21, 29 September
We could do with more rain, but the Forest is somewhat refreshed after a rainy night. Foliage, still wet, glistens. Swordfern fronds rise, invigorated by the rain. Mosses are refreshed. Cat-tail moss extends as water drips and draws its growth downward. Fungi is beginning to sprout. These tiny fir-cone fungi are putting in an early appearance. Oyster mushrooms show a variety of colours. These are highlighted by sun illuminating the moss on this alder. After at least a year wondering what these shoots were, apparently sprouting from downed logs, we met ANats' encyclopaedic source of botanical knowledge. They're young Pacific crabapple, with the crabapple's distinctively varied leaves, and spurs emerging from what will one day be the trunk. These two young alders, emerging from a downed tree, are more mature examples of growth from a nurse stump. The thimbleberry, which looked very depleted last week, is revivified. The Marsh's fringe vegetation ...