Mystery Mushroom

Leucocoprinus birnbaumii (?)

You may have had this experience.  You have a plant, large or small, summer comes, its warm, the thing is being watered well, and suddenly there are neon yellow mushrooms cohabitating with your plant.

"What do I do?!?" you think, and "where did I go wrong?"  Nothing* and nowhere.

If you have a small child or dog with compulsive hand to mouth syndrome (eats whatever it touches), you might remove the mushrooms, the species is not edible.  But otherwise, they harm no one, certainly not your plant.  Though some fungi are parasitic or pathogenic, in general fungi of the mushroom type are nothing more than an indication of the presence of decaying organic matter.  In this case, potting soil.  Many fungi are even beneficial.  To learn more about that, read up on mycorrhizae. 

This, however, is just a mushroom.  I believe the species is Leucocoprinus birnbaumii.  They get into the soil from other plants, spores in greenhouses and garden centers, and in potting soil (or potting soil components if you mix your own like I do) that is not fully sterilized.  You can remove the mushrooms, but these are only fruiting bodies, the bulk of the organism is living quietly beneath the surface in a vast network of fine mycelia.  I suggest you just enjoy their obnoxiously yellow presence for the few days they are present.

If anyone is interested, according to The Rainbow Beneath My Feet by Arleen and Alan Bessette,  the species produces beige to yellowish brown dye depending on mordant.  Bummer, I really hoped it would be sunshine yellow.

In Bloom: Albizia julibrissin

All over Maryland Albizia julibrissin trees have been in bloom for the past few weeks. These are also known as Mimosa or Silk Trees, though the former more properly belongs to a related genus to which the diminutive Mimosa pudica (sensitive plant) belongs. I've you've seen those, you'll recognize the family resemblance.  The plant in the photo is a volunteer, which admittedly came up a little close to the house, but they don't get that big and I like them so it stays.   I have carefully protected this thing from 'helping hands', sloppy lawnmowing, and grazing horses since it was a wee, weedy sprout.  Finally it has bloomed.  I am quite pleased with its depth of color.

This species is found in much of the Eastern and Southern ranges of the US, but it is not native.  It is actually introduced and naturalized, and also considered a weedy, invasive pest in certain areas, notably Florida and Tennessee, according to the USDA PLANTS Profile.  Such is often the lot of plants in the pea family.

Yes, this is actually in the pea family.  Family resemblance is more obvious in the structure of the foliage and the bean-like seed pods, less so the flowers due to lack of petals.  Interestingly, however, if you look closely at that flower you'll notice that each of those pink filaments is tipped with yellow.  Those are stamens.

I understand the species is highly susceptible to Fusarium wilt, and so can be short lived in the Northeast as a result.  My mother used to tell me there were many of these trees 30-40 years ago in the DC area with fantastic color.  Then they almost all died out, tragically leaving only the ones with pale color.  Well, fortunately, they're weedy, and so are making an excellent comeback.  They sure seem to be all over the place now.

Ironweed and Lobelias

How often do you take time to look at the "weeds"? Most likely, if you were to pass a patch of Lobelia cardinalis (Cardinal Flower) (left) you would take notice. They are shockingly red, and in a colony they are exceptionally striking. There's almost no way you wouldn't notice them. But oddly, before this patch I don't think I've seen live ones before - only photos. According to the USDA Plants profile, the plant is native to wetlands across most of the US and Canada. It is only listed as under watch in a few states, so perhaps I have just not ever been at the right place at the right time. This particular stand, in partial shade in a mildly swampy, low lying area right next to the road, was quite breathtaking. They are attractive to hummingbirds, and an interesting variety of uses recorded in the Native American Ethnobotany Database.

Nestled in with the Lobelia were a few plants of Ironweed (left). This is another very common genus throughout the USA and Canada. Some species have restricted range. Based on the Plants Profile maps, I think it is most likely Vernonia noveboracensis, but could also be gigantea. Either way, I think most folks would consider this member of the aster family a weed, but it is actually quite attractive with its royal purple color and compliment of butterflies. Once again, the species (assuming correct identification) has several medicinal uses listed.

Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens

My sister and I recently visited the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Richmond, VA. According to the garden's website, the place has a slightly unusual history. The property started as a club, progressed to a convalescent home then eventually a private residence, from where it passed by will to the city's possession in 1968, with the stipulation for it to be developed into a botanical gardens. In 1981 this was finally realized. (see LGBG website for more details)

All that's lovely, but what does it mean? The garden and its collection is young and still in development. They have, however, done quite a nice job with the modest grounds. I would also point out, they have a lovely library on premises, which is open to the public and full of books and periodicals on plants, gardening, and birds. Not to mention a fantastic place to escape from the heat. Richmond might as well be Savannah for the weather they get there.

