NZ field trips March 2007

[Doreen Mear]

Just want to finish off (it is after midnight, after all) by saying a big hello to all the Cheesemanites, it was great to meet the ones I didn't already know and put faces to names. I had a birthday (ending in a Big '0') on the Saturday, so a special hello and thanks to Ann and Dolina and their co-conspirators who really pushed the boat out, making it a very special surprise celebration for me. A big thank you, Ann, and the cake was delicious, Dolina, and I never even noticed you'd had to repair the icing after travelling up those twisty hairpin bends! Good place to stay, yummy food, superb weather, special plants and great company ... when's the next trip?!

[Maggi Young]

Doreen what wonderful pictures! Thank you! Amazing a woman of only thirty can be such an accomplished photographer and hiker!!
How delightful to celebrate your birthday among friends and with such a great trip. So glad that the SRGC cake tradition is enjoyed by other NZAGS, too!!

[John Forrest]

Super pictures Doreen. I enjoyed the armchair trip.

[hadacekf]

Beautiful plants and photographs, enjoyed them, many thanks.

[Luc Gilgemyn]

Brilliant Doreen - thanks a million for letting us participate in this small "walk"...

[Lesley Cox]

Great to have you back Doreen, and about time too. Where have you been all this time?

Wonderful pictures of super plants. Obviously a great time was had by all. Who among them up there lurks here, do you know? I want to contact some of them privately.

[Paddy Tobin]

Doreen,

What a delight to have another New Zealander posting these wonderful photographs. I have been enjoying Dave's, David's, Lesley's and Fermi's over the past while and am delighted to have one more send these great images northwards. It really is a thrill to view these.

Looking forward to more!

Paddy

[Doreen Mear]

Thank you all (but I have to say, Maggi, it's a v-e-r-y long time since I was 30!) I recently made a wonderful discovery with this camera, the voice memo. Now I can speak the plant's name into the camera and play it back later, saves fishing around for pen and paper, but you do get some funny looks walking around reciting plant names to yourself!

Great to have you back Doreen, and about time too. Where have you been all this time?

Wonderful pictures of super plants. Obviously a great time was had by all. Who among them up there lurks here, do you know? I want to contact some of them privately.

Lesley, where have I been? Well, gardening, mowing the lawns, repotting bulbs, sowing seeds, collecting and cleaning seeds for the seedexes, and tripping about, in between cooking, cleaning and keeping body and soul together - might as well wear away as rust away! I've hardly even done any lurking on the Forum lately, but I dare say I'll get back into the fold now the nights are drawing in, the clocks will be going back shortly, and processing photos is a good job for winter's evenings.
Couldn't really say who else is looking in regularly - maybe like me they're all out all hours working in their gardens too! - so sorry I can't be of much help there. Word seems to get around by some sort of osmosis, but maybe a note in the Trillium or Frit Group newsletters would put you in touch?

 

[t00lie]

I have a reply from D.O.C. regarding the questionable Ourisia.I'm told it is most likely to be O.remotifolia, (described in 1984).

It should have 3 lines of hairs in the corolla throat--unfortunately none of my pics show that area of the plant in fine detail so i guess i'll have to go hunting for it tomorrow week.

Blow!!I was just getting used to the name Fermi had suggested for it.

Doreen --nice pics ,especially the shot of the Haastia with the Hebe and snow ridge in the background.

Cheers Dave.

[David Lyttle]

Dave,

Ourisia remotifolia would seem a good possibility. I considered it but the leaves did not seem sufficently remote in the photo. I think you would need a hand lens and fresh material to see the hairs in the corolla throat - I looked at some of my pictures of Ourisia sessiliflora which also has hairs in the corolla throat and it is not possible to see them on photos. Making identifications in the field can be fairly challenging at times. We were looking at Dracophyllum sp on Maungatua on Saturday. Alan Mark said  D longiflium, D politum and D. prostratum were all present there. However there are a large number of plants that do not fit into any of the three species and he was not willing to assign a name to any of these. One can always say they are hybrids which is not necessarily the case with everything one has difficulty identifying.

[Paddy Tobin]

Doreen,

I have to agree completely with your preferences. In the northern hemisphere at present we still have our early nights, gardening to 7p.m. is as late as it is possible and so there is some time for the internet. However, in the summer with the longer evenings who wants to be in front of a computer when the weather and light permits gardening outside.

Good find, Dave. Looking forward to new photographs when you visit again.

Paddy

[David Lyttle]

The following picture were taken on Saturday on an Otago Botanical Society field trip to the Maungatua Range the easternmost range of Otago block mountains. Summit is 897 metres.

First picture is a view of Saddle Hill looking across the Taieri Plain. The township of Mosgiel is barely visible centre left.

Second picture is a bog on the summit plateau.  The white colour is due to the lichen Thamnolia vermicularis. The surrounding vegetation is mixed tussock grassland/ subalpine scrub. The dominant tussock species is Chionochloa rigida. The dominant shrub in the picture is Dracophyllum longifolium.

Two more picture of tarns on the summit plateau.

Now for some plants. The cushion celmisia, Celmisia argentea. It is in many respects similar to Celmisia sessiliflora but is smaller. It is generally found growing in bogs.

Next, the large species Celmisia semicordata var aurigans showing golden tomentum on the  upper surface of the leaf. Growing alongside is a grey form of the same species.

The subalpine bog orchid Lyperanthus antarcticus still flowering.

The little bog epacarid Cyathodes pumila. The superficially similar Pentachondra pumila was also present as was the larger Cyathodes empetrifolia.

Last a group of Gentiana patula.The gentians were in full flower. An annual species, Gentiana grisebachii, is also present.

It was hot and sunny all day not the best conditions for photography but very enjoyable. Not a lot is still flowering. The large celmisias are being destroyed by wild pigs who are digging them up to eat the roots. The young men of New Zealand these days apparently find computer games more entertaining than pig hunting.

[Paddy Tobin]

David,

The general landscape photographs continue to enthrall me. In the general views it seems that there should be nothing growing there but the close up photographs reveal a wealth of treasures. It just amazes me each time you post these photographs. It starts of so unpromising and then reveals beauty.

Many thanks for the photographs.

The Lyperanthus antarcticus is very similar to a plant I am growing at home, described to me when I was given it as a terrestial orchid from Australia.  Must take a photograph and post for your comments.

Paddy

[John Forrest]

David, thanks for taking us on another jaunt in the muntains. Paddy is right about you having the botanists eye, pickng out the lttle beauies from what looks to be an unpromising background. I particularly love the Celmisia semicordata var aurigans with its beautiful golden sheen. I have admired it on the show bench.

[Lesley Cox]

If anyone is interested, in David's top picture here, of Saddle Hill, the double hill on the left is Saddle Hill and the blip or hump on the right is Scroggs Hill. I live in the middle of the dip between the two. You can see why I live in a very healthy atmosphere with every wind that blows, either from the north and west or over the hill from the sea, to the east and south. Great views though.