I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

The Urban Forest Ecosystems Institute's SelecTree Guide from California Polytechnic State University has a detailed entry on Magnolia stellata 'Waterlily' with more photographs. The plant in the photograph was recently moved to UBC Botanical Garden's front entrance garden.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

The Herbarium at the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden has an excellent article on Dryopteris cycadina, or shaggy wood-fern.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

Guest-blogging today is Eric La Fountaine – Daniel.

I was quite captivated by these Eucalyptus macrocarpa, while visiting Western Australian Botanic Garden in Kings Park in Perth. The fabulous red flowers are the largest of any eucalyptus - up to 100 mm in diameter. The “gumnuts” that follow are equally large, hence macrocarpa (large fruit).

Native to Western Australia, the species prefers a dry environment. It can grow in subtropical areas but is not reliably hardy. The striking silver-grey leaves are as attractive as the flowers and a furry coat helps them hold moisture. The form of the plant can be somewhat awkward, but it responds well to pruning.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

According to the Flora of China, Cornus chinensis is restricted to China (but perhaps also found in Burma (Myanmar)). Wikipedia has an excellent account of the morphological diversity in the dogwoods, in case you were wondering why this particular species doesn't look like many of the more familiar ornamental species and cultivars.

Interested in talking about dogwoods? Join the UBC forums and post to the dogwoods discussion forums.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

Thanks to Ray in Launceston, Tasmania (aka sparramc@Flickr) for these two images submitted via the BPotD Flickr Group Pool (original image 1 and original image 2).

The Plants for a Future database entry on pale vanilla lily notes that the roots of this species are edible. For a photograph of the roots, see the Australian Bulb Association's image gallery for Arthropodium milleflorum (and see more images of this plant and its relatives on the Arthropodium page).

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

Orthrotrichum lyellii is a corticolous moss – its preferred substrate is the bark of trees and shrubs. It isn't particularly fussy about what species it grows on, as it can be found on both coniferous and deciduous woody plants. Despite this generalist characteristic, the moss is only distributed in coastal western North America and parts of Europe.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

Pink Chinese bladdernut is poorly known in cultivation – in fact, one of the few places in the world you can see it outside of China is at UBC Botanical Garden. I don't yet have an image of its fruit (the reason for its common name), but the Kemper Center for Home Gardening has a number of images of the fruit of an eastern North America relative, Staphylea trifolia – have a look to see why these plants are called the bladdernuts.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. Yesterday's long entry was due to my giving a presentation about BPotD at the Museums and the Web conference in Albuquerque. – Daniel

At UBC Botanical Garden, this magnolia cultivar has the deepest colour of all of the large-flowered magnolias. An impressive specimen, it is named for the gardens of Borde Hill in the United Kingdom.

As a photographic aside, it also shows the difficulties of photographing complete trees in the forested Asian garden without a wide angle lens. Fortunately, I now have one, so expect improved photographs using this tool after I return to work in a few week's time.

Botany resource link: Dias com árvores – mostly in Portuguese, but that shouldn't prevent you from exploring this wonderful weblog about plants. Daily postings with an emphasis on trees, nearly always accompanied by photographs.

Douglas's widow-grass is distributed from southern British Columbia to northern California. The species Olsynium douglasii (there are two varieties, var. douglasii and var. inflatum) is the only representative of the genus Olsynium in North America. Eleven other species are distributed in South America.

The common name widow-grass or “grass widow” was apparently coined by the botanist Rafinesque (previously highlighted in a botany resource link from this entry). The Flora of North America account for Olsynium cites Rafinesque's explanation for the common name: “[meaning] hardly united, alluding to the stamens”.

For more photographs, see the entry for Olsynium douglasii on the web site of The Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture.

Photography resource link: Environmental Photography: Blending Art & Activism by Randy Beacham for Nature Photographers Online. The article features ten “tips” on environmental photography.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

Eric La Fountaine wrote today's entry (and he scanned the seed). – Daniel.

The dry winged seeds of Acer macrophyllum, or bigleaf maple, are referred to as samaras or keys. The one in this image was collected in 1946 and is now part of the John Davidson Seed collection at the UBC Botanical Garden.

The tree is native from Alaska to southern California and can reach a height of 30 metres. Macrophyllum means “big leaf” – the maple is therefore appropriately named, as it is the species with the largest leaves. The leaves can measure up to 20 cm across.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

Fuji cherry is a slow-growing shrub in the rose family cultivated for its ornamental value. For a horticultural perspective, see Prunus incisa on the web site of the Royal Horticultural Society.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

A big thank you to Ken McCown of California (aka ken mccown@flickr) for today's image (original) submitted via the BPotD Flickr Group Pool.

