Spring Entries

1.) Thursday: 04/30/07: Michelle and I spent 4 hours researching plants and creating a

PowerPoint presentation.  

2.) Thursday: I looked up many scientific names of plants. I looked over the work that Michelle had completed and made some corrections.  I found new pictures and information to present, some were pictures that Michelle had taken previously.  

3.) Thursday: I learned about Fringecup, and the spotted coralroot orchid’s have medicinal uses.  It can be used in tea to cure womens problems and more can be found on our posted presentation.  I learned that inside out flower has many medicinal uses. It cures colds and pneumonia.  This information is also in the presentation.      

4.) Thursday: A PowerPoint presentation was created.  

5.) Spotted Coralroots scientific name is Coralloriza malulata ssp. maculata.  Why is ssp. maculata needed in its classification? There were other kinds of orchids with the same Genus species name. Why? I thought that Genus species is as specific as one can get.   

6.) Total time spent that will count towards gardening this quarter, 38 hours.

1.) Thursday: 05/24/07: I spent 6 hours spent in the Riparian Forest, painting, researching plants using books that I brought with me, and gardening.

Friday: 05/25/07: 3 hours were spent in the Riparian forest gardening and painting and reading about plants, from Pojar and Mackinnon.

2.) Thursday: I finished mulching the main pathway in the Riparian forest. Then I found a plant I thought was a weed. I asked Donna if this was a weed because she happened to be near by and I knew that she has taken this class before, she showed me, using Pojar and Mackinnon, that this plant is nipplewort and it is considered a weed. Thus, I went to war with nipplewort and pulled it out of the oxalis plants. While pulling out nipplewort I found a lot of herb Robert which I pulled as well. I also found white fungus, or something that looks like fungus, covering a lot of the trailing black berry plants, or covering certain branches on trailing black berry plants. I showed Donna because I did not know if my impulse to pull off, or out these infected plants seemed right. Her response was that I should probably get rid of infected parts so that the disease would not spread to the healthy plants. This was also a fear of mine so I pulled off or out infected trailing black berries and left the ones that were healthy.

I then decided to research some plants while in the garden so that I could observe the plants while I wrote about them, I also painted some of these plants one was sword fern, another was the orchids under the cedar tree.

Friday: Friday I intended just to go back to the garden and research and draw more plants but I ended up weeding a good deal and polling more infected trailing black berry plants. I also spent some time drawing and observing the Bleeding Heart plants.

3.) Thursday: I learned how to identify nipplewort and that the Longhouse garden tries to only incorporate useful plants. Thus, if a plant is not useful and spreads like nipplewort then it is a weed and is not needed in the Longhouse garden. No matter if its yellow flowers are kind of pretty. I also learned that many trailing black berry plants in the Riparian forest have become infected.

Friday: I learned that many weeds grow fast or are easily missed the first time around one looks to pull them out. The spotted orchids are saprotrophic but I still do not know of their uses.

4.) Thursday: Pathway is mulched. Weeds were pulled. Infected trailing blackberry parts were removed. Sword ferns were studied.

Friday: Weeds were pulled. Infected trailing blackberry parts were removed. Orchids were studied and Bleeding Heart drawings were added to previous work.

5.) What is the best way to deal with infections? It seems wrong to pull or cut off plant parts because it leaves the plants susceptible to more infections but it also seems wrong to let the infection spread. Do you know any ways to deal with things like this ? Are there any better ways to deal with infections?

6.) Total time spent that will count towards gardening this quarter, 34 hours.

 

1.) Thursday: 05/17/07: 1 hour was spent in the Riparian Forest planting two inside out plants under the lamp which were found behind the Longhouse in pots dying.

Friday: 05/18/07: 3 hours were spent with Michelle at her house, researching plants that we might want to present to the class.

Saturday: 05/19/07: Michelle and I met at 9:30 am and worked in the Riparian Forest during the class time allowed.

2.) Thursday: I went to the Longhouse garden to dig up nootka rose because the ones that I had taken previously had done poorly. This time it was a root day so I thought I would see if I could have more luck. The plants taken this time are doing much better than last time. While there I found two inside out plants that were small and in plastic pots behind the Longhouse garden they were drying out, so I planted them under the lamp where I had decided I wanted inside out plants to cover the lamp base. They are doing well now.

