My Bit of Heaven - by Kristl Walek

[Kristl Walek]

It (Asclepias exaltata) doesn't look like it's going to seed here either. It is particularly interesting to me as the earliest milkweed to flower. A. syriacus is just beginning to open as exaltata closes (speciosa is not even in bud).

You mentioned Ellen Hornig at Seneca Hill (also a good friend of mine)--and she's got probably the best selection of Asclepias that I'm aware of in a commercial source. She used to list about 18 species (don't know what the current count is).

Yes. Ellen is the best source for plants. She and I have discussed the (very) complex pollination issues of the genus (something that surprises many people who think of them as "weeds")---many, many, many never produce seed outside their native range.

I have tried to get my paws on A. variegata for years. Managed to beg and plead a pinch of seed here and there---but still no mature plants in the garden. I have a couple of new vigourous seedlings on the go.

A. viridis, is in my opinion, one of the showiest, least-grown of the genus.

[Kristl Walek]

Epigaea repens is a beautiful sub-shrub in the Ericaceae. The foliage is leathery and evergreen with woody, prostrate stems trailing along the ground. The very fragrant clusters of white or pink flowers bloom very early in spring.

It is the provincial flower of Nova Scotia---and very rare in my area, becoming much more prevalent in northern Ontario and in eastern Canada, growing here in acid soil in sandy or rocky woods. 

I did not manage to photograph it when it was flowering - thus the picture of the bloom is not mine; but from the Canadian Museum Of Nature, to give a perspective.

Seed was recently collected---the pods are in clusters, hairy and round, with 5 segments that split open and curl back like flower petals, revealing a most fascinating spotted interior. The spots are actually the seed, embedded in a fleshy fruit, that is very delectable to wild critters. Once they split open, it is near impossible to find a full interior. Thus, they are normally collected while still closed, and allowed to open on their own in a warm spot.

The ripe colour of the seed is black---but even if it is brown when the pods open, the seed is viable.

One can read silly information about how hard it is to clean this seed (indicating laborous washing of the tiny seed to detach it from the fruit). But it is actually one of the easier seeds to deal with. The pods are simply left on a tray under lights for a few days, at which point the fruit dries up and the tiny black seeds are rubbed off between thumb and forefinger.

Seeds are easy, warm germinators, and grow along quite lustily in ordinary indoor winter sowing conditions under lights.

[Kristl Walek]

It is not yet Trillium collection here----but perhaps a good time to post these pictures.

There are only 4 species native to this area---once one knows the distinct seed pods---it becomes a snap to identify the plants in the wild.

[Paul T]

Kristl,

I love the flower markings on the undulatum.... a species I haven't seen here as far as I know.  Love the other ones too of course, but the pink markings on the white flower of the undulatum are striking.  Great pics (as always)

[Lesley Cox]

Kristl, you are a great educator. All these lovely pictures with pods, seeds etc teach us (especially me) a thousand times more than the wordy (and frequently boring) posts on Trillium-L. I hope you will continue for a very long time, sharing your huge knowledge and experience of the North American flora. Grateful thanks.

[Kristl Walek]

Today was spent in two very distinct sites collecting seed.

The first is a unique habitat in the Ottawa Valley--and a spot where a number of rare or disjunct species are also found (Lithospermum canadense, Epigaea repens, Comptonia peregrina, Viola sagittata, Asclepias tuberosa var. interior etc).

It is an acid-sand environment- the predominant trees being Pinus resinosa, Betula sp., Populus and Quercus.

Bracken Fern and Lichens entirely carpet some areas of the forest and the soil is literally sand.
The beautifully scented and shrubby Comptonia peregrina (Sweet Fern) forms large drifts here; seed pods were formed, but not yet ready.

Epigaea repens was post-flowering and seed production, when it gets busy sending out it's beautiful, hairy fresh foliage.

And Asclepias tuberosa var. interior was in its full glory in the hot, open spots outside the forest.

[Kristl Walek]

Along the edges of the woods:

The small sweet Pyrola elliptica and Helianthus divaricatus, the woodland sunflower.

Rhus aromatica is an early-flowering, small, wonderful Sumac with clean, grey-green foliage.

It's rare to find fruit on any of the Amelanchiers---as they are a favorite of birds (and human beings, but we are usually second in line for the fruit). A. spicata was also collected recently--this is a small species, 60-90cm tall growing on alvars, with incredibly sweet, wonderful fruit!

The first blooms of Spiraea latifolia and the early-forming acorns of Quercus rubra.