With hundreds of cultivars, it is impossible to identify which variety of pineapple this might be. Pineapples themselves can make identification difficult in other realms: “Workers who cut up pineapples have their fingerprints almost completely obliterated by pressure and the keratolytic effect of bromelain (calcium oxalate crystals and citric acid were excluded as the cause).” via Purdue University's Center for New Crops and Plants Products entry on Ananas comosus. To see a photograph of a pineapple in flower, visit Cal's Plant of the Week page on Ananas comosus from the University of Oklahoma.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

It is not always safe to presume that members of the same genus have similar chemical compositions. Illicium verum of China, commonly known as star anise, is used as a spice in cooking and liquor (and the shikimic acid extracted from it is used in the production of Tamiflu). The Japanese star anise, Illicium anisatum, is however severely toxic – its chemicals can cause severe inflammation of the kidneys, urinary tract and digestive organs, as well as affecting the nervous system. To read more, see Wikipedia's entries on Illicium anisatum and Illicium verum.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

The male flowers of sweetgale are borne in stout catkins. Distributed across the northern forest regions of North America and Eurasia, sweetgale grows on the margins of water bodies. Historically, Myrica gale was used as a food spice by those who could not afford better. More importantly, though, its primary use as a spice was in flavouring beer. Read a fascinating account of the history of beer spices and Myrica gale on Gernot Katzer's Spice Pages.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

Porella cordaeana is a liverwort (and the first liverwort entry on Botany Photo of the Day). Liverworts are divided morphologically into two main groups: the leafy liverworts which appear similar to mosses (such as Porella) and the thalloid liverworts. To see the difference in structure, visit An Introduction to Liverwort Morphology via the web site of UBC's bryophytes course.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

These two images are part of a larger series posted on Flickr by Maureen from Montana (aka MontanaRaven@Flickr). To see the whole set, visit Milkweed Mother. If you'd like to see these two images in particular, visit here and here. The images were submitted to BPotD via the BPotD Flickr Group Pool. Thanks again, Maureen (Maureen's weblog: raven's nest)!

I'm fairly certain this is Asclepias speciosa and not Asclepias syriaca – I'm basing my identification on the seed morphology and barely discernible pattern of venation on the leaves (you need to see the other photographs in the Flickr set for this information). It's very possible that I've misidentified it, though. The USDA Plants Database has more information and photographs: Asclepias speciosa.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

The Magnolia Society has an excellent site that includes a checklist of magnolia cultivars and an extensive section of the site by Richard Figlar (who I corresponded with on this BPotD entry) on the classification of magnolias.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

Many thanks to Wayne of the UK (aka WLA@Flickr) for submitting today's image (BPotD Flickr Group Pool | original image). Don't forget to visit Wayne's weblog: Earth, Wind &Water!

Pincushions are a member of the protea family – to read more (and see more photographs), visit Dr. Gerald Carr's Proteaceae page and / or the Museums of Cape Town's Biodiversity Explorer, with its page on the Proteaceae.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

Not widely known in cultivation, Rhododendron bainbridgeanum is native to southwest China, Tibet and Burma (Myanmar). A scientific description of the species is available from Flora of China: Rhododendron bainbridgeanum.

I'm currently on vacation, hence the short written accompaniment. – Daniel

Thanks to Amir from Israel for sharing his photographs of this small succulent. Native to the Cape Province of South Africa, “split rock” has a number of other relatives that resemble rocks or pebbles. Fred Dortort has written a tidy summary article on these “Magic Rocks” for the University of California Botanical Garden at Berkeley.

For a few other images of why this plant deserves its common name, an image search on Google for Pleiospilos nelii has a number of results.

Botany resource link: Learn more about the tropical genus of plants Peperomia at peperomia.net – “The Internet Peperomia Reference”.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

The emerging leaves of leatherleaf viburnum are covered in a dense coat of hairs. As the leaves expand to their mature size, the hairs continue to be distributed over the entire surface of the leaf (though not as densely). For many people, these hairs can be a skin irritant. For more on this Eurasian plant (including other photographs), visit the Missouri Plants site where Dan Tenaglia writes about Viburnum rhytidophyllum.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

Thanks to Bill from San Jose, California (aka bbum@Flickr) for today's photograph submitted via the BPotD Flickr Group Pool. If you like, check out the original image or visit Bill's weblog, bbum's weblog-o-mat.

To see the habitat of this species, visit the web site of Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve in California (in particular, the beaches and dunes page). Calflora.net has another photograph and links to the translation of the Latin names in its entry on red sand verbena.

