The Mathematical Lives of Plants, by Julie Rehmeyer, is a captivating article from ScienceNews.  Julie is a freelance mathematician and science writer.

I’m not the type of botanist that keeps plants in one place, and everything else in another. Along with the ecologists, I understand that all things are connected and even the littlest change can cause a huge affect, therefore I love this Science Daily article about that exact notion, Foundational Concept of Ecology Tested: Purple Loosestrife Altered Life in Nearby Ponds.

I’m going to group these next three together because they might seem like piddly little local articles by themselves. Together they will conquer plant awareness! Botanist to speak at Scientific Illustration Conference, Roadside Plant Preservation , Plant Blindness.

Pitcher plant uses rain drops to capture prey .  Always thought you understood how pitcher plants planned their attack?  Okay maybe most haven’t thought about that, either way thought about it or not, this will add an unforeseen element. ScienceDaily.

Mice are cute, plants are smarter NPR video!  For the more detailed original article visit the University of Utah site.  A symbiotic relationship between mouse and plant, as long as the mouse is careful.

Besides the hours I spent in nerdy-botany conversations, I also spent a short day at the Chicago Botanic Garden.  The Gardens were one of the few Chicago sites still open, despite having the NATO riots on the other side of town.  I hope I don’t say this every time I write about a garden, but I’m going to say it anyways, I wish I had more time there. By more time I mean if I lived in Chicago I would buy a membership and visit often.  There are endless plants to see, flowers to sniff, trails to walk on, and places to sit and eat a picnic.

On this particular afternoon it was sunny and hot.  It is possible to stay in the shade throughout much of the garden, unfortunately great things led us straight into sunlight, ending in sunburn.  Aside from physical ailments after the garden visit the experience was wholesomely pleasant.

Trying to describe this garden in a paragraph is making me realize that I only have Attention Defecit Disorder when I’m in a garden of this magnitude.  There are so many plants, landscapes and arrangements, and all of my senses are tingling until I’m not sure what to do and I can’t decide what to photograph, or for that matter even remember that I’m carrying a camera around.  So I will let the photos I took speak for themselves:

Photo from http://academic.sun.ac.za/botzoo/bruce/pollinator_adap.htm

The best news in the botanical world!  Don’t think so?  Post a better link in my comments, I would love more articles.

Do Plants Think? This is a lengthy read, but worth it.  The “plants are more than inanimate objects” movement is really catching some headlines lately, starting with Michael Marder’s bit in the New York Times Opinionator in April.

An overview of fascinating pollinator-plant evolution research recently published in the American Journal of Botany: Herbivores select on floral architecture in a South African bird-pollinated plant  .

Meconopsis or Papaver?  Linnaeus’s original identification always seem to match the DNA research.

Kansas plants native grasses and wildflowers along highways, whats next- teaching evolution in the school system?  Seriously though, good job Kansas.

The Arid Land Homesteaders League, any local Tuscon-ites a part of this?

The flora at Labrador Hollow is typical of a high-mountain Adirondack bog, but it isn’t in the Adirondacks, it’s a 30 minute drive south of Syracuse. Bogs are known for their high acidity and moisture, making an ideal habitat for the acid-loving family, Ericaceae.  Plants in this family that most everyone is familiar with: blueberry, rhododendron, and heather.  I encountered a handfull of Ericaeae species in bloom, or fruiting already. Other plants that enjoy this wet environment are dogwoods and sedges, which were prevalent throughout the bog.

Because of the immense humidity, the fragrance of the Rhododendron flowers clung in the air.  Butterflies flittered by stopping only to collect nectar.  The sound of bullfrogs resonated throughout the boardwalk.  My photographs fail to emulate the smells and sounds of Labrador Hollow, although they might convince a few people to visit themselves.

All it really takes is mention that there might be orchids there, and that’s enough for me to attempt a hunt. I have attempted to find orchids twice this year in Syracuse, I haven’t found anything yet but I’m not giving up.

I did find some other beauties fighting for ground amongst the skunk cabbage: 

Web-based resource resolves confusion over plant names, for those times when one source claims a different name than the next unsure of what the correct binomial name of the species you are working with is go to the Taxonomic Name Resolution Service.

Stories in local papers about people gardening are usually boring, and repetitive.  This one isn’t.  A young group of male gardeners are chipping out a business for themselves by getting their neighbors and community into edible landscaping.

Endangered plant hikes seem like a bad idea for the plant, but an excellent way to bring awareness…maybe.  Not sure how I feel about showing people things that are on the brink of extinction.  All that said, I would totally go on the hike.

Plant art: Vietnam war images, photosynthesized.

And the Science Daily Links:

How hidden flower features are crucial for bees

Hawkmoths evaluate nectar potential by humidity emitted from flower

Physics and Botany, a leap in artificial photosynthesis production

Starting off with my local New York news, an exhibit meshing Seneca Ray Stoddard’s historic photography of the Adirondacks with botany is currently on display at the Chapman Historical Museum in Glen Falls. Doug Gruse wrote  about the project on Poststar.com.

Boffins track down invasives of the fynbos.  If you have no idea what that means either, check out the article.  Fynbos is a biome of the Mediterranean with one of the highest levels of biodiversity, currently it is vulnerable to invasive species in all of the kingdoms.

Chelsea Physic Garden: what botany does for us.  An exhibit created by head gardener Nick Bailey will likely keep botanical enthusiasts interested while introducing the importance of plants to minds young and old.

David Attenborough and The Kingdom of Plants.  Interesting article starts by discussing the amazing world of filming plants in 3D and then finishes by taking a weird turn into the problem of over population on our planet.  Thank you David Attenborough for understanding that women who are educated control their bodies therefore controlling our world’s out-of-wack population. All I ask of you Richard Godwin and David Attenborough is to not paint the word feminist as something negative.  Support women, be proud of it, and consider yourself a feminist, it’s not a crime.

Eight-week Medicinal Botany class at Community College $100.  Great price for a lot of knowledge, anyone in the vicinity of Asheville, North Carolina should sign up.

*A reminder: this Friday, May 18 is the first international Fascination of Plants Day.  Many countries are involved and will be hosting events, go to the website to find out more.  Sadly the United States has not actively involved themselves.  Anyone have plans?

It is getting close to lady slipper season.  This past weekend I embarked on a small hunt failing to find anything.  I haven’t given up hope yet, as this article has inspired me to keep looking.  For those interested in Cypripediums, check out this quick video and article.

Love this!  An excellent model for any school, elementary to high school, to teach students about botany, gardening, nutrition, and hands-on skills of maintaining a greenhouse.  Nice job Bridgehampton.

Just discovered Jennifer Frazer’s Blog, The Artful Amoeba on Scientific American, and enjoyed her introduction to fern reproduction.

This week’s edition of The Weekly Botanical will be coming out on Wednesday.