Saturday, February 05, 2011

Don Watcher Taking a Break

Fear not loyal followers, Don Watcher is not dead, just taking a break while I complete my studies which is taking an inordinate amount of my time this winter. I should be back to regular postings this spring. In the meantime, I will keep up the Twitter updates you can see on the sidebar, plus there might be the occasional posting such as the one below.

Tuesday, February 01, 2011

Reds and Browns


Fruit of the Staghorn Sumac


Dessicated leaf on the stem of a Cup plant

The scenes during winter in the valley are more muted then they are in spring and summer. But are just as interesting. Here I have taken shots of two plants near the Beechwood Wetland. Right next to the road is a stand of Sumac and a cluster of Cup plants. In the winter all that is left on the brown spindly stalks of sumac are the reddish brown fruits of the shrubby tree. Sumac are widely planted since they provide valuable winter fodder for birds and small animals during the winter when other food sources have disappeared.

While there is nothing left of the Cup plant but a tall stalk and a few dried leaves it is still possible to see some beauty in the remains. I took these photos because they stood out amongst the background of grey and brown.