Friday: Michelle and I met to discuss what we might want to present for the Longhouse garden project. We looked up plants and agreed on which ones we either need more information on or would like to present. Then we divided these plants evenly between us so that we each have plants to study and we each have plants to present to the class. We also looked at Michelle’s previous Longhouse garden work and talked about Riparian Forests generally.

Saturday: More mulch was put down on the path. Weeds were removed. The rest of the unwanted or non-blooming Nootka rose plants were removed from the garden and given to people to take home. I helped Michelle plant some more fringe cup plants.

3.) Thursday: I learned that root days are really good days for transplanting plants, scientifically I do not know why but plants do better when planted on root days.

Friday: I learned that a Riparian Forest is area of Forest near the water. I also learned that sword ferns are smaller in the north and are a somewhat significant plant in Riparian Forests.

Saturday: I saw that the garden is really coming together but felt that it still needs more mulch in the pathways.

4.) Thursday: Two inside out plants were planted and nootka roses were removed.

Friday: Tasks were divided and plans were made for what we will present to the class. Previous work by Michelle, as well as specific plants in the Riparian Forest, and Riparian Forest areas were studied.

Saturday: Basic garden maintenance was accomplished. False lily of the valley was removed from an area where it was not doing well, fringe cup plants were added there. Weeds were removed and more mulching was accomplished. The nootka roses that were not wanted were removed leaving only wanted plants in the Riparian Forest area.

5.) No questions

6.) Total time spent that will count towards gardening this quarter, 25 hours.


1.) Friday: 05/11/07: 1 hours and 30 minutes spent in the Riparian Forest.

2.) I went to the garden because of an E-mail I had received telling me that there were plants behind the longhouse that needed to be planted immediately. I was not sure when I found the plants how many of which plants to plant, or where they should be planted. I looked around the garden, feeling sort of lost and then decided to call someone who might know. Luckily, my cell phone worked and I immediately got a hold of Allyson who told me to plant the five Yellow Wood Violets in the decorative area and the three Spotted Coralroot Orchids under the cedar tree. I asked a passer by who happens to also be in this class which tree is technically the cedar tree, and he showed me how to properly identify a cedar tree. Then I transplanted a plant that looked like false Solomon’s seal next to the Solomon’s seal, it was extremely difficult to dig out its mass of roots. The difficulty was partially due to having not brought my own shovel, I had to use a broken shovel which was the only small shovel in the back of the Longhouse and the soil for all of the plantings was not easy to dig up.

3.) Friday: I learned how to correctly identify a cedar tree. I observed the fruits on Bleeding Heart plants, which look like small bean pods, they bud out from the center of the flower and then the flower petals dry up around it. I also learned that Yellow Wood Violets, Viola glabella and Spotted Coralroot Orchids, Corallorhiza maculata are gorgeous native plants, GOOD JOB ALLYSON! Sadly, I have also learned since then that the other plant that I thought was False Solomon’s Seal and planted next to the Solomon’s Seal, is not False Solomon’s seal either but now I know for sure what False Solomon’s Seal looks like.

4.) Five yellow violets were planted in the decorative area near next to the salal. Three orchids were planted under the cedar tree in the Riparian forest area. One plant was transplanted from the path to the cluster of Solomon’s seal this plant is not yet identified. Some weeding was accomplished.

5.) No questions

6.) Total time spent that will count towards gardening this quarter, 21 hours.


1.) Friday: 05/04/07: 2 hours spent in the Riparian Forest.

Sunday: 05/06/07: 2 hours and thirty minutes spent in the Riparian Forest with Michelle.

2.) Friday: I planted the trillium plants, some of which are bulbs that had no growth on them when I planted them. In order to plant these bulbs, I found soil in clumps above the ground level around the compost area and shoveled them into the wheelbarrow. By taking these clumps of soil I leveled off the ground surrounding the compost and had a full wheelbarrow of soil. This soil was dispersed around the eight trillium bulbs that were planted. The Riparian Forest area is in need of more soil. I also found a rotting log and used its wet bark to keep the bulbs moist. Then I weeded the main path and added a couple wheelbarrows of mulch to it. I also talked to some people who were interested in the Longhouse Garden and wanted to know how it is being maintained and which plants in it are native.

