothespins) the rose on the other end. I swing the rose so it is as close to the scanner's glass without touching. I do the scanning in the evening as I have the scanner's top off. This way the scanner reads my white ceiling as black.”
If you'd like to see these and Alex's other works, he's passed along an open invitation to attend his exhibition (with a note warning that there will be some artistic nudity). Here are the details: “Exactly As We Were” – photographs by Alex Waterhouse-Hayward. Artist's reception on December 8 at 7pm, exhibition from December 9 through to December 24, 2005. Location: Vancouver Gallery of Photography @ The Art Center, 2060 Pine Street, Vancouver, BC. 604.731.5412.
You may have noticed that I've titled the entry Rosa 'Harwanna', yet also called it the Jacqueline du Pré rose (this is the name Alex used for it). In what can only be described as something analogous to a tragedy of the commons, this rose has three “names”: scientific (Rosa 'Harwanna'), common or vernacular ('Harwanna' rose), and a marketing or trademarked name (Jacqueline du Pré rose).
In brief (far too brief), when a new plant is bred, it can be patented so that royalties are paid to the plant breeder. However, patents eventually expire, and once they do, royalties no longer need to be paid and anyone can propagate the plant for sale. In response, some nurseries came up with the idea of assigning a trademark to the new plant, essentially a name that only they could associate (or license to others to use) with the plant for marketing purposes. As long as it is protected from becoming a generic name, this marketing name is permanent, and enables the nursery (and its licensees) to sell the plant under an attractive name, (such as Jacqueline du Pré rose) while everyone else (once the patent has expired) has to sell the plant under the less attractive 'Harwanna' rose or Rosa 'Harwanna'.
This is akin to the tragedy of the commons scenario, so to rewrite what is on the Wikipedia entry:
Positive : the owner of the trademark receives all of the proceeds from each additional trademarked name
Negative : the understanding and communication of “what plant is that?” is slightly degraded by each additional name
Crucially, the division of these components is unequal: the individual owner of the trademark gains all of the advantage, but the disadvantage is shared between all people using names to communicate about plants. Consequently, for an individual owner of a trademark weighing up these utilities, the rational course of action is to trademark the new plant. And another, and another. However, since all potential trademark owners reach the same conclusion, confusion and misunderstanding and frustration about names is the long-term fate. Nonetheless, the rational response for a potential owner of a trademark remains the same for each new hybrid, since the gain is always greater to a trademark owner than the distributed cost is.
Tony Avent, owner of Plant Delights Nursery, has written an opinionated piece on the matter entitled, “The Trademark Myth (When is a Name Not a Name)”, which is a highly recommended (and entertaining) read. And yes, I agree with Tony.
Photography resource link: for inspiration, the photography of Wynn Bullock (page 2). Please be forewarned that the site contains artistic nudity.
If I were ever forced to create a list of favourite photographs, “Sea Palms” would be on it, though the small size of the image on the site doesn't do it justice. It's worth seeking out a print version in a book to get a better idea of it, such as Bullock's “The Enchanted Landscape”. I have the book, and to get an idea of Bullock's philosophy, he accompanied “Sea Palms” with this quote: “I feel the time of a thing just as strongly as I see its form or color. Equally, the spaces between the limbs of a tree are as real as the limbs themselves. When I can photograph spaces filled with smoke, fog, or mist, the effect is one that greatly adds to the visual and emotional impact of the picture. The photographer is slowly becoming aware of, and more and more will extend, his search for greater visual expression in a reality that is not frozen in time or limited to the surface appearance of objects.”
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 12:00 AM| Comments (6)
November 28, 2005
Bolax gummifera
Just like yesterday's plant, I can't help myself when I see this plant. I have to touch it. The sensation, though, is quite different – imagine (but I don't suggest you try it) pushing down with your hand on a swath of keys on your keyboard. That would be very similar to the feeling of pushing down on the foliage of the plastic-like Bolax gummifera. The common name for this cushion-forming oddity is “balsam bog”, but I know a few members of staff simply call it the plastic plant.
Bolax gummifera is a member of the carrot family, but similar to yesterday's Erinacea anthyllis, a casual glance at the plant would not make it readily identifiable to its family. Within the broadly distributed Apiaceae (though typically north temperate), this plant belongs to a subfamily found only in the Southern Hemisphere, the Azorelloideae. Accordingly, Bolax gummifera is native to southern South America, including the Falkland Islands.
