The following is an article written by Jeanne Jackson for her blog Mendonoma Sightings where she documents the wildlife, the land, and the waters of our coast.
Another unusual plant appeared recently, one I have never seen before. It’s Pyrola aphylla and has a rather silly common name of Leafless Wintergreen. It’s blooming on the forest floor now. Craig Tooley came by several weeks ago and photographed the plants, which were just barely beginning to bloom. Craig’s close-up of the bottom of the cluster shows several new shoots coming up and extremely small leaves.
More recently Mary Sue Ittner and Amy Ruegg, along with others, came over to see them too. You can see by Mary Sue’s photo that most of the blossoms have opened up.
And here’s Amy’s closeup of the beautiful flowers. Pyrola aphylla are perennial herbs and native to California.
For me, the amazing thing is, I’ve never seen them on Rick’s and my land before, and we’ve been here over 27 years. What a welcome surprise!
Thanks to Craig, Mary Sue, and Amy for allowing me to share their photos with you here.
Another foggy, cool day near the coast!
How Can You Support the Efforts of Mendonoma Sightings?
- Buy Jeanne Jackson’s book Mendonoma Sightings Throughout the Year here. The 270-page, full-color documentation of our coast’s beauty would make for a great gift or coffee table conversation piece.
- Jeanne Jackson has also written two children’s books: Sunny Loves Spring on the California Coast and Sunny Loves Summer on the California Coast. These playful children’s books were written to instill within children a love of nature. Jackson will be publishing the other two seasons this year. Those books can be purchased at http://sunnylovesnature.com/
- Check out Craig Tooley’s incredible photography of our coastline here. Buy some prints of his photos, get them framed, and bring the Mendonoma coast home.
- “Follow” and “Like” the Mendonoma Sightings Throughout the Year Facebook page for direct access to Jackson’s dispatches of life on Mendonoma.
- If you have your own Mendonoma Sighting, contact Jeanne Jackson at mendonomasightings@gmail.com to submit your narrative and photograph so she can document the experience.
That close up picture shows it absolutely covered in aphids!!