Sunday: Michelle and I worked together and removed nootka rose which we took home with us. I also added several more wheelbarrows full of mulch to the main path. We cleaned up after ourselves and moved some plants that were not doing well in their location, mostly these were trailing blackberries that were being strangled by nootka rose and salmonberry, to locations that were more opened in the forest. We also removed some weeds.

3.) Friday: I learned that I know more than I thought I knew about the Longhouse Garden. I also learned that there is a lot of camas growing on the hillside on the right side of the Longhouse when facing the Longhouse. I also leaned that the Dry Woodland area has several inside out plants just starting to grow in very close proximity to each other.

Sunday: I learned that the nookta rose grows very densely and taking out more means we need lots of people who want these plants or some place to plant these plants where they will get sun. I also learned that the main path needs a lot of mulch to cover it. I learned from Michelle that false Solomon’s seal has star shaped flowers which differ from true Solomon’s seal which has bell shaped flowers.

4.) Friday: Trilliums were planted and the main pathway was worked on. People learned about the Healing Gardens program and the maintenance of the Longhouse garden and about the native plants on the property.

Sunday: Nootka rose plants were removed and some were trimmed. Weeds were removed. Main path received a great deal more mulch. Some plants were transplanted to better locations.

5.) Can I have a camas plant from the grassy hillside, to the right of the Longhouse Garden when facing it, to put in my personal garden at home? Does anyone know where I can procure a stump or small bench for a place to sit at the end of the Riparian Forrest’s pondering path?

6.) Total time spent that will count towards gardening this quarter, 19 hours and thirty minutes.

The Plans for the Longhouse Garden for the remainder of the quarter is to create a place full of life and flowers that are native to the area. We hope to reinforce pathways with mulch and rock or wood (stick, or small log) boarders and to leave a place to sit, a bench or stump at the end of the pondering path, or path that leads no where. We also hope to remove all of the nookta rose plants and replace it with flowers that will bloom in that area. We hope to hide the lamp base with small shrubs, possibly an inside out shrub transplanted from the Dry Woodland area if we get permission to transplant one of these shrubs. The flowers we hope to introduce to the area include false Solomon’s seal and native violet plants for a groundcover. We are still in the process of deciding what to do in areas that have not been cared for much and which flowers or plants to introduce there. Many places have plants which simply need to be moved to areas where they will make more sense, or will not be as hidden from view.




1.) Sunday: 04/29/07: 2 hours and 30 minutes spent in the Riparian Forest Tuesday day: 05/01/07: 4 hours spent procuring trillium and interacting with plants at Camp Colman.2.) Sunday: Michelle and I worked together procuring false lily of the valley and planting it in the Riparian Forest. Tuesday: I procured trillium plants from Camp Colman and talked to them about maintaining forested areas. Their trillium patches were so thick they needed help thinning them out so more could grow. 3.) Sunday: I learned that false lily of the valley grows densely in forested areas. Tuesday: I learned that trilliums have bulbs that can be eaten and they grow and divide in a very similar way to irises or many other plants with bulbs. I also learned that ivy is from England and will strangle out big trees and therefore should not be allowed to grow in this area. Trillium like shaded areas and will not bloom for seven years when transplanted. I also learned that scotch broom is not native and is good to feed goats and has some medicinal value. Bleeding Heart when sold in nurseries is often bred to look a certain way and that is why it looks different than the natural Bleeding Heats that are prevalent in the Pacific Northwest. 4.) Sunday: False lily of the valley was located and transplanted to an area in the Riparian Forest where it will look nice, right out front under the nootka roses. Tuesday: Trilliums were procured. 5.) Can I get some good soil to put into the Riparian Forest where soil is oddly lacking? Is there compost soil ready to use? Should I pull out the rest of the bracken ferns?

6.) Total time spent that will count towards gardening this quarter, 15 hours.



1.) Saturday: 4/21/07: 3 hours spent in the Riparian Forest.