From an ecological standpoint, a recent study by L. Cavieres et. al. (2002) found evidence that cushion plants such as Bolax gummifera provide a “nurse plant effect” in arctic and alpine plant environments. The morphological structure of the cushions create a favourable microtopographic and microclimatic environment for the seed establishment of other plant species (see: Cavieres, L.et. al. 2002. Nurse effect of Bolax gummifera cushion plants in the alpine vegetation of the Chilean Patagonian Andes. Journal of Vegetation Science. 13(4):547-554.).
Botany / agriculture resource link: Gernot Katzer's Spice Pages – top-notch information on 117 spice plants.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 4:30 AM| Comments (10)
November 27, 2005
Erinacea anthyllis
You might have difficulty believing that prickly anthyllis or hedgehog broom is a member of the bean family until you see an image of its flowers. Erinacea anthyllis is native to stony slopes of Mediterranean France, Spain and northern Africa. When giving a tour, I always invite visitors to gently touch the viciously sharp spiny modified leaves. I can never resist the temptation to float my hand on the tips, since it's a bit of an odd tactile sensation.
Botany / photography resource link: Biodiversity of the Hengduan Mountains Region, China, a site hosted by the Harvard University Herbaria and originally assembled by Dr. Richard Ree. Rick spent a year in 2002-2003 at the UBC Botanical Garden and Centre for Plant Research as a post-doctoral researcher with the garden's director, Dr. Quentin Cronk.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 12:00 AM| Comments (5)
November 25, 2005
Agave palmeri
Palmer's century plant is native to northwestern Mexico, Arizona and New Mexico. Despite the common name, it only has a lifespan between five and twenty-five years. In its final year, it will produce a flower stalk from 4.5m (14 feet) to 9m (27 feet) high. After flowering and during the development of the seeds, the plant begins to senesce. In other words, fruit are produced only once in its lifetime, a botanical phenomenon termed monocarpy.
The Plant Sciences Center of Sierra Vista, Arizona has an interesting write-up about Agave palmeri, with a focus on salvage, reclamation and restoration. The site also alludes to the importance of Agave palmeri as a food source for migratory bats. In “Following the Nectar Trail”, Dr. Theodore Fleming writes about the relationships between lesser long-nosed bats (Leptonycteris curasoae) and plants in the Cactaceae and Agavaceae, including Agave palmeri.
In BPotD news: it isn't entirely bug-free yet, but I'm working on this for those of you who would like to know where the photographs were taken (and where the plants are)...
Photography / art resource link: “Catching The Eye”, an article by Robert Genn on “Photo Familiarity Syndrome”, photography and painting. If you're a photographer and easily offended, steer clear. But, if you enjoy learning about different perspectives on photography, the article and most of the accompanying comments are well worthwhile.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 1:10 AM| Comments (6)
November 24, 2005
Oryza sativa
Guest-blogging today is one of my colleagues, Eric La Fountaine. Eric's been responsible for the scanning of the seeds and John Davidson slides that have been shared to date on BPotD (along with many other tasks). – Daniel
You might not recognize the seeds in this image as a common food source – rice. Oryza sativa is a staple part of the diet of almost fifty percent of the world’s human population. Needless to say, understanding the genetics of rice is crucial to understanding and protecting this valuable resource.
Rice is a cultigen, a “species” that is the result of human hybridization and selection, i.e., Oryza sativa did not exist prior to human intervention. General consensus is that the wild progenitor of Oryza sativa is Oryza rufipogon (see: history of rice cultivation), though some scientists disagree (read the subsection on botany and origin of rice).
Botany resource link: The Saxifrage Society has an excellent site dedicated to the genus Saxifraga and relatives. The highlight is their database, Saxbase, which you can use to browse through (great) images of many of the plants.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 1:28 AM| Comments (4)
November 23, 2005
Acer carpinifolium
The last time I took a photograph of this hornbeam maple, I was jokingly criticized for not taking a picture of its leaf, one of most distinctive features of this species. As you can tell, this maple's leaf is not the typical palmately lobed leaf of many maples, but rather a pinnately-veined simple leaf, much like those seen (as a relevant example) in the genus Carpinus. I was mindful this time to take a photo of both the specimen and the leaf, so that I could use the leaf photograph to make the online copy of the text for the interpretative sign a bit more relevant.
