Nature Noticings

One of the joys of noticing (and delighting in) the weird and obscure in nature is that sense of validation and camaraderie when someone else notices (and delights in) the same thing.  I love exploring the old forts that bracket Puget Sound, particularly Forts Ebey, Worden, and Flagler. They date from the late 1800's, so are hardly ancient, but exploring them helps sate my longing for distant European castles.  Several years ago at Fort Flagler on Marrowstone Island, I noticed stalactites growing from the concrete ceiling in one of the batteries. I was delighted, and recorded them in my nature journal. Calthemites at Fort Flagler, Marrowstone Island Recently, I read  David B. Williams new book, Wild in Seattle . I felt that spark of validation and camaraderie when I saw that he had a chapter about concrete "cave" formations. " I've seen those!" I thought to myself, "I love those!"  Now I know that they have a name. The concrete "cave" fo...

 I've been waiting for the princess to appear this spring, and here she is at last. The princess tree is also known as the empress or foxglove tree ( Paulownia tomentosa ); this tree is in a neighbor's front yard. The cloud of lavender flowers overwhelm the emerging leaves. The flowers remind some of foxgloves, but to me they have a more tropical look. I want to tuck one behind my ear and order a Mai Tai. The leaves will grow to be plate-sized, adding to the tree's tropical vibe. As striking as the flowers are, my affection for the tree focuses on its seedpods. Several autumns ago, I was taking a nature journaling class about seedpods and fruits. As I roamed the neighborhood in search of subjects, I collected some princess tree seedpods.  I love how they look like little creatures with open mouths, and their subtle brown colors. Some of the seedpods I found had not opened yet, so I cut one in half to draw a cross-section. Then the magic happened. It was my favorite kind of ...