High summer means the bluff is drying out. Most of the flowering plants have gone to seed. Within the browning grasses, the flowers are few, and mostly yellow and white.
The Daily Bucket is a regular feature of the Backyard Science group. It is a place to note any observations you have made of the world around you. Rain, sun, wind...insects, birds, flowers...meteorites, rocks...seasonal changes...all are worthy additions to the bucket. Please let us know what is going on around you in a comment. Include, as close as is comfortable for you, where you are located. Each note is a record that we can refer to in the future as we try to understand the patterns that are quietly unwinding around us.
The yellow is gumweed (Grindelia integrifolia) a gooey sticky prickly-fruited plant. Gumweed flowers all summer long and thrives in dry sunny areas.
The white is Yarrow, Achillea millefolium, also a long summer bloomer. Yarrow is native and very widespread globally. It has been used medicinally for millenia; its scientific name is derived from its reported use as a styptic...Achilles was said to use it to stop bleeding among his soldiers. It is also used as an astringent, anti-inflammatory and antiseptic, as well as for its aroma. The list of its uses, currently and historically, is extensive (en.m.wikipedia.org/...).
Because gumweed and yarrow continue blooming through the summer after most wildflowers have gone to seed, they are extremely valuable to insects. The flowers on the bluff were buzzing.
Yellowjackets are unusually abundant and active for July — bleh. I walked past an active underground nest.
A few colors stood out amidst the brown and yellow and white. A single purple Harvest Brodeia startled me, and a few of these tiny pink flowers with succulent leaves.
In the rocks by the water the purpling foliage of Seaside Plantain (Plantago maritima) brightens the landscape. It has entirely gone to seed. Like yarrow, this species is found across the world, with different subspecies in Europe, North and South America.
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A brief summer update on the rocky bluff. I’ll be away for a while today out on the water there — we’re taking the boat up to the marina at the north end of the island shortly to get hoisted out and worked on. We have a busy few days cleaning and resurfacing.
All nature observations welcome in the bucket. What are you seeing in your natural neighborhood today?
"SPOTLIGHT ON GREEN NEWS & VIEWS" IS POSTED EVERY SATURDAY AT 5:00 PM PACIFIC TIME AND WEDNESDAY AT 3:30 ON THE DAILY KOS FRONT PAGE. IT'S A GREAT WAY TO CATCH UP ON DIARIES YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED. BE SURE TO RECOMMEND AND COMMENT IN THE DIARY. |