by Jean Larson, with photographs by Bill Mitchell

March 18, 2012

Meeting for Worship in Nature: Benjamin explores the woods.

Meeting for Worship in Nature: offering fresh made biscuits with butter made in First Day school

Lyreleaf Sage (Salvia lyrata) in the meadow west of the back basin.

A primroseleaf (?) violet (Viola primulifolia)

Spicebus Swallowtail (Papilio gtroilus) on Lyreleaf Sage (Salvia lyrata)

Today we had a Meeting for Worship in Nature in the circle of benches south of Temple Shir Shalom.  We could hear the children playing happily, listen to birdsong which inspired one message, and see the children come at the rise of meeting and sample he butter they had made.  After meeting David asked about the trees in the vicinity of the meeting for worship area and I pointed out the Eastern Hophornbeam (Ostrya virginiana), which is in the birch family. It had bloomed earlier in the year with is lovely hanging flower that looks a bit like the hop flower (hops are used in making beer). Benjamin, visiting from Alaska, wandered about in the adjacent grassy meadow following a cloudless sulfur butterfly as it flitted among the lyreleaf sage blossoms (Salvia lyrata) or visited the native geranium plants growing there.
In February the area was blooming with violets.  Bud mowed it after meeting to ready it for parking and to keep it from growing up in trees and shrubs. As we walked from meeting for worship to the social room for lunch, Bill pointed out that the mock orange growing on the fence was blooming.  We examined one of the oak leaf hydrangeas which was putting out fresh leaves to see if the cluster of green at the top was the start of a flower head.

Chicasaw plum (Prunus angustifolia) east of the back basin.Chicasaw plum (Prunus angustifolia) east of the back basin.

Chicasaw plum (Prunus angustifolia) east of the back basin.

White Fringetree (Chionanthus virginicus L.) by the driveway across from the meeting room.

An unknown mushroom, growing on a fallen log.

We admired the new sprinkler system Bud installed at the bottom of the slope in front of the meetinghouse.  He used pvc pipe nestled in by the curb with sprinkler heads poking up at an angle so they spray the whole slope.  On the day he installed it with help from the members of the Meetinghouse, Grounds and Landscaping Committee, the blue-eyed grass was blooming for the first time since it had been planted the previous spring.  A surprising amount of the purple Tampa verbena (a cultivar of Tampa mock vervain Glandularia tampensis or Rose mock vervain Glandularia canadensis) has come back on the upper slope with gay flowers brightening the slope.  In other parts the Mimosa strigliossa is moving in along with fogfruit (Lippia nodiflora). After lunch and meeting birthday cake (Connie read from the March 16, 1951 inagural minutes as part of our celebration of 61 years), Bill and I went for a walk in the woods.  He pointed out the green dragon (Arisaema dracontium) near the meeting for worship in nature area, and we realized that there was a new one sprouting whose leaves were still furled up in thin cylinders.  It clearly has a flower. A welcome rain scattered beverage containers and a plastic wrapped paper down the ditch that first skirts the Shir Shalom property. It was nice to see that it had not progressed past the ditch where it was easy to pick up.  We wandered in and around the meeting property, observing where the water washed leaves to the sides of channels whose bottoms were white sand.  Since it was the day after the St. Paddy’s Day dinner, I was reminded of shamrocks by the three-part leaves of the wood sorrel.  Ours have purple/pink flowers so are non-native members of the Oxalidaceae family, since the native wood sorrels have yellow flowers.  Another member of this family is star fruit or carambola (Averrhoa carabola).  Bill’s eye was caught by some mushrooms growing on a log. Later we wandered into the pond area where Bill noted that the taro has come up, and I found a plant that reminded me of the carrot family (Apiaceae, formlerly Umbelliferae).  When I tried to take a sample with flowers I ended up with the whole plant.  My best guess is that it is spreading chervil (Chaerophyllum procumbens).  It is related to the cooking herb chervil which apparently is used to refer to both Anthriscus cerefolium and Chaerophyllum bulbosum, native to southern Russia, Eastern Asia and the Balkans.  Note that the Apiaceae family contains poisons like poison hemlock and water hemlock, so one does not casually sample leaves or roots from plants that look like parsley, dill, carrots, anise, fennel, Queen Anne’s Lace. Back in the vicinity of the meetinghouse, Gary checked to see if the cassia (Senna pendula) he planted was sprouting and found a tiny leaf letting him know it was alive. It is surrounded by native Gaura flowers which have prospered over the winter, but are not very showy.  The fringe tree (Chionanthus virginicus) nearby had flowers this year, the first since it was planted with flowers about two years ago.  To the west of the meeting for worship room, Bill pointed out the clusters of white flowers on the white wild indigo (Baptisia alba). The Camilla on the same slope donated by Bart has red flowers on it.  Nearby we saw sprouts of passionflower vine and noticed that the neighboring cassia (Senna pendula) has started putting out sizable leaves (it is a year older and in a sunnier location than the one Gary planted).  The bright flowers of the yellow jessamine had come and gone on the fence behind the meetinghouse.  The blooms on the dogwood donated by Annie and David were spectacular this year and now it looks healthy with green leaves.  The fresh green leaves coming out and the many waves of flowers blooming lift our spirits in the spring. Continue reading »

By Jean Larson, with photos by Bill Mitchell

Newly planted Brussel sprouts in the Children's garden.

Primroseleaf (?) violet, (Viola primulifolia) blooming in January.

Yesterday I was weeding the area in front of the Meetinghouse and noticed that one of the large coonties near the peace pole had ripe orange fruits. I have heard that they require processing as in the digestive track of an animal before the seeds of a coontie will germinate, so I suggested to Bill that we spread some where we know a raccoon travels. I gave him a wildlife camera over the holidays, which he had positioned along the dry creek bed. We put some of the fruits near the camera, where it had taken a picture of a squirrel and a movie of a raccoon. Then we walked along the creek, discovering an invasive Coral Ardisia needing to be removed in an area we rarely visit. We also spotted a lovely pale violet, possibly a Primrose-Leaf Violet (Viola primulifolia). We learned at the rise of Meeting that the children had planted Brussels sprouts and pansies (garden flowers derived from Viola species that bloom robustly during Florida’s late fall and winter). They also created planters out of recycled liter soda pop bottles. I’m looking forward to seeing the Brussels spouts grow. They did well last year. After meeting and snacks today, John Burton joined Bill and me on our walk. John confirmed that the longleaf pine we planted some years back was definitely out of the grass phase with Continue reading »