I'm on vacation, so only a short written accompaniment today. – Daniel

If you enjoy hellebores (or good photographs), “Weekend Gardener” and “silver_creek” on the UBC discussion forums have posted a great series of images recently – see them here.

For more information on these winter-flowering plants, visit Graham Rice's site exclusively dedicated to Hellebores.

Photography resource link: For inspiration, the photography of Jerry Greer.

Today's photographs are courtesy of Mary from San Lorenzo, California (aka (marymactavish@Flickr | Mary's wildflower photographs | BPotD Flickr Group Pool). Thank you Mary!

Mary has already written an excellent accompaniment to these photographs, so I'm going to direct you to see the original images for some written information and links: Umbellularia californica (flower), Umbellularia californica (habit) and (one not shown here) Umbellularia californica (nooks).

As Mary mentions, the common name for this tree in California is often California bay laurel or bay laurel, but in Oregon (the other state it can be found in), it is typically called Oregon myrtle. See Wikipedia's entry on Umbellularia californica for more information on this monotypic genus (there is only one species of Umbellularia!).

Invasive species / evolution resource links: A gall wasp introduced into Hawaii has become an invasive pest; it has the potential to exterminate some culturally-significant (and endemic) species of Erythrina (coral trees) on the islands. No known natural predators from the wasp's native region could be introduced to control the wasp because the wasp's origin was unknown. How does one quickly discover the native range of the wasp (and hopefully natural predators) before the Erythrina species go extinct? By using knowledge of evolution to predict where the wasp's native range is most likely to be. A story in four parts from The Questionable Authority weblog – (1) Applications of Evolution 1 - The Erythrina Gall Wasp, (2) But why should we save the Wiliwili?, (3) Applications of Evolution 1a - Hopelessly Watching Extinction and (4) Applications of Evolution - More on the gall wasp.

When first emerging, the leaves of Père Delavay's tree peony have an intriguing shape and texture; this continues as the leaves unfold.

Taxonomic opinions vary widely on Paeonia delavayi and related taxa – see Hong DY, Pan Ky and Yu H. 1998. Taxonomy of the Paeonia delavayi complex (Paeoniaceae). Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 85(4): 554-564. To see the variability in flower colour and properties, see this figure from the Flora of China's treatment for Paeonia delavayi (or you can simply do a image search on Google for Paeonia delavayi).

Natural history / photography resource links: Knowing Nature: Dave and Jocie's Natural History Blog includes observations about British Columbia nature, while Botanical Ramblings is a series of photographs of BC wildflowers. Both sites are by Dave Ingram (also worth checking out Dave's site to see his dragonfly and damselfly resource pages).

Heather from Adelaide, Australia (aka (heatherw@Flickr) contributed this image of the floral emblem of South Australia via the BPotD Flickr Group Pool (original image). More of Heather's photographs from Wilpena Pound can be seen here. Thanks, Heather!

Sturt's desert pea, Swainsona formosa, was the subject of a recent proposal to reclassify the species as Willdampia formosa (see first paragraph). However, it seems that the general consensus is that the reclassification isn't warranted, based on both morphological and DNA evidence: Willdampia formosa in the Australian Plant Names Index.

Visit Gardening Australia's site to read a more general account of Sturt's desert pea.

Photography / Photoshop resource link: Fake Model Photography, a tutorial by Christopher Phin on how to manipulate images in Photoshop to make the subjects of the photograph appear as if they were miniature models. I tried it out with yesterday's photograph of Pohlia nutans with subpar results, but if it works for you on a botanical image, let me know!

Copperwire moss has a truly global distribution. I wasn't able to locate a distribution map for the species, but I did find references to it occurring in North America, the Phllippines, China, Turkey, northern Europe, Chile, Australia and Antarctica.

The epithet nutans means “drooping” or “nodding”, in this case referring to the maturing capsules.

Botany resource link: The Wollemi Pine – thought to have gone extinct over two million years ago, nearly one hundred living trees of the Wollemi pine were discovered in 1994; they have been a botanical sensation since.

An orchid photograph contribution from the personal collection of Andreas of Bogotá, Colombia (aka Quimbaya@Flickr | BPotD Flickr Group Pool | original image). Many thanks, Andreas!

Not only does it emit the smell of a fungus (its odor contains many of the same volatile compounds as mushrooms), but the floral lip of the orchid Dracula chestertonii closely resembles the gilled structure of some mushrooms. When female fungus flies are deceived into depositing their eggs on the flower, they also pollinate the orchid. For more on this mimickry (and particularly if you have library or university access to the full article), see the source for the above information: Kaiser, R. 2006. Flowers and Fungi Use Scents to Mimic Each Other. Science. 311(5762): 806-807 (the captions with the figures are somewhat informative if you don't have access to the entire article).

