The weather was lovely in Schenley Park last week when I found Joe-pye weed (Eutrochium purpureum) and Jerusalem artichokes (Helianthus tuberosus) in full bloom.
Jerusalem artichoke flower (photo by Kate St. John)
Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara) hasn’t bloomed in five months but the leaves are still growing. Some are now three times the size of a real colt’s foot.
But some plants are not faring so well. This porcelain berry has chlorosis, a condition that makes its leaves turn white. This plant is invasive so I don’t feel so bad.
Variegated leaves on porcelain berry, a sign of chlorosis (photo by Kate St. John)
Get outdoors today before the weather gets hot. It will be in the 90s next week!
Last week in Schenley Park I stopped by the Westinghouse Fountain to see swamp milkweed and a photogenic bumblebee.
My cellphone camera was able to capture it in flight!
As I left the fountain a doe crossed W Circuit Road and walked between parked cars to the woods beyond. A fawn soon followed but jumped back in fear before the cars and stopped in the road. Fortunately there was no traffic. It was joined by a second fawn.
The two approached me (I missed that shot) then turned away …
… and were joined by a second doe.
Eventually they all walked between parked cars and caught up with the first doe.
Schenley Park’s numerous deer aren’t afraid of people but they learn to fear cars at a very young age.
p.s. My cellphone can take nice closeups of bumblebees but fails on deer at a distance.
Last week in the city parks I saw a single fruit and signs of fungus.
In Frick I was surprised to find a pawpaw fruit. I don’t usually see any because the grove of pawpaw trees in Schenley is a clonal clump that rarely produces fruit. This lonely pawpaw will ripen in September.
In Schenley Park tar spot fungus (Rhytisma sp.) is forming on Norway maple leaves as it does every summer. In July the spots are yellowish. By fall they’ll turn black like spots of tar.
American bellflower, Duck Hollow, 13 July 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
This week brought lavender flowers, green fruit and an overabundance of frogs.
I found American bellflower (Campanula americana) blooming along the Duck Hollow trail with some plants reaching six feet tall. My close-up, above, shows how the pistils avoid being fertilized by their own pollen.
American bellflower, Duck Hollow, 13 July 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
Wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa) always has a bad hair day. At Schenley Park a long-legged insect stopped by for a sip (top right of flower).
Wild bergamot, Schenley Park, 12 July 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
In July the unripe fruits of white fringetree (Chionanthus virginicus) are green. This fall they’ll turn dark blue.
Fringetree fruits, Schenley Park, 12 July 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
At Panther Hollow Lake, which is actually the size of a pond, pickerelweed (Pontederia cordata) is blooming …
Pickerelweed, Schenley Park, 16 July 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
… and there’s a serious overabundance of bullfrogs. Here are just a few examples.
Young bullfrogs, Schenley Park, Panther Hollow lake, 17 July 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)Young bullfrog with tail, Panther Hollow lake, 17 July 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)Young bullfrog in a wavelet, Panther Hollow lake, 17 July 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)How many bullfrogs can you count? Panther Hollow Lake, 17 July 2020
Herons don’t nest at Schenley Park but may visit for some easy prey. Where’s a great blue heron when you need one?
Aphids on Helianthus, Schenley Park, 9 July 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
12 July 2020
It’s easy to find insects in July.
Aphids in Schenley Park are expanding from plant to plant along the gravel trails, sucking the juice out of Jerusalem artichokes (Helianthus tuberosus).
Eastern bottlebrush grass, Schenley Park, 8 July 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
11 July 2020
This week I found two bottlebrushes in Schenley Park.
Eastern bottlebrush grass (Elymus hystrix) is a native perennial bunchgrass that grows in partial shade, often at the edge of forests. This one was exactly where we should expect it, glowing in the sun by the Bridle Trail.
Meanwhile the bottlebrush buckeyes (Aesculus parviflora) by Panther Hollow Lake showed off in a last hurrah. They were spectacular from a distance on 9 July but up close the lowest flowers on each spike were faded and brown. Their show is about to end.
Bottlebrush buckeyes at their peak, Schenley Park, 9 July 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
Our grocery store bananas come from Central America but that’s not where they really come from. The two seedless species are from Indomalaya, first cultivated in Papua New Guinea in 10,000 to 6500 BC.
Cultivated St. Johnswort at Westinghouse Fountain, Schenley Park, 3 July 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
There was plenty to see this week in Schenley Park even though the weather was hot.
My best visit was on Thursday morning when my friend Andrea convinced me to come out at 7:30a. I’ve been missing a lot by sitting at my computer until 9am. Best Bird: Louisiana waterthrush! Waterthrushes don’t breed in the park but they stop by in transit before and after breeding.
Best flowers this week include the bright yellow flower (above) near the Westinghouse fountain, a cultivated variety of St. Johnswort (Hypericum).
Teasel (Dipsacus), an invasive alien, has not bloomed yet but the flower buds are visible between the spikes.
Teasel flower buds not yet open, Schenley Park, 2 July 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
Spotted joe pye weed, flower buds in leaf axils, Schenley Park, 26 June 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
This week I found buds and bugs in Schenley Park.
Spotted joe pye weed (Eupatorium maculatum), above, has buds in the leaf axils but when it blooms the showy flowers at the top attract all our attention. This year I’ll have to watch for the side flowers as well.
Enchanters nightshade (Circaea canadensis), below, blooms from the bottom up and has plenty of buds yet to open. The lower buds in the photo are on a different branch.
Enchanters nightshade, Schenley Park 21 June 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
Bugs are quite evident now but they are difficult to photograph because they move(!). Below, this silver-spotted skipper (Epargyreus clarus) appeared to be rubbing its abdomen on the bird dropping. Was it ovipositing?
Silver spotted skipper on a bird dropping, Schenley Park (photo by Kate St. John)
Aphids are not plentiful this year — yet — but it’s only a matter of time. There’s only one winged adult in this photo but the juveniles will grow up, sprout wings, and fly to other Helianthus plants to reproduce. It won’t be long before I think there are too many.
Aphids on Helianthus stem (photo by Kate St. John)
And finally, some bugs are never seen but we know they were there … as this leaf attests.
Insect damage on a leaf. No insect visible (photo by Kate St. John)
Plants are getting interesting as the next flower season begins in Pittsburgh.
Last week I found chickory (Cichorium intybus) and thimbleweed (Anemone virginiana) blooming in the city and a variety of flowers north of town.
Thimbleweed, Duck Hollow, 19 June 2020
On 17 June six friends and I gathered at Wolf Creek Narrows to bird watch and botanize.
I was hoping to find ramps (Allium tricoccum) in full bloom but we were too early to see the balls of flowers that become these unusual starburst seed pods. Note that the leaves in the background are a different plant. Ramps don’t have leaves when they bloom.
Ramps not yet in full bloom, Wolf Creek Narrows, 17 June 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
Partridgeberry, Wolf Creek Narrows, 17 June 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
Indian cucumber root, Wolf Creek Narrows, 17 June 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
Meanwhile, as you examine the flowers, keep your eyes open for bugs. I found this one on golden alexanders in Schenley Park. Is he piercing that flower to suck the juice?
Insect on golden alexanders, Schenley Park, 13 June 2020 (photo by Kate St. John)
