Flowers in May.... in the middle of the trail

 

Came across this interesting plant.   It is a vine like fern, growing on the ground but with remarkable 'flowers'.

Cathedral of Gums

There is a wonderful spot, far from our fence, of a 'sunken' 'seep' of wet land. There is no stream. No spring. Simply the hollow of a bowl, with ridges of wood around it. A small clearing is created by the wet soil. Grasses grow, a bit of shrub, and a water filled hollow created by the feral hogs. What is striking is that the clearing is surrounded by sweet gum trees. These trees have a softer, bright yellow green foliage that casts a particular light. I tried to capture that this morning.

Woody Vines crawl up tree

Within our wood are many variety of vines.   Amazing to me is the strength and mass of these creatures.  These vines are large, woody structures with their own 'bark'.   They extend upwards into the canopy of the tree - often creating an interconnecting system of 'cable' like webbing.   These webs connect many trees.   In the extreme they are able to choke a tree - not due to constriction of trunk, but from sunlight - as the 'new' canopy of vine foliage (somewhere on top) steals all the light. 

How do these vines work there way up?   Do they grow with the tree?  From the breadth of their 'trunks' my suspicion is they are years old - ? as old as the tree they hold onto? 

Is there a resource for these vines - names, species, unique characteristics?

Fields .. wild flowers settling in

Looking east to the hills.

May 2008.

The Plant - What is it?

This plant comes up on the forest floor in early spring -- March / April in East Texas.

The flower of the plant is in an interesting position -- under the broad leaf that is the 'top' of the plant.

The plant grows in a large colony -- the effect is that the plant is a confluent floor to its area in the forest. It seems to like shade.... We have not seen it in open spaces.

What is this thing? ?Other characteristics of it?

Spring

There is a crispness in the air, clean and washed, as the green of spring stretches for the sun.

This blog focuses on days walking in an East Texas wood.

Each walk represents a renewal, but surprisingly also is an intellectual quest. The outdoors has long appealed to me, but I find my walks raise more questions than I know.