Buds

Buds are embryonic. I love the way that Biology uses the same terminology for both flora and fauna. 

Buds are embryonic, undeveloped shoots from which leaves, stems and flowers arise.

Scales are a protective layer keeping woody plant buds dormant and safe through cold winters.

Some plants break out leaves first, then flowers follow. This is called Synanthous. Other plants flower first and then their leaves break out.  And some just have one huge bud. 

Synanthous plants are the most common. After all they need photosynthesis and respiration almost immediately.  

Hysteranthos are less common. These include Redbud, Witch Hazel, Forsythia, Magnolia, Cherry Blossom, Paper Bush, and various bulbs like Colchicum, Crocus, and Amaryllis

Mixed Buds include  maples, apples, and cherries

 about buds

From my nature journal

Here are some excerpts from my Nature Journal about
 Fruits and Seeds 

 

Specimen Cards

Here are some specimen cards created with the Nature Explores Club sponsored by the
Sammamish Heritage Garden 

 

Fruits and Seeds

Link to foldable Zine

Storm for thirsty crops.

A long overdue storm
is just what the doctor ordered. 

I'm stumped at the Soaring Eagle Park

So yesterday I took a walk through parts of Soaring Eagle Park. This park is north of me and not far from Inglewood Middle School. A storm of questions have been circling since, mostly about the logging history.  There are so many tree stumps with so few fallen trunks. This must be an old logging site. But when? Was it in the 1930’s? Before or after that date? Was it a clear cut? I think not. I did some cursory research and found that it has become a King County Park in 1993. Before that is was under the jurisdiction of the DNR- Department of Natural Resources established in 1957. Did they sanction the logging? OR did it happen when the Commissioner of Public lands reigned from 1889 to 1957? 

Do they hope the forest will recover by itself, over time? 100 years maybe? More? 

 

 

Like always, when I take a walk, I come away with more questions than I have answers to. Alex and I are heading to REI downtown today to buy some maps of the area. I also ordered  a local hiking book that delves into the history of the areas. The library might be another resource. 

The Prado

I could have come here every day for a month. We saw very little.  But it was magnificent. No photos allowed, but I did find these images on the Prado website. 

 

"Las Meninas," meaning "The Maids of Honor," A 1656 painting by Diego Velázquez

 

 "Blind Man's Bluff," a 1787 painting by Francisco de Goya

Created as a plan for weaving a Tapestry.

"The Third of May 1808" is a painting by the Spanish artist Francisco Goya

"Christ falls on the way to Calvary #1" is a 1515 painting by Raphael.

“Portrait of Isabella of Portugal”   in 1548 by Titian

This rivals the Mona Lisa. Titian was a discovery for me that day

"The Haywain Triptych," a 1515 painting by Hieronymus Bosch.

 

Sevilla

 

Here lies Christopher Columbus. 

Candy

Candy

Candy, in front of the apartment she lived in 50 years ago. 

Sandra and Candy

Guadalquivir River

Cathedral of St Mary by the Sea. It is huge and incorporates an old Mosque's Tower as well as its Courtyard for ablutions.   

Sketching outside the Cathedral while waiting for our timed entrance.

This garden sculpture is an ode to the poem Glorieta by Gustave de Becquer. The poet addresses three kinds of women's faces. First is the face that dreams of love. The second is the face that finds love, and the third is the face that is lost to love.

A beautiful boulevard that Candy walked when attending college here.