For a few more photographs of non-palmately lobed maple leaves, see Botanical Characters of Maples via The Maple.
Photography / nature resource link: The Flora and Fauna of the Paraguayan Gran Chaco from the talents of Thomas and Sabine Vinke. Beautiful (and exotic, to me) subjects combined with an eye for composition make every page on this site worthwhile to visit (don't miss out the amphibian page). As a related aside, one of the things I find most deeply satisfying is when the garden's discussion forums are used by people around the world to puzzle over something botanical and come to an educated conclusion. Check out this lichen identification conversation that involved Thomas & Sabine from Paraguay and folks from British Columbia, California, Colorado and Washington. Made my day.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 12:00 AM| Comments (6)
November 22, 2005
Anemone patens var. multifida
Nick from Fort St. John, British Columbia, sent in this photograph of a prairie crocus (or pasqueflower) taken in the Peace River region in the early spring. After reading about BPotD in the National Post, Nick was inspired to send this little gem along to be identified and shared. I was quite happy to oblige, as its scientific name was one of the first I had ever learned. Many thanks, Nick!
I suppose I should have held onto this photograph (since I don't have one of my own for this species) until March 16, 2006. That day is the one-hundredth anniversary of this plant receiving Royal Assent to be adopted as the floral emblem of Manitoba, after having been selected by school children of the province. After the blizzards of last week, though, I think Manitoba readers might appreciate this harbinger of spring as a reminder that winter will ultimately pass.
If you search for more information on this plant, you ought to be aware that it has a number of scientific names (synonyms). Of these, the one used most often as an alternative is Pulsatilla patens subsp. multifida, a taxonomic view which places this plant in a different genus in part due to the long plumose achene beaks seen when the plant is in fruit. Phylogenetic analyses, however, suggest that Pulsatilla should be subsumed into Anemone. For a discussion on the topic, see the entry on the genus Anemone in the Flora of North America (you can also read more about Anemone patens var. multifida in the FNA).
Nature resource link: It might seem a bit odd, but I'm going to link to an earlier BPotD. Picea sitchensis 'Bentham's Sunlight' was originally written to coincide with the release of John Vaillant's book “The Golden Spruce: A True Story of Myth, Madness and Greed” (ISBN: 0393058875). Two weeks ago, the book received the 2005 Governor General's Literary Award for Non-Fiction. If you haven't read the original post and accompanying resources (and the book), it's a fascinating story with a UBC Botanical Garden connection.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 12:00 AM| Comments (7)
November 21, 2005
Nerine pudica
Like all nerines (including Nerine bodwenii), Nerine pudica is native (and endemic) to South Africa. Floristically speaking, Nerine pudica is found within the bounds of the Cape Floristic Region, a biodiversity hotspot. There, it is one of roughly nine thousand species of plants that occur in an area one-third the size of the United Kingdom. For comparison's sake, the entire UK flora contains roughly fifteen hundred species of plants (source: Calflora.net's Flora of the Western Cape).
There are between twenty-three and thirty species of Nerine; you can read a brief account of why there is not a firm number here.
Photography resource link: The Art of Disconnection, an article by Niall Benvie on Nature Photographers Online. The piece starts out with a discussion on the recognition (or lack thereof) of the artistic merit of nature photography and ends with a commentary on the decline of natural history in education. I'll let you decide if the transition between the two points is a smooth one.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 3:56 AM| Comments (1)
November 20, 2005
Acaena magellanica subsp. laevigata
Updated November 21, 2005 at 12:09pm: Changed the common name based on Maire's comment below – thanks, Maire! Also, read Brent Hine's comments below re: the name discussion from the entry.
Commonly called “bidibid” or “piripiri” by New Zealanders, the species Acaena magellanica is native to both New Zealand and Patagonia. This particular plant is labelled as variety laevigata in the Australasian section of the Alpine Garden. This warrants some investigation, as I think that variety laevigata is strictly South American (so either the label is incorrect, the identification is wrong or the plant's been in the wrong bed for a long time – since 1983!) .
