2016 Catch Up, March and April

Just didn’t have time to keep up with blog entries in 2016. To catch up on the entries I missed in 2016, I am putting together 4 separate entries that will cover some of the plants and other odds and ends I took photos of during my field work in 2016.

Back in northern West Virginia for field work during early March 2016, and the forested hillslopes were just beginning to green up. Exploring the forested stream valleys in northern West Virginia, one can only notice the plantain leaved sedge or seersucker sedge (Carex plantaginea) scattered throughout the mesic slopes.



Carex plantaginea growing along a mesic forested slope

The plantain leaved sedge is a very common sedge here in northern West Virginia, and is fairly easy to identify. It’s one of the first sedges to bloom in early spring and belongs to an ‘informal grouping of sedges’ that have leaf blades usually greater than 20 millimeters wide. When in bloom, one will probably notice the purple tinged bracts of the male spikes first, then looking closer you notice the dark red purple leaf bases.

Carex plantaginea in flower

Some other 'big leaved sedges' that grow almost within the same  habitat as plantain leaved sedge are Carex albursina, Carex laxiflora, Carex platyphylla and even Cymophyllus fraserianus. The plantain leaved sedge is obviously a 'harbinger of spring' in this area!

Another ‘harbinger of spring’ common in northern West Virginia, and here in southwestern Pennsylvania, is purple cress (Cardamine douglassii). A less common name for this plant is limestone bittercress because it is usually found growing near springs or streams in areas of calcareous substrates.



Cardamine douglassii



One look alike species of purple cress is spring cress (Cardamine bulbosa). One way to distinguish the two is purple cress has a hairy stem and spring cress has a glabrous stem. And if you dig the plant, you may notice that spring cress has a ‘bulbous’ root system and purple cress has a more or less fibrous root system.

In April of 2016 I conducted field work in Washington County Virginia within the Valley and Ridge Province. The geology within this area contains sedimentary rocks such as limestone, dolomite and shale which provides for some interesting geological features. The photo below was taken in a pasture field, and shows the karst terrain that is formed in areas containing limestone bedrock which has been dissolved over many years from surface water. 

Karst formation

During spring I am always be photo happy. After a long winter of snapping photos of mostly dull brown and gray colored subjects, the new growth of spring always catches my eye and encourages me to take another photo. One example of a plant that caught this past spring by its fresh green color is the annual bluegrass (Poa annua).

Annual Bluegrass

Annual bluegrass is probably one of the best grass species to begin learning the poaceae family characteristics. Though usually a very small plant in stature some individuals found in the spring can be quit larger such as the one in the photo above. For western PA Poa species, once you narrow an unknown plant down to the genus Poa, check for cob webby hairs at the base of the lemma and pubescence along the lemma nerves only. If you got these 2 characteristics of the floret in a smaller sized grass, then you possibly have annual bluegrass. As always though, get a second opinion!

"Until Next Time, Keep Botanizing!"