[Kristl Walek]

One of my main goals today was to collect blueberries- and this is one of my major harvesting sites; a large opening in the trees almost entirely carpeted with Vaccinium angustifolium (sweet and blue) and V. myrtilloides (tarter and blackish).
 
Berry seed harvesting is always one of my favorite activities (one handful for the seed bag, one handful for the seed gatherer....). Although it is tedious and long work collecting those small berries for those even smaller seeds, I hardly mind being in an open, bug-free environment (for a change) and crawling around on all fours.

Here too, in this hot, dry spot are other distractions- like the glorious disjunct Lithospermum caroliniense, which began blooming in my garden weeks ago, and was still going strong here.

Aralia hispida was here and there as well.

And everywhere one saw the flashes of the tiny, pink Polygala polygama.

[Kristl Walek]

The second site I travelled to was one of the many alvars in the area. In an earlier post, I noted that an alvar is an open, hot area of limestone pavements with a thin layer of soil, supporting a unique flora of plants that like it hot and dry, or survive in the rocky depressions where moisture accumulates.

Alvar areas are globally unusual and only occur in localized areas of Canada (Ontario), the United States (the mid-west) and Sweden.

One has to be careful in this particular alvar, as every few steps brings a deep hole in the limestone. Some large enough for a body to fall into (or to bury a body in  . I show you a poor quality picture of one of them because it displays so clearly how thin the layer of soil is on top of the rock. 

The soil is essentially a stony rubble with a bit of organic material.

There were many plants to be found here that I have discussed earlier, such as Arenaria stricta, Penstemon hirsutus (dwarf form), Saxifraga virginiensis, Lilium philadelphicum, Calystegia spithamaea and others.

Also naturalized are the introduced European Echium (Viper's Buglos) and Potentialla recta (the yellow in the alvar view picture).

The small Polygala senega is better known in the Canadian prairies where the root is wildcrafted for the (mainly European) pharmaceutical industry and used in the treatment of respiratory problems. There is some concern that this activity is depleting wild populations there.

The well known Campanula rotundifolia carpets this alvar, and blooms almost the entire season, even in this inhospitable environment.

Astragalus canadensis was mostly post-bloom, but a few blossoms were still to be found.

The common Rhus thyphina, blooming now, is one of the most spectacular woody species for fall colour in this area.

Diervilla lonicera grows as a 10-15cm dwarf in this environment, whereas it is normally 60-90cm tall.

And the climbing red-flowered Lonicera dioica with ripe fruit.

[art600]

Kristl

Another wonderful series of photos

[ChrisB]

Yes indeed!

[Kristl Walek]

The beautiful Twisted Stalk (Streptopus roseus) produces juicy red berries at maturity lining the underside of the flowering stalk.

It is most practical to collect these in zip-lock bags (berries are juicy, drippy and messy) or become so quite quickly after collection.

Ensure the bag is zipped up securely and squish the berries through the bag, until they have been broken up and the seed can be seen.

At this point I normally add water to the bag and pour the contents into an appropriate sieve (one with a small enough mesh to not allow the seeds to go through).  I continue to rub the contents gently against the sieve under running water until I am confident that most of the seed is clear of its berries.

Then the works is put into a large bowl, filled with water and, in most cases, the seed will sink and the chaff float. Skim off the chaff (I use another sieve to do this) and you are left with beautiful, clean seed.

As a last step, I *always* wash seed in berries with dish detergent (and with a weak bleach solution, if the seed has an aril). All seed contained in fruit or berries is believed to have a germination inhibitor contained IN THE FRUIT, and thus, washing the seed helps to remove the inhibitor.

In the case of Streptopus, the seed is now moist-packed. If the particular seed is intended to be dry stored, there is the additional step of placing the washed seed on trays, allowing them to dry, and then storing them in paper seed envelopes.


 

[Paul T]

Kristl,

I haven't seen Streptopus roseus before, but it looks lovely.  Is it a relative of Polygonatum?  Very reminiscent of those, only such a nice pink.  Very pretty.  Great to see the process. 

[Kristl Walek]

Yes, Paul, very closely related to Polygonatum. The characteristic zig-zag or kinked stalk (which you can see in the picture with the seed) is the obvious way you know you have a Streptopus.

[Paul T]

Must keep an eye out for it, or else check our quarantine database and see if I can bring in seeds.  Of course, putting an order in to you as I've said before would be a costly affair by the time I had ordered everything I wanted.