Happy Canada DaY!

 Happy Canada Day!

Petrel Point III - Finding the Orchids

We followed the boardwalk further, and eventually found some orchids.  I think the carnivorous plants are the most fascinating, but I think for most visitors it's these orchids that are the highlibht.

These are the Showy Ladyslipper, and they are beautiful!  

You can sometimes find them growing right in the ditch.  Staying on the boardwalk does limit the view of the flowers you can get.

After we got back to the car we drove down the road a bit and saw these bright red Indian Paintbrush.

And as we left we saw this distant Grass Pink, another orchid.

And here's your friendly narrator!

Petrel Point Part II - Following the Boardwalk

 The boardwalk provided a chance to see all kinds of plants as we worked our way through the nature reserve.  There are actually two other adjoining properties that Ontario Nature owns, but the boardwalk only goes through the original property, purchased in 1962.  That's when I first visited, as a 14 year old.

We followed the boardwalk pas the Pitcher Plants, to see what else we could find in mid-June.

Besides the open fen habitat there were small 'islands' of old Cedar trees here and there.   Changing water tables must have a big effect on the plants here.

The next rare plant we found was the Tall White Bog Orchid, a spike of white in the fen.

A close-up view of the tiny blossoms.

There was Cotton Grass blowing in the breeze.  Getting a clear picture while the plant was being blown back and forth in the wind was a challenge!

Ragwort is pentiful, even though it's an invasive species.  The dots of yellow across the fen could fool you if you don't know your plants!

And the Cedar trees struggle on in this harsh environment.  

The fens on the west shore of the Saugeen Peninsula get their unique assemblage of plants due to the seepage of cold nutrient-rich groundwater across the sand.  It's the combination of nutrients from the limestone further east and the nutrient-poor sand that provides the unique habitat.

Our Expedition to Petrel Point

 On Tuesday of this week we headed up the peninsula to visit the Petrel Point Nature Reserve.  It's one of the few such places that has an accessible boardwalk, which I really appreciate.  The reserve is known for the unique Great Lakes Coastal Meadow Marsh, one of the rarest protected habitats on the planet.

The accessible boardwalk was built just a few years ago, replacing a narrower one that had been here for nearly 60 years.  It's comfortably wide enough for my wheelchair.

You start off riding through the cedar forest.  At the right time of year you can find orchids in here too, though we were too late this year.

If you keep your eyes open though, there are some interesting plants, like this woodland horsetail.

Then suddenly you pop out into the open fen community.

This is the area where the carnivorous plants are found, particularly the Pitcher Plant and Sundew.  

This is a Pitcher Plant, the dark purple flowers on a tall stem, and cluster of 'pitchers' at the base.

Here's a closer look at the pitchers.  Cylindrical leaves, these pitchers are lined with downward pointing hairs, so insects that go exploring cannot make their way out again.  Ultimately they are trapped at the base, and dissolved, providing the plant with a source of nutrients.

Although the flowers are deep purple on the top, a front view shows their light yellow/green flowers.

A photo from a few years ago shows the Linear-leaved Sundew surrounding a Pitcher plant.  It seemed to be too wet for them this year.

More Flowers

 The bright big Peonies are ending, but we have a raft of other flowers now in bloom.

These are the nice blue flowers of Jacob's Ladder.

A pink Yarrow.

I think this is a Beardtongue, though a rather poor specimen!

I

We have a small patch of whiter Valerian.  This was a plant that attracted dozens of insects at our last home.

And a big patch of red Valerian.

And soon we will have Lavender in bloom!

Three Peonies and a Rose

 Now that our big bright peonies have finished blooming, we have three later blooming varieties showing off.  Two of these are fussier flowers for me, but they're all pretty.

The first of these is a white peony, with the same big blousy blooms as those I shared before.

I'm not sure how you'd describe this one, bit it's certainly a pretty flower.

The last one is a yellow one, a hybrid of some sort, but with very big flowers.

And finally we have our first rose of the year, a small red one.  There will be many more blooms over the coming weeks.

Hostas

 Mrs. F.G. started collecting Hostas at least 40 years ago.  We lived in the country outside Guelph at the time, and created a large garden where the Hostas spread.  Hostas come in a wide number of varieties, each with its own name, though by this time, 40 years later we have forgotten most of those.  When we moved north and started creating our garden in the valley, we moved many Hostas up there, and when we moved again we took about 30 of our favourites with us here to Meaford.

I can`t give you a horticultural description, but I can show you some of the differences that are obviously apparent, so I hope you enjoy these.

I think my favourite Hosta now is this light green two tone one, with quite small leaves.

   

This one on the other hand is huge!  Heavily ridged leaves and about three feet across.

Looking down beside the shed we have one that is almost yellow, growing in full sun.

I love this one, with the heavily wrinkled leaves.  About how I feel many days!

Here are a couple more with the two-tone leaves, the second one much more distinct with white borders.

This is another huge one with slightly `blue` leaves, but they are very big!

Finally we have what I consider a `sport`, a variety that emerges spontaneously with different leaf features.  Some leaves are plain light green, while other have light borders on a dark green leaf.

I hope I`ve shown you how Hostas can come in a variety of sizes and pattern if nothing else!