Saturday, February 22, 2014

Lupines, Trash and a Sun Snake


I stopped by this morning to check on the lupines, retrieve my flags and pick up a little trash.
I found some beer bottle pieces and other debris, discovered about half a dozen lupine seedlings.
Interestingly, some are sprouting in the middle of dense patches of Natal grass, which seems surprising.
On the way to check on the volunteer lupine areas--nothing new there, but it doesn't hurt to check--I found a
Black Racer coiled in the sun in an opening near the trail. I took a quick photo and let the snake resume its basking.

Sunday, February 9, 2014

Lupine Are Coming Up All Overl

I stopped by today to check on the progress of the Scrub Lupine sprouting in the original planting area.
I wasn't disappointed.
I found several more sprouts. I have found 35 new sprouts in addition to what my friends at Bok Tower, who did the initial survey, came up with.
I found more seedlings outside of the expected area, leading me to wonder how do the seeds spread?
I have been told they are ejected some distance, but it seems there is another factor at work,.
I have seen the same thing in my yard with the neighbor's Orchid Tree (Bauhinia). It is known to eject seeds, but I find sprouts 40 feet away.
I'm left to wonder whether it's wildlife or humans (carrying seeds a short distance on the soles of our  .shoes or both.


Sunday, February 2, 2014

Innocence, Lupines & Trash

I stopped by the preserve today twice to weed and to check on progress of Scrub Lupine seedlings. I only visited the older site and the volunteer sites. I found additional seedlings following the recent winter rains. The challenge will be how many survive the spring drought.

Mushrooms are emerging now in scrub.


Also Innocence (Houstponia precumbens) is blooming now, providing a little color to the landscape.

I found scattered trash that was brought up by the recent rain. I also found a new area where trash was buried. I'll dig it up later.