I thought I discovered the perfect paper to supplement this entry: Lee et al., 2001. Fruit features in relation to the ecology and distribution of Acaena (Rosaceae) species in New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Ecology 25(1): 17–27 (or direct link to the PDF article). As it turns out, they don't cover two of New Zealand's nineteen species of Acaena in the article, and Acaena magellanica is one of them. Still, it's worth investigating. Keep in mind while reading it that this Acaena is in the Section Ancistrum, or “spined fruits with barbs” section – I suspect similar conclusions can be drawn about Acaena magellanica as are drawn about other species in the same section.
Botany resource link: Adaptations and economic uses of rainforest plants via the Missouri Botanical Garden.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 4:30 AM| Comments (5)
November 19, 2005
Daphniphyllum macropodum
The genus Daphyniphyllum occurs only in southeast Asia, and remains uncommon enough in horticulture that no common name has been settled upon (although Dave Creech of the SFA Mast Arboretum suggests false daphne). An uncritical glance at the plant would suggest that it is either a rhododendron or closely related, but despite similarities in superficial morphology such as habit and leaf shape, it is not even in the same order of plants. Orders are a level above families, so to compare Rhododendron and Daphniphyllum: Rhododendron is in the family Ericaceae, one of a number of families in the Order Ericales, while Daphniphyllum is in the family Daphniphyllaceae, a member of the Order Saxifragales. With this knowledge, you can draw the conclusion that even though they are still distantly related (different families), Daphniphyllum is more closely related to saxifrages (Saxifraga) than it is to rhododendrons.
Photography resource link: With A New Eye – The Digital National Parks Project by pioneering digital photographer Stephen Johnson. Although the web images are small (though they give you a taste), I can only imagine that the prints are stunning; Stephen uses a 144 megapixel BetterLight Model 6000K.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 2:09 AM| Comments (7)
November 18, 2005
Grevillea victoriae
Although November is probably the nadir for plants in bloom within UBC Botanical Garden, flowers aren't entirely absent. Between the collections in the Winter Garden and the Alpine Garden in particular, there are easily over a hundred different species in flower, including this plant from southeastern Australia, the royal grevillea.
This individual plant was propagated from a successful larger plant (photographed here), which has since been removed for being too successful. I think that's the reason, anyway – maybe Brent Hine will chime in on the comments.
Grevillea victoriae attracts both hummingbirds and bees as pollinators, similar to another member from the family Proteaceae featured previously on BPotD, the South American Embothrium coccineum. Whenever you see members of the same plant family having representatives in both South America and Australia, it should spark your biogeographical curiousity. Indeed, a further examination of the family reveals a distribution throughout the Southern Hemisphere, suggesting that the origins of the family date back to the time (and place) of the Gondwana supercontinent roughly 130 million years ago. This assertion is bolstered by the fact that molecular and fossil evidence combined suggest an origin 119 to 110 mya (Anderson, C.L., Bremer, K., & Friis, E.M. 2005. Dating phylogenetically basal eudicots using rbcL sequences and multiple fossil reference points. American J. Bot. 92: 1737-1748. + abstract).
Botany / conservation resource link: The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources has started a Top 50 Plants Campaign, a series highlighting plant species of concern in various regions around the world. The first in the series focuses on the Top 50 Mediterranean Island Plants. “Written in simple, non-technical language, these profiles should interest policy makers, the media and general public. Each profile, illustrated with a photograph or drawing, includes a description of the plant as well as information on conservation status, distribution, habitat and ecology, economic and cultural value, threats, reasons for decline, conservation actions in place, and actions needed to help save the species.” Discovered via the always-excellent Scott's Botanical Links.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 1:54 AM| Comments (13)
November 16, 2005
Callicarpa bodinieri var. giraldii 'Profusion'
A warm welcome today to readers of one of Canada's national daily newspapers, the National Post. For those who don't have access to the newspaper, you can read today's article (minus the photographs) about Botany Photo of the Day here: “In Science, Beauty. In Beauty, Science.”