Sunday: 4/22/07: 2 hours spent in the Riparian Forest

2.) Saturday: Michelle and I worked together to plan an idea for the Riparian Forest area. We transplanted false solomone’s seal and fringe cup into a sunny spot in the forested area and moved wild ginger to A Place to Meet the Trees area in the Longhouse garden where there is more shade. Moved sword ferns to locations where they could spread out without being in the way of the path or shading out little plants. Pulled weeds and mulched the paths that needed more mulch. Helped pull nootka rose plants so that they could be planted in an area that gets more light.

Sunday: I worked alone to move several sword ferns that Michelle and I had determined were in undesired locations, to locations that we had agreed to move them. I moved and transplanted some Bleeding heart plants, which were growing into the path to a better location. I also moved and transplanted some coltsfoot plants that were very small and growing in the walkway. I weeded some and moved a lady fern that was completely tangled in other plants to an area where it can grow and be seen.

3.) Saturday: I learned that wild ginger is a plant that needs shade.

Sunday: I learned that there are many plants growing in the Riparian Forest area but they need to be moved to areas where they can grow well and be seen.

4.) Saturday: Ferns were moved, solomone’s seal and fringe cup were planted, wild ginger was moved, paths were mulched, and a good deal of nootka rose plants were moved.

Sunday: Many ferns were moved and transplanted in areas that were bare. Hidden or plants that were in danger of being trampled were moved and plants were weeded.

5.) When can the rest of the nootka rose be removed? Should it be given to classmates to plant at home? Do the salmon berry plants also need to be moved or can they blossom and fruit in the shade?

6.) Total time spent that will count towards gardening time over a two week period, 8 hours and 30 minutes.



1.) Saturday: 4/14/07 : 2 hours and 30 minutes spent getting acquainted with the Riparian Forest.

Sunday: 4/15/07 : 2 hours spent finding and transplanting 4 wild ginger plants and 1 skunk cabbage plants into movable containers.

Monday: 4/16/07 : 2 hours spent bringing plants to the Longhouse Garden and transplanting the wild ginger into the Riparian Forest as well as other tasks.

2.) Saturday: Meg and Michelle had joined me and I learned about this area in the Longhouse garden. I helped make a path and distribute mulch over it. I pulled many weeds growing in the paths and other areas. These weeds included horse tails which were thrown in a pile near the mulch to be burned later. I also pulled dandelions and plants that look like Bleeding Hearts but have reddish fussy stems, as well as other weeds which were put in a pile to be composted. Salmonberry and Trailing Blackberry were also among weeds removed. We talked about future plans of the garden as well as a desire to procure more wild ginger. Sunday: Drove to the Key Peninsula to Camp Colman and observed a heavily forested area. Thickets of skunk cabbage and wild ginger were found

and the Environmental Education Instructor aloud me to remove 4 wild ginger plants and 1 skunk cabbage. More of these plants could potentially be procured if there is a demand for them and if they take to being transplanted.

Monday: Drove to Evergreen from the Key Peninsula and planted the wild ginger plants in the Riparian Forest next to what we had thought to be wild ginger which is indeed not wild ginger. Wild ginger has heart shaped leaves, the other plants did not have heart shaped leaves. I extended the rock border from the path up to where the stick border ends

between the side walk and the wild ginger. These rocks were found in the Riparian Forest area. I planted the skunk cabbage in a plastic pot where it can live for a while until people from the skunk cabbage Longhouse garden area are contacted and they determine where this plant should be planted for good. I also weeded the Riparian Forest some more, I pulled more horse tails and goose berry plants growing in places that are not desirable.

3.) Saturday: I learned which area the Riparian Forested area is and what needs to be done there. I learned that I should begin to research or to find plants that will improve this area, including ground covers. I learned that the Longhouse garden has black segmented worm type creatures with yellow spots leaving in soft woods. Sunday: I learned that

swords tails fern new growth fronds are edible and people I know have eaten them. I also learned that skunk cabbage only lives in anaerobic conditions. I saw a black snake with one red stripe and one white stripe, a guarder snake, and learned that they used to be endangered in that area but now are making a comeback as evident by my spotting of one.

Monday: I learned that wild ginger has dark green heart shaped leaves and red flowers unlike the light green pointed oval-like leaves with white flowers that are growing in the Longhouse garden.