Notes from Norway

[Hoy]

The last leg to the summit!




Looking back - towards the western mountains.




Another species of Taraxacum sect. alpina just starting to open the first flower.




Dwarf cudweed, Gnaphalium supinum, common from the lowland and upwards but here it is really a dwarf.




Sibbaldia procumbens, also common from lower altitude, especially where the snow linger.

[Hoy]

Cardamine alpina (Cardamine bellidifolia subsp alpina) in flower at 1700m. .



. . .and in seed  further down.




At the summit - view south. The "warts" are remnants of a hard layer of rock which the glaciation has removed.




East:




Unfortunately the clouds hang down on the mountains to the north. Several peaks reach above 2000m in Jotunheimen.

[Hoy]

On the way down - Salix lapponum.




Cladonia sp.




Alchemilla alpina meadow.




Alchemilla glomerulans - always near water.




An old  "well" near a sætergrend. It is probably used as a fridge for the milk.

[Hoy]

The water runs from the mountains . . .



. . down . down .





At the valley bottom it is used. Here is an old grain mill - out of use now!

[Maggi Young]

We are enjoying these reports very much, Trond.

[Hoy]

I am glad to hear that, Maggi. Thank you!

[Hoy]

Lake Vangsmjøsa (465m asl) lies at the bottom in Valdres valley about 200km from the sea (at Drammen).






Euphrasia stricta



A faded Saxifraga cotyledon at the shore - usually it grows higher up in the mountains.




The Øye stave church. Not the biggest, built about 1150. The main stave church, Vang, was sold and moved to Karpacz, Karkonosze, Schlesien now Poland, in 1842.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/Vang_stave_church_back_side.jpg/1024px-Vang_stave_church_back_side.jpg

[Robert]

Tond,

What spectacular scenery! Were have nothing like this at all here in California.

It is very interesting to see familiar plants. Sibbaldia grows in our area in the higher parts of the Sierra Nevada. We also have various species of Hieracium, however the species are different.

I think that my favorite plant was Ranunculus glacialis. I feel sure that it would never grow here but I was very pleased to see the photograph.

For how many weeks is the snow gone from the high country? It seems that the snow has just melted and that it could start snowing again at any time. Or maybe it can snow any time of year in the higher regions?

The area around Lake Vangsmjosa is incredibly beautiful. Are there interesting plants in this area?

Thank you for sharing your outing with us.

[ian mcdonald]

Trond, it is good to see we have so many species in common.

[Hoy]

Robert,

Ranunculus glacialis (issoleie) is a plant I like very much! You usually have to get quite high up to find them. I think they are very difficult to grow in a warm climate. They grow (at 2370m) almost to the summit of the highest peak (2469m) in Norway.

I think Ranunculus grows it (do you Cliff?).


It is very difficult to say for how long the high country is free of snow. Some places it never disappear or it disappear only some years (such sites are called snøleie "snowbed". Only few kind of plants can grow there. Mosses are typical plants for snøleier. It can snow every month and you should always be prepared for bad weather when you are up in the mountains, especially if you are walking far from the cabin/car. At our mountain cabin (1000 -1200m)  the last snow usually disappear in early June and we can expect snowfall in late September or early October - but we can also have nice warm weather in October! The snow usually starts accumulating in November or December.

You will find the same common plants almost everywhere depending on soil conditions and the soil depends strongly of the bedrock. Most of the bedrock is hard and nutrient poor but where it is sedimentary rocks (or glacial deposits of the same) you can find a different (and more exciting) plant community. The flora around Vangsmjøsa is rather of the common type although one place is known for its uncommon plant community (it is more that you find warm-loving lowland plants than rarities).

[Hoy]

Trond, it is good to see we have so many species in common.

Ian,

It is not that far across the North Sea

[Hoy]

Last week I was a short walk into a valley (Stordalen) branching off from one of the fjords here (Åkrafjorden). A lake (Stordalsvatnet) in the valley makes it look like a fjord. The valley ends abrupt (such valley ends are called a botn) and you have to climb quite steep up to the next hanging valley several hundred meters above the main valley.

View SW to Stordalsvatnet.




Not very high up (about 600m asl) you can still find patches of snow in the lee side of the mountains. Although rather far from the open ocean this area gets much precipitation all year due to the steep mountains here.




Digitalis purpurea is a common plant along the west coast and it goes rather high up in the mountains although it is regarded as a typical coastal plant.




Blomstølsvatnet (630m).




The soil is very wet here and bog plants like this Drosera intermedia was plentiful.

[Hoy]

It was not an exciting flora there so I didn't take many pictures.

At our mountain cabin, the tree limit is 1150m, here it is 600m!

Birches grow everywhere. Like these high up in the valley and tortured by heavy snow in winter.






Grey alder (Alnus incana) was another common species here. Young trees has a smooth grey bark, but this old specimen looks more like a black alder (A. glutinosa)!






High up in the southfacing screes you also find elm (Ulmus glabra) and linden (Tilia cordata). Also ash (Fraxinus excelsior) grows almost as high up as the birches here.

[Robert]

Trond,

Thank you for taking the time to explain the snow patterns. Slowly I am getting a general image of how geology, climate and other factors shape the flora of Norway. If I understand correctly, because of elevation, glaciation, and a cool, very short growing season much of Norway is unsuitable for good tree growth.

It is fascinating to learn that Alnus incana grows in Norway. Here in the Sierra Nevada Mountains were have the shrubby Alnus incana ssp. tenuifolia. They rarely grow over 2-3 meters tall and are always found near a year round source of water, such as a stream or lake.

What species of Birch grow in Norway? Betula alba? Is there more than one species of birch native to Norway?

I can see how the trees can become twisted and tortured by the weather at the fringe of their range. We have beautiful moss covered trees like the ones pictured along the coast here in California. They always grow in the summer fog belt very near to the ocean. On ridges they too can become twisted and tortured by the strong winds coming off the ocean.

The fjords are very dramatic and beautiful!

[Hoy]

Robert,

It is 3 species of Betula in Norway. 2 are tree like and the 3rd is the dwarf birch Betula nana. The other two are B. pubescens (a subspecies ssp czerepanovii grows in the mountains) and B. pendula (syn. verrucosa). The last one is a lowland species. B. alba is not native here.

Both Alnus incana and glutinosa are trees although incana grows as a shrub or small tree along the creeks in the mountains.

Here are some facts about N.:

More than 5% of the area is freshwater. 22% are islands, 37% are above 600m (half of this is above 900m). Much of this is unforested of course and only 24% are productive forest.