Dracula chestertonii is native to Colombia.

I should also note that the majority of online images for this plant show the flower flipped one hundred and eighty degrees (example), but there are a few with the perspective of today's photograph.

Photography resource link: The work of Hiroki Suzuki offers a glimpse into the landscapes of Japan. While the photographs are certainly worth viewing, be forewarned that each link opens in a new browser window.

Although it is a week before I leave on vacation, from now until my return in mid-April the written accompaniment to many of the daily photographs will be shorter than usual. – Daniel

Corkscrew hazel or “Harry Lauder's walking stick” anchors one corner of the Alpine Garden at UBC.

If you've keen eyes, you will note that there are both male and female flowers in this photograph. The long catkins are inflorescences containing many dozens of pollen-producing male flowers, while the small dots of pink here and there are the stigmas (or pollen-receiving structures) of the small, wind-pollinated, apetalous female flowers (apetalous = lacking petals). If you're not certain what you're looking for, the Arkive site mentioned a few days as a resource link has this photograph of a Corylus female flower.

Botany resource link: The Vascular Plant Image Library hosted by Texas A & M University. Eight thousand plant images that are open and available for any educational, non-profit use.

Native to slopes and forests of Japan and Taiwan, this small shrub has a common name of buttercup winterhazel. “Buttercup” refers to the colour of its flowers, while “winterhazel” intimates its belonging to the witchhazel family, the Hamamelidaceae. Here at UBC Botanical Garden, it reaches a height of roughly 2 meters while spreading out to nearly 3 meters. Like other members of the genus, the flowers are fragrant, but not overwhelmingly so.

When first beginning to bloom in late winter, it would be suitable to describe the plant as having a constellation of subtle yellow flowers; however, at full bloom, I'd perhaps describe it as a galaxy (specimen photographs). The somewhat misleading epithet, pauciflora (literally a paucity of flowers), makes more sense when comparing this species to other winterhazels. While buttercup winterhazel has clusters of two to five flowers, other members of the genus can have inflorescences of ten or more blossoms.

For a scientific description, see Corylopsis pauciflora in the Flora of China. The first draft of today's entry had an eerie resemblance to the gardening-centred article on Corylopsis pauciflora written by Paghat, since I don't recall reading her article before I'd written the first two paragraphs. I've restructured what I had written, but you can still see the similarities.

Photography resource link: For inspiration, the nature photography of Jasper Doest of The Netherlands.

Kirstenbosch National Botanic Garden in South Africa is the site of today's photographs, contributed by Wayne in the United Kingdom (aka WLA@Flickr | BPotD Flickr Group Pool). The original images are here and here. Along with visiting Wayne's photographs on Flickr, you should also spend some time on his weblog, Earth, Wind & Water – “Warning – Please look under your vehicles for penguins.”

The first cycad to appear on Botany Photo of the Day (what are cycads?), this plant is commonly known as the ferocious blue cycad, the barbed wire cycad or, simply, the horrible cycad. Native to only a small area in Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, Encephalartos horridus is listed as vulnerable in the 1997 IUCN Red List of Threatened Plants or “EN A4cd; B1ab(i,iii,iv,v)” in the 2004 IUCN Red List (EN meaning endangered). The A4cd code means the species has an observed, estimated, inferred, projected or suspected population size reduction of 50% over any 10 year or three generation period (including the past and future), whichever is longer (up to a maximum of 100 years in the future), and where the reduction or its causes may not have ceased OR may not be understood OR may not be reversible, based on a decline in area of occupancy, extent of occurrence and/or quality of habitat and/or actual or potential levels of exploitation. For the B1ab(i,iii,iv,v) code, which refers to the geographic extent of the plant, you can read the definition on the IUCN's Red List site. The rationale for adding codes to explain conservation status is also explained in that link. While “EN A4cd; B1ab(i,iii,iv,v)” may appear daunting at first, the system is actually fairly simple to use and communicates a lot of conservation status information quickly once one becomes familiar with it.

For more reading on this rare plant, see the species page for Encephalartos horridus on Royal Botanic Garden Sydney's The Cycad Pages or this page on the web site of the Palm & Cycad Societies of Australia. A broader view of the family Zamiaceae is available from the Gymnosperm Database.

Botany / horticulture resource link: the web site of plant expert and writer Arthur Lee Jacobson includes a Plant of the Month series and a number of his articles (emphasizing plants of Seattle) and essays, including this eminently sensible one on Nature.