For those investigating the site after reading the paper, I'll add links to the rest of the BPotD entries featured in the full-page article after seeing the paper copy, but here are a few for now: Linnaea borealis, Vitis vinifera 'Cabernet Franc' and Gladiolus flanaganii. You might also like to read the first BPotD entry Melliodendron xylocarpum, read a bit more about Botany Photo of the Day, check out the main page of the UBC Botanical Garden site, ask a question on the garden's discussion forums or, if you are a Mac OS 10.4 user, download the BPotD Widget. A word of note on commenting on BPotD entries – though comments are greatly appreciated, they are moderated to prevent spammers from polluting the site. I'll be pretty quick about approving comments today, though. Lastly, a minor correction to the last paragraph of the article: I chose this Lilium sp. as a flower picture for stress relief that day.
Today's plant is yet another award-winner for gardeners, 'Profusion' beautyberry (RHS Award of Garden Merit and a Great Plant Pick). For a gardening perspective on the plant, check out Paghat's article on beautyberry. Paghat mentions that the berries are not highly preferred by birds, which I agree is true for most years. However, in observing two different plantings of beautyberry at UBC in the past month, I've noted an atypical decrease in the number of fruit on the plants (atypical in the fact that it is so early). Attributable to birds? Perhaps – I was joined by a rufous-sided towhee feeding on the fruit while taking photographs of this plant yesterday, which was a bit odd considering the amount of its typically preferred food available.
The genus Callicarpa is distributed in Central America, the southeastern United States, tropical and subtropical Asia and northern Australia. The beautyberry found in the southeastern US, Callicarpa americana, is a candidate plant for UBC Botanical Garden's new Carolinian Forest garden (mentioned in brief here). Many of the plants planned for the Carolinian Forest have relatives in the flora of southeast Asia, a biogeographical pattern observed in roughly sixty-five different genera of plants that has long been recognized and studied. Indeed, this pattern is one of the research and educational rationales for the Carolinian Forest, particularly for the UBC biologists examining the evolutionary relationships between these plants. If you have institutional or library access to scientific journal articles, a good introduction to the subject is Wen, J. 1999. Evolution of Eastern Asian and Eastern North American Disjunct Distributions in Flowering Plants. Annu. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 30:421-455.
Conservation / philosophy resource link: Two resources on Dr. E.O. Wilson, noted biologist and author, both touching on the idea of reuniting science and the humanities: the first is a filmed lecture from Harvard University, “On the Relation of Science and the Humanities”, and the second is an interview in Salon, “Living in Shimmering Disequilibrium”.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 1:51 AM| Comments (12)
November 15, 2005
Eucharis amazonica
Updated March 26, 2007: Changed from Eucharis × grandiflora to Eucharis amazonica based on the identification from Dr. Alan Meerow (see comments). Thank you, Alan!
Another round of thanks to Darrell (aka “dweeb” on Flickr) of the University of California, Davis, this time for his picture of an Amazon lily via the Botany Photo of the Day Flickr Group Pool (original photograph). Gracias, Darrell!
The × symbol between the genus and the specific epithet for this plant indicates that it is a hybrid between two species. The parent species for Eucharis × grandiflora are thought to be Eucharis sanderi and Eucharis moorei. Where cross-pollination between the two parent plants is possible in the wild, it is also possible that Eucharis × grandiflora may result.
If you're a gardener, here is a factsheet on Eucharis.
The genus Eucharis is native to Central and South America. It has the sad distinction of containing a plant that has become extinct in the past one hundred and fifty years, Eucharis lehmannii.
Botany resource link: The Hebe Society web site not only features plants from the genus Hebe, but also a number of other plants from New Zealand. These include such rarities as the blue-pollened Fuchsia excorticata.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 2:02 AM| Comments (12)
November 13, 2005
Elaeagnus glabra
Smooth oleaster is often described as a shrub, but it's not a typical shrub; it's best described as a climbing shrub or a sarmentose shrub (Dr. Jim Croft's Botanical Glossary defines sarmentose as “producing long, flexuose runners or stolons”). The long, extending branches act in a vine-like fashion, scrambling up nearby trees and hooking onto tree limbs. The second photograph shows a branch that has flopped away from the main plant, seeking outward to find yet another victim to climb up; the growing tip of the branch is to the left of the image. If the branch were upright, the small hook-like branchlet in the centre of the photograph would be pointing down, perfect for latching on and supporting the vine-like branch.
Douglas Justice describes the tubular flowers of smooth oleaster as “intensely fragrant – gardenia-like with a hint of orange blossom” (and they were). I should add that it took quite a few sessions to capture an acceptable image of the flowers, as the glossy foliage in poor light conditions kept on throwing off the exposure settings with the small point-and-shoot camera I was using at the time.
