Threadleaf groundsel (Senecio flaccidus var. flaccidus) is a pretty native shrub… grey foliage and yellow flowers! The green leaf variety, S. flaccidus var. monoensis, is quite pretty as well… green foliage and yellow flowers! We find that variety growing in the desert and low hills around Fort Bowie National Historic Site. I meant to mention in this ramble that old range plant books and even in some floras, it’s noted that this plant is quite poisonous to cattle or horses. This species of groundsel or ragwort (great name) is all over the range and you gotta wonder if the poisoning…

The botanical name for the southwest white pine of this episode is Pinus strobiformis. I read that specific epithet stobiformis comes from the Greek for twisted, referring to the cone. Okay, that could be, but listen, Linnaeus named the eastern white pine Pinus strobus and strobus is from a Latin word for a pine with aromatic resin. Sooo, I think Sargent (not Englemann, cause Sargent says so) named the southwest white pine strobiformis meaning it is in the form of the eastern white pine. That’s my theory and I’m sticking to it. Feeling frisky! The photos are mine. Look at…

Hummingbird trumpet (Epilobium canum) kicks into bloom in late summer and early fall and the red flowers are spectacular! Until then it sits around being ignored…it’s not like the foliage is anything to write home about. And, in the nursery trade the plants are notorious brittle. I would always put on extra plants when loading a truck, because guaranteed, several plants would have broken stems by the time they were unloaded. Well darn, it blooms late and the stems break…I know, I know, but it’s okay, cause it’s a wonderful plant. You need one or two in your personal habitat.…

There are a dozen species of Melampodium and I wonder which one Linnaeus was looking at when he honored Melampus with the genus name. And, I wonder when the genus name started being misinterpreted to mean blackfoot and not honoring the mythological soothsayer. Anyway, another cool thing about Melampus, besides him being a legendary soothsayer was that he was “reputed to understand the speech of all creatures.” My kind of guy…er, god. So, a fun discovery for me in an old paperback booklet of plant names. Lemme see…oh, if you are interested in other plants named from Greco-Roman mythology (not…

I’ll let you know how this all goes. I have many acorns to plant, but I like growing little oaks and we’ve done this before. A greenhouse full of oak seedlings sounds like fun. Hey, maybe next year I’ll start going back to farmers markets! It could happen, right? And, one last thing; I don’t think we have ever gathered acorns without a wonderful encounter with some wildlife. Bears, deer, turkeys, javelinas, porcupines, jays, pigeons, woodpeckers, caterpillars. Between us, Marian and I have some great oak and wildlife stories Hang out by an oak (acorns or not) and you will…

I learned that there are twenty-six species of milkweed longhorn beetles (Tetraopes spp.) and up to fifteen of those are in the US. I found references to three species where Ms. Mesquitey and I were traipsing around in the Chiricahua Mountains. The beetle I saw and photographed on Lemmon’s milkweed (Asclepias lemmonii) is Tetraopes femoratus or the red femured milkweed borer…cute red thighs on their beetle legs. Oh, the color of this beetle, red with some black spots gives you a chance to use the word aposematic, meaning; inedible or yech! And, I’m pretty excited about the fact that this…

Santa Rita Acacia or Mariosousa millefolia  is found in the borderlands of Arizona and Sonora between 3,000 and 5,000 ft. Hey,  two different countries share this species! Well, that’s the way it is with all the flora and fauna of the borderlands. Yay!   The photo of foliage and the green seed pods is by Sue Carnahan. Thank you! And, the flower pic and the dry pods and seed photos are mine.

This is a repetey that I really like. It’s a reminiscence sparked by some photos taken over 60 years ago. My father took the black and white photos of me and Cricky. I can’t remember him ever being without a camera. Thanks dad, I love these. I only wish you were around so I could tell you. The color photo is mine of our daughters Katy and Sarah in the Gila National Forest where we used to camp in the summer. Kids and nature, right? Thanks to Lucretia for the friendship so many years ago and to Ms. Mesquitey for…

It’s a little bit of a leap from talking about a plant in the aster family to talking about Senna in the pea family. It’s the way my mind was working at the time I guess. Senna species are found around the world. If you were to purchase the herb senna in a store or online it would probably be derived from Senna acutifolia, native to Sudan, Egypt and cultivated in parts of India. Our native sennas are also medicinal, though the strength may vary from species to species. Writing about slenderpod senna (or slimpod senna, but always Senna hirstua…

This episode is a very short list of near life experiences…I spared you, but suspect you have a pretty good…