Daily Archives: January 6, 2015

It snowed today!

I love snow. I had to enjoy viewing it from the windows at work all day, then, just before sunset I was able to get outside for a few photos.

What a beautiful snowfall, outlining all the trees and making it seem possible to see far into the forest and look for bird nests.

I found plenty of “bird’s nests” of Queen Anne’s Lace (Daucus carota). The nicely snow-capped dried flower heads reminded me of cotton bolls, the fluffy white heads of cotton plants. Neither plant is native to South Jersey, but I do enjoy the pretty white flowers of Queen Anne’s Lace in summer. Also called wild carrot, it is edible, and nutritious. But be careful, it closely resembles Poison Hemlock!

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If you look closer at the of the dried flower, you can see the seeds which are covered in hooked spines. One flower umbel can produce 3,000 seeds.

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seed

Queen Anne’s Lace seed (David Wagner, Eugene Weekly)

London plane tree; reminds me of a paint-by-number I had as a kid.

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London Plane Tree (Platanus × acerifolia)

~Elizabeth