Category: Other Plants

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 4/16/19 Observation Time: 1:50 p.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: Skunk Cabbage Scientific Name: Symplocarpus foetidus Comments: Skunk cabbages are among the first plants to emerge in early spring. They can maintain an internal temperature significantly warmer than the surrounding air – as much as 15-35 degrees warmer – by consuming carbohydrates stored in their fleshy rhizomes. […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 7/7/18 Observation Time: 12:50 p.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Farm (TTOR) Common Name: Wild Onion or Crow Garlic Scientific Name: Allium vineale  Comments: Instead of flowers, they have bulbils, which are miniature sprouts not unlike garlic cloves. More Information: Wikipedia or GoBotany

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/23/18 Observation Time: 9:35 a.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Farm (TTOR) Common Name: Poison Ivy Scientific Name: Toxicodendron radicans Comments: Everyone should learn to identify poison ivy and avoid contact with its glossy, notched leaves. As both its common name and its scientific name suggest, the triplicate leaves of this plant can cause an intensely itchy rash that lasts for weeks. […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/23/18 Observation Time: 9:10 a.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Farm (TTOR) Common Name: Autumn Olive Scientific Name: Elaeagnus umbellata Comments: Autumn-olive is a hardy, prolific shrub that thrives in a variety of conditions, in part because it is capable of fixing nitrogen. Some varieties can produce up to 80 pounds (37 kilos) of bright red edible berries in a season, which ripen […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/22/18 Observation Time: 10:55 a.m. Observation Location: Town-owned conservation land near Sandy Ridge Circle Common Name: Honeysuckle Scientific Name: Lonicera spp. Comments: Bush honeysuckles are invasive deciduous shrubs that grow up to 20 feet tall. There are three species of bush honeysuckle common in the region including tartarian (Lonicera tatarica), Morrow’s (Lonicera morrowii), and Amur (Lonicera maackii). All species are similar in […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 7/11/15 Observation Time: 1:36 p.m. Observation Location: near Gavins Pond Common Name: American Groundnut Scientific Name: Apios americana Comments: Apios americana is found in every state east of the Rocky Mountains. It is a perennial vine that grows to 10 feet long in wet areas – marshy meadows and thickets, stream and pond banks, and moist woodlands. Both the tuber and the seeds are […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/23/10 Observation Time: 3:00 p.m. Observation Location: near Gavins Pond Common Name: Sweetfern Scientific Name: Comptonia peregrina Comments: Sweetfern leaves are very aromatic. Edible fruit ripens in July and August. Sweetfern partners with actinomycete fungus that live in its root nodules to fix atmospheric nitrogen, so it can flourish in infertile soil. The soil in the area near Gavins Pond […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 7/25/10 Observation Time: 11:10 a.m. Observation Location: Gavins Pond Road Common Name: Staghorn Sumac Scientific Name: Rhus typhina Comments: Staghorn sumac grows in gardens, lawns, the edges of forests, and wasteland. It can grow under a wide array of conditions, but is most often found in dry and poor soil on which other plants cannot survive. Some landscapers remove all […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/29/14 Observation Time: 11:30 a.m. Observation Location: Borderland State Park Common Name: Purple pitcherplant Scientific Name: Sarracenia purpurea Comments: This carnivorous plant captures and digests hapless insects. More Information: Harvard Forest

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 6/26/10 Observation Time: 5:15 p.m. Observation Location: Beaver Brook headwaters area Common Name: Partridgeberry Scientific Name: Mitchella repens Comments: Called “noon kie oo nah yeah” in the Mohawk language. More Information: US Forest Service

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 10/7/10 Observation Time: 3:15 p.m. Observation Location: end of Lee Road Common Name: Japanese Barberry Scientific Name: Berberis thunbergii Comments: This specimen was a few yards beyond the end of Lee Road near the Atlantic White Cedar Swamp drainage ditch. Japanese barberry is often planted for hedges, and easily spreads to natural areas, as this specimen evidently did. “In recent […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 6/26/10 Observation Time: 3:20 p.m. Observation Location: headwaters of Beaver Brook Common Name: Indian Pipe Scientific Name: Monotropa uniflora Comments: Indian pipe, also known as ghost plant (or ghost pipe) or corpse plant, is a herbaceous perennial plant native to temperate regions of European Russia, Asia, North America and northern South America, but with large gaps between areas. It is generally rare in […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 6/14/09 Observation Time: 7:30 a.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Farm, Trustees of Reservations land Common Name: Indian Pipe Scientific Name: Monotropa uniflora Comments: Indian pipe, also known as ghost plant (or ghost pipe) or corpse plant, is a herbaceous perennial plant native to temperate regions of European Russia, Asia, North America and northern South America, but with large gaps between areas. It is […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 5/30/10 Observation Time: 4:30 p.m. Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary Common Name: Highbush blueberry Scientific Name: Vaccinium corymbosum Comments: The northern highbush blueberry, is a North American species of blueberry which has become a food crop of significant economic importance. It is native to eastern Canada and the eastern and southern United States, from Ontario east to Nova Scotia and […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 6/28/10 Observation Time: 2:00 p.m. Observation Location: 154 Wolomolopoag St. Common Name: Dewberry Scientific Name: Rubrus species Comments: Not sure if this is Rubrus flagellaris, the northern dewberry, or some other Rubrus species such as Rubrus hispidus, the swamp dewberry. More Information: Dewberries and Brambles: University of Massachusetts

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 6/29/11 Observation Time: 11:35 a.m. Observation Location: Gavins Pond Common Name: Blueberry Scientific Name: Vaccinium Comments: These unripe blueberries were growing in sandy soil in the vicinity of Gavins Pond near a bluebird nesting box. The baby bluebirds will probably fledge around the time the berries ripen. More Information: Mother Earth News

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 10/2/13 Observation Time: 12:15 p.m. Observation Location: woods near Beaver Brook Common Name: Wild Sarsaparilla Scientific Name: Aralia nudicaulis Comments: You might know Sarsaparilla as a sweet soft drink that was first introduced in the 19th century.  Wild sarsaparilla is a common plant found in the northern and eastern parts of  North America and grows on creeping underground stems.  This plant was […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 4/13/13 Observation Time: 5:50 p.m. Observation Location: near Gavins Pond Common Name: Pussy Willow Scientific Name: Salix discolor Comments: The fuzzy nubs that appear on pussy willows in early spring are actually flowers just before they fully bloom. The species most commonly called pussy willow in the Northeast, Salix discolor, is a small, shrubby species of willow that can be […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 6/24/10 Observation Time: 3:40 p.m. Observation Location: Beaver Brook near tennis courts Common Name: Skunk cabbage Scientific Name: Symplocarpus foetidus Comments: Tearing a leaf produces a pungent but not harmful odor, the source of the plant’s common name; it is also foul smelling when it blooms. The plant is not poisonous to the touch. The foul odor attracts pollinators, such as scavenging […]

Observer: Paul Lauenstein Observation Date: 11/6/06 Observation Time: 2:10 p.m. Observation Location: Gavins Pond Road Common Name: Autumn Olive Scientific Name: Elaeagnus umbellata Comments: Autumn-olive is a hardy, prolific shrub that thrives in a variety of conditions, in part because it is capable of fixing nitrogen. Some varieties can produce up to 80 pounds (37 kilos) of bright red edible berries in a season, which ripen in October […]