But I digress. Here are some highlights of their collection.

One of the first areas you pass through in the garden is an herb garden display, showcasing some well known as well as less known plants of medicinal interest. Washington Hawthorn (Crataegus phaenopyrum) for example, at left. Hawthorn species are native to the United States, and the berries were/are used to prepare a heart tonic, but due to my lack of experience in the matter I couldn't tell you if all species are used or only certain ones. There are ~200 species. Washington Hawthorn, despite what the name suggests, does not originate from the Pacific Northwest. According to the USDA PLANTS profile, this species is found all over the Eastern half of North America, from Florida into Canada.

They do have a modest conservatory, with a few orchids of mainly rather ordinary selections from the view of an enthusiast. Enough, though, to be educational to the novice, however. I thought this Paph. Lynleigh Koopowitz was rather attractive.

While they may have little in terms of unusual orchid species, they did, however have this nicely executed glass sculpture of a 'ghost orchid' (Dendrophylax lindenii, a.k.a. Polyrrhiza lindenii). This endangered leafless species is native to the Southwestern reaches of Florida. The plants have been under propagation for several years now, and laboratory-propagated stock are often found for sale on eBay. If you by one, please make sure it is laboratory-propagated.

There is a picturesque pavilion, no doubt frequently rented for weddings, surrounded by a variety of roses in varietal blocks. The most unusual to me was this Polyantha rose, 'Orange Morsdag'. I don't recall reading about Polyantha roses before, but if this one is certainly worth note with its adorable multitude of blossoms reminiscent of the Old English style. Googling it I find the shape of flowers varies among Polyantha roses, though floriferous nature and compact size is common, and they vary in their hardiness. Investigate varieties of interest before planting them in your landscape.

There were many other things of interest in the garden, including a nice variety of Japanese Maples and other trees, carnivorous plants, and woodland perennials. Overall, worth the visit when you're in the Richmond area.

Flora and Fauna in Covington, VA

This past weekend we went to visit with family in Covington, VA. We spent most of a day at Roaring Run park, some of which found us skittering up the semi-billy-goat trail along the creek up to the falls. We saw lots of cool stuff! For example, this Goodyera pubescens. We saw several colonies of the little guys, some in bloom, some not. Isn't it just adorable? I was very excited to see them. They were growing mostly on the 'up' side of the path, 10 - 20 feet uphill of the water line in heavy leaf litter and deep shade. I'm also curious about the little thing living with it that has the lily pad shaped leaves. These also in some places had tall thin spikes with little white flowers.

Incidentally, I recently came across the website for the Connecticut Botanical Society. I'm already finding it a wonderful resource for identifying wildflowers and passive plant browsing.

We were also fortunate enough to see several small patches of Monotropa uniflora, or Indian Pipe herb, a very rare parasitic plant. This wiki has a pretty good discussion of the species and its peculiarities. I understand the plant is used in herbal medicine, but I don't know for what, and given its rarity I would venture it isn't used very often. I have only ever seen this plant in the Covington area, and the last time I saw it was probably 20 years ago when my aunt first pointed it out to me.

We also saw a few colonies of this little lithophytic fern, assicated with nice moss colonies. I think it might be Pleopeltis polypodioides (Resurrection Fern), but I sort of remember the fronds on that species being thicker (adaxial to abaxial) than what we saw on this plant, so I'm not sure about the identification.

I would really like to know what this is but I'm not even sure where to start - fern, mossy thing, flowering plant? I saw several individual colonies, generally round in shape, hugging bare rock no more than 1 or 2 feet above water level in areas where they would get frequent spray and possibly occasional flooding. The tissue was very crocodilian in texture and each fish tail was perhaps an inch wide. Please leave a comment if you know what this is!


....I don't know what these are either. Left is a little creeping plant with leaves about 2-3 inches long, very leathery, and fairly spaced out on the rhizome. They were in the standard leaf litter or on somewhat bare clay, like this one. It looks fern-ish to me. On the right is a small, glossy plant with architectural trefoil leaves. Diameter of each leaf was approximately equal to a standard peanut butter cup. I only saw one of these.

Cool bugs!!



Cool fungus!











"Bob Ross Moment" Finale