Botany resource link: Plants and Us is a top-notch site that simply and directly presents the utility of plants in a number of categories with “top ten lists”, e.g., the top ten in plants and economics. If anyone ever says to you, “But plants are boring! What good are they?”, direct them to the Plants and Us site.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 12:00 AM| Comments (7)
November 12, 2005
Stapelia gigantea
This photograph is courtesy of “ChasMTx”, an Austin, Texas member of the UBC Botanical Garden Forums. ChasMTx submitted this image via the BPotD Submissions Forum in this thread (check it out to read a personal story that's worth a chuckle on the risk of this plant flowering during family events). Thanks ChasMTx!
As with many plants, Stapelia gigantea has a suite of common names. These include carrion flower, giant toad flower, Zulu giant, starfish flower and (in Australia) dead horse plant. Most of these are fairly descriptive – it does smell like carrion, it comes from Africa, it's big, it resembles a starfish and it attracts flies like a dead horse. I haven't been able to deduce the reason for toad flower, though (perhaps also because of the flies?).
You have probably guessed that this odd plant is pollinated by the blow-flies it attracts. For commercial or hobbyist stapelia growers, mimicking the pollination function of the flies by hand (and preventing unwanted pollination by flies) is not an easy task, but a necessary one as plants of the same genus (or even across genera) will readily hybridize under greenhouse conditions.
I should sneak in that Stapelia gigantea is considered an invasive plant in Hawaii and a weed in Australia.
For more reading on smelly plants, Wayne Armstrong has written an excellent account of Stinking Flowers.
Photography resource link: The nature photography of Shirley Denton features the wild landscapes, flora and fauna of Florida. Of the ones I browsed, my favourite was her photograph of Appalachicola National Forest.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 12:00 AM| Comments (19)
November 11, 2005
Acer griseum
University of Georgia horticulturist and tree guru Michael Dirr describes Acer griseum as a true “specimen tree”, and with good reason. The paperbark maple’s compact ultimate size (to 12m), cold-hardiness (USDA Zone 5), pest and disease resistance and broad garden adaptability make it ideal for residential landscapes, but the peeling, cinnamon-red bark and neat trifoliate leaves are the primary attractions. The bark imparts warm, rich tones and attractive shadows (especially with low-in-the-sky winter sun) and its waxy, blue-backed, dark green leaves practically ignite into orange and red shades in autumn. It is no wonder that Acer griseum has a Royal Horticultural Society Award of Garden Merit, is a Great Plant Pick (of the Pacific Northwest and is a Missouri Botanical Garden's Plant of Merit.
Botany resource link: Learn about the botanical oddity Welwitschia mirabilis via Alice Notten of Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden in South Africa (more photographs).
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 12:00 AM| Comments (6)
November 8, 2005
Euphorbia characias subsp. wulfenii
The droplets of water on the foliage of large Mediterranean spurge hint at an ecological adaptation to hot, dry environments. During episodes of intense heat and dry air, the amount of evapotranspiration (the combination of evaporation and plant transpiration) can be so high that plants are unable to draw enough water from the soil (or internally) to retain biochemical balance and turgor, so they begin to wilt and burn. If this environmental stress continues long enough, the plant will shrivel and die.
Plants growing in hot, dry environments, have evolved a number of strategies to reduce the likelihood of “death by thirst”. This Euphorbia illustrates one example. Its leaves are covered by a thick epicuticular wax that prevents the loss of water from the leaf surface via evaporation; the wax forms an impenetrable barrier that water cannot pass through and be lost. The waxy layer works from both directions, though; the hydrophobic lipids of the wax repel the water molecules and prevent adhesion, while water's cohesive properties cause the beading.
Photography resource link: for study and inspiration, the flora and fauna photography of Sean and Jennifer McCormick of Alberta, Canada.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at 12:00 AM| Comments (13)
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Botany Photo of the Day and all associated images are licensed under a Creative Commons License.
Botany Photo of the Day is a project of the UBC Botanical Garden and Centre for Plant Research, located in Vancouver, British Columbia Canada. UBC BGCPR is a department of the Faculty of Land and Food Systems within The University of British Columbia.