18 April 2020:
On my solitary walks during the COVID-19 shutdown I find more and more beauty as Spring comes to Pittsburgh. Here are a few of the flowers and trees that bloomed this week. See the captions for species, location and date.
Frost damage: Yellow buckeyes are some of the earliest trees to leaf out but they pay a price if the temperature falls below freezing as it did this week. The early leaves are wilted on this yellow buckeye in Schenley Park.
And finally, a mystery flower in a waste place in Schenley Park. I think it’s an alien. Can you tell me what it is? (Newcomb’s: 4 petals with alternate, toothed leaves). ANSWER: Thanks to Dianne Machesney. This is Field Pennycress and yes it’s an alien.
(photos by Kate St. John)
iNat is suggesting that it is a member of the penny cress family.
Field Pennycress It is an alien.
I enjoyed the pictures of the flowers, although I have no idea what the unknown is. However, you asked us to let you know about activity at Pitt. About 9:33am 2020-04-18, I checked the webcam. A female (based on size) was in the scrape, in the bowing pose, very slowly chee-upping. She then flew to the perch and then up on top of the scrape roof. The vocalizations became much faster, and it sounded like there were two birds up there. I suspect the female was Morela, although I’m not sure – to me, the coloration looked white rather than apricot.
where are the bluebells in Schenley?
Look at the hillside behind and below the Visitors Center. They are near the wall that supports the cobblestone road.
Hmm… I was thinking Wild Leek (Allium tricoccum)
John, here’s a photo of a wild leek flower: https://images.app.goo.gl/Uh9iJGwxUAPcoFzKA
Hi Kate, I love the blog – thank you. I’m a birder and wildlife enthusiast from the UK who’s recently moved to Pittsburgh. Is there a particular field guide you’d recommend for getting to know the plants of the region? I’ve been surprised by some of the invasives that are familiar to me from the UK (knotweed, garlic mustard, lesser celandine etc.) but don’t yet have any field guides for US/PA flowers.
Louis, my favorite wildflower guide for eastern North America — Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide — is described at the link below including a link at amazon.com. This guide uses a key system for identifying the flower. Once you get the hang of keying out a plant, it’s very easy: https://www.birdsoutsidemywindow.org/2012/07/08/favorite-wildflower-guide/ [p.s. the cover has changed in the 8 years since I described the book.]
There is a site called Plant I’d and discussion. Send a photo and you get answers