Today, Joe Metzger and I went on a foray to locate two populations of cactus in Washington County, Maryland. The first one was a reported population of Opuntia cespitosa in Kemps Mills where Clyde Reed collected a voucher … Continue reading
Had an awesome time with Rangers Matt Grey and Chris Winton of Anne Arundel County Park and Recreation this afternoon scouting out the cactus at Weinberg Park in Pasadena. The site was near an old homestead. We could see two … Continue reading
This is a working draft list of locations where cactus has been found in Maryland, excluding the Eastern Shore. (Eastern Shore sites may be added later.) If you know of a location not listed here, let me know at botanybill … Continue reading
Had an awesome time today with Michael Ellis, park ranger and invasive plant specialist for the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, Parks and Recreation. We visited two sites where prickly pear was growing. FIRST SITE – The first … Continue reading
On the way home from Glen Arm, Maryland this morning, I stopped off at a location here in Elkridge where someone planted some prickly pear cactus evidently many years ago next to a parking lot. The plants key out to … Continue reading
This morning I attempted re-visit a site where Clyde Reed collected some cactus in 1981 which has been determined by Opuntia expert Lucas Majure to be Opuntia cespitosa. The site was on Factory Road in Glen Arm, Maryland (Click here … Continue reading
After learning about some cacti located south of Merkle Wildlife Sanctuary, David Anderson, Matthew Beziat, and I went on a foray to see if we could locate them. We found the cactus on a south facing slope beside Nottingham Road … Continue reading
This time Matt Beziat and I forayed the Wooton’s Landing Park to look for some cactus that Matt had spotted previously. We found it along the perimeter trail which parallels Sands Road. The small number of plants at this site … Continue reading
Today, Matt Beziat, Dave Anderson, and I paid a visit to the meadow next to the Jug Bay Wetland Sanctuary Center parking lot to look for the cactus reportedly there. The meadow was well maintained with plenty of native plants. … Continue reading
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Despite some rain, heavy at times, had a awesome time today meeting up with Joe Metzger and Karyn Molines to foray the Parris Glendening Nature Preserve, Jug Bay. We hiked about one mile to an area called the “Sand Barrens” … Continue reading
Today Sam Droege showed me a location where some Opuntia was growing along the east side of the Patuxent River along Sands Road in Davidsonville, MD in Anne Arundel County. There were scattered patches of cactus growing along the access … Continue reading
Dave Anderson and I spent some time this afternoon locating a previously undocumented Magnolia seepage bog that was recently discovered by the Patuxent Research Refuge supervisory wildlife biologist Sandy Spencer and biologist John Bourne on the Refuge’s North Tract. … Continue reading
Today, I went out to the southern border of the Refuge to checkout the area around the old USDA Beltsville Landing Strip. There were several species of weeds hanging around. To my surprise, one of them ended up being a … Continue reading
Last time we attempted to identify a Forget-Me-Not that was found growing in Oldtown Elkridge. (Click here to see the first part of the story.) After looking at the key, we narrowed the possibilities down to three species – Myosotis … Continue reading
This time we diverge from looking at plants. On our hike on the Butterfly Trail at Lock # 30, Erie Canal, Macedon, New York, we found at least four mollusks. In the first picture, you can see the “beach” where … Continue reading
Today, I went on a botanical foray in Oldtown Elkridge concentrating on the area around the Thomas Viaduct and found several interesting exotics and even a few natives. Pictured here is the Poet’s Daffodil – Narcissus poeticus L. It is … Continue reading
This gallery contains 11 photos.
The venue for today’s foray took place in Oldtown Elkridge and in area of the nearby Thomas Viaduct (the world’s oldest multiple arched stone railway viaduct still in use from the early 19th century). Below, you can see some of … Continue reading
This tiny plant called Draba verna L. is a true harbinger of spring. It is always one of the first flowers to makes its presence known each year. In Maryland, it can usually be seen blooming as early as February, … Continue reading
Today, the Little Patuxent River Trail located on the North Tract of the Patuxent Research Refuge was the scene for a spring wildflower walk sponsored by the Refuge. We identified a total of 32 species of plants and one species … Continue reading
