Sunday, 26 July 2009

Rained In

Not a nice morning, so no walk. Maybe this afternoon will brighten up - don't you just love optimism?
Anyway, here are some pictures from yesterday. Remember the Square Stalked St. John's Wort from 16th July? Well yesterday, we met one of it's close relatives, the Perforate St. John's Wort (Hypericum perforatum).
Very similar to the Square Stalked, you need to look very closely at the leaves of this one, to see the hundreds of minute perforations from which it gets it's name.
again, looking closely, this time at our own lawn, you can find several small patches of another 'Wort' this time, the name is far bigger than the plant, Procumbent Pearlwort (Sagina procumbens).
Looking rather 'mossy' amongst the grass in the lawn, it gets it's name from the small pearl-like seed capsules which appear above the leaves. Tiny and easily overlooked, it is a delicate looking plant, but it's looks belie it's nature. It is a surprisingly tough plant, able to stand drought and temporary submergence in water. Not growing taller than about 1/2" high, it forms a mat of green, looking, in places, better than the grass on our lawn!

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