Ten Things I Learned from Dr. Susan Petro

If you ever have an opportunity to take a class or go on a "Botanical Walk" at Ramapo College with Dr. Susan Petro, don't even think about refusing. It can't exactly be called a nature walk because it was so much more -- history, literature, entomology, and ecology all had their moment.   There was even a culinary component. These are just a few highlights.

Our walk began with the Linden Tree in the parking lot.

1) Linden Trees (Tilia) are insect pollinated, so they can bloom AFTER the leaves appear.  Wind pollinated plants bloom before the leaves appear, because the leaves inhibit the flow of pollen. Tea, honey and scented oils are made from linden blossoms.  Our guide brought us sample of linden tea (which she served with some yummy homemade lemon madeleines!)

2) When White Clover (Trifolium repens) has been pollinated, the lower petals fold down.  That sends a message to pollinators not to bother with this one.

3) MADCAP HORSE is an acronym that helps you remember which trees and shrubs have opposite leaves so that you can identify them.
M  = Maple
A  = Ash
D = Dogwood
CAP = Caprifoliaceae - viburnums and honeysuckles
HORSE = Horse Chestnut

4) Spruce (picia) v. Fir (abies)- One way to identify conifers is to pull off a needle.  If it is a single needle (rather than several in a package) it is most likely a spruce or fir.  A spruce needle has 4 sides- "S" is for "Square" and "Spruce."  A fir needle is flat.  "F" is for "Flat" and "Fir."  You'll be able to tell the shape by rolling the needle between two fingers.

5) One legend says that Queen Anne's Lace (daucus carota) is so named because Queen Anne, a champion lacemaker from Denmark, challenged her ladies in waiting to a contest to see who could make the prettiest lace, and Queen Anne, being the queen, won. 

Queen Anne, Queen Anne, has washed her lace
(She chose a summer's day)
And hung it in a grassy place
To whiten, if it may.

Queen Anne, Queen Anne, has left it there,
And slept the dewy night;
Then waked, to find the sunshine fair,
And all the meadows white.

Queen Anne, Queen Anne, is dead and gone
(She died a summer's day),
But left her lace to whiten in
Each weed-entangled way!

By Mary Leslie Newton

6) Sassafras- (sassafras albidum) has 3 different leaves: One that looks like a mitten, one with three lobes, and one a simple oval.  The root was used to flavor root beer until it was discovered that the distilled oil causes cancer, and it was banned by the FDA.

7) Lichen

"Algae, you're a fungi, I think I've taken a lichen to you...."  Lichen are both algae and fungi living together.  Lichen are harmless to trees and very sensitive to air pollution.

8) St. John's Wort (Hypericum perforatum) produces an oil that, when consumed by cattle, makes them photosensitive.  When the plant overtook some California farmland, the cattle started getting terrible sunburns, and a special beetle had to be introduced to get it under control. 

9) Which Maple (acer) is this?  Squeeze the tip of the leaf twig. If a white milky extract comes out, it's a Norway Maple.  If none, it could be a Red or Sugar Maple.  Red Maples have teeth along the edge.  Sugar Maples do not.  The shape of a Red Maples is like a cat in a ski cap. 

10) Milkweed (asclepias) have a little slit on the side that can trap a pollenator and force him to carry hunks of pollen out with her when she leaves.

Well, that's 10, but I love this flower called "butter and eggs" (linaria vulgaris) or toadflax so much! the center has a darker yellow "runway" to alert insects to where the pollen is.  This flower is also known as a "baby snapdragon" and yes, they have a little jaw that opens and closes with a gentle pinch.  I just had to show you a picture of it.

Dr. Petro's talk stressed the importance of planting native species when given a choice, and the role of native plants in our ecosystem.  It will be very hard to walk through the woods, or even my backyard now without recalling these valuable lessons, and feeling grateful to have had this opportunity.