I returned to my first Tree of Life to check on its changes since 2017. (See link below.)
Tree of Life
Most of the fungi was gone. Instead it was covered with lichens and mosses.
The bark and covering life forms were still soaking wet from a downpour the day before.
Water was actually traveling through the mosses and dripping onto the ground below.
The tree itself looked less alive but it was totally covered with other forms of life.
It was truly beautiful.
FLOW and Ebb
I have found another Tree of Life located not far from the first.
Both are ancient sugar maples near a walking path that I frequent.
There is a variety of fungi tucked in its nooks and crannies.
The bark surface is covered with moss and lichens.
The mushrooms came and went each day.
My next post will be about Tree of Life One.
It is further along in the cycle of death and life.
FLOW and Ebb
I study plants from start to finish. I have learned to do this.
They are not just flowers and leaves.
They are seeds in the beginning and humus at the end.
The cycle is a circle. The whole picture is important.
I refer to seeds as future flowers, but they are also food.
Seeds need to spread to reduce competition with the mother plant.
Butterfly weed seeds fly. I think this is appropriate.
Seeds are also beautiful.
As this Asclepias tuberosa pod splits open it exposes the lovely arrangement of the seeds enclosed.
As the wind blows, these seeds will separate.
The fluffy fibers will serve as a hang glider so the seeds can float to a new location.
The fibers open like an umbrella as they emerge from the pod.
It is a beautiful thing to witness.
Flying seeds on a journey to make future flowers in a new niche.
I love nature!
FLOW
I have been watching the buds form for weeks.
They change each day; getting bigger, getting greener, changing shape.
Last night was finally the night for my Night Blooming Cereus to bloom.
I could tell it was time by the giant buds actually quaking in anticipation.
Their petioles had curved up to get the blooms into a horizontal position. Thus the name ‘Dutchman’s Pipe.’
At around nine PM the petals had opened up to exposed the stamens and pistil.
The parts kept peeling back until the throat was opened wide.
I waited hours for a pollinating bat. Only small moths appeared around the blooms.
The scent was a mixture of wintergreen mint and coconut.
This Epiphyllum oxypetalum is truly amazing in every way.
Oh, what a night!
Flower
I have been trying for weeks to get photos of my frog friends.
I have to walk very slowly and talk to them softly.
They watch me carefully as I move around the pond.
I step on one stepping stone at a time and pause.
I raise my camera against my torso so there is no arm flapping movements.
I do this over and over. I am able to get closer each time.
They wait longer and longer before diving into the pond to disappear.
I got this shot yesterday.
I think I am finally trained now.
FLOW
We have been watching the water recently.
It has been putting on a show. The show is green.
I sit and watch the green shifting and moving along the shore.
We debate whether it is algae or pollen.
My vote is for pollen.
It is small and uniform.
The sample my neighbor gave me in a jar should have grown exponentially by now if it were algae.
It is fascinating to watch.
Come for a swim?
Flow
It was nice to see that Sylva took butterflies into consideration in their plans.
There was an official Monarch Waystation along the main drive through town.
The flowers were lovely. Plants were labeled.
There was even a display explaining the Monarch Life Cycle.
Sylva, North Carolina is my kind of town!
Flower
Tiger Splendens’ bulbils are getting ahead of themselves this fall.
They seem to be preparing to jump from the mother plant.
Many have enlarged and grown roots while still clinging to mama.
I had noticed that some bulbils seemed to be nibbled on.
I wonder if the mama alerted her babies to bail out early?
Plants do communicate with other parts of the plant and neighboring plants.
I will be placing these in shallow pots of peat.
These are the grandbulbils of my first Tiger Lily.
This mama plant was a baby in 2018.
Bulbils grow up so fast these days!
Grandma Flow
Fall mornings are the perfect time to find dew diamonds.
You must carefully time your hunt.
The dew left on the leaves and flowers must settle and condense a bit.
Then you wait for the sun to creep over the horizon.
The sunlight turns each tiny drop into a prism.
You must be at the proper angle between the sun and the dew.
You must find the diamonds just as the sun does.
The sun steals them quickly, you see.
I am rich!
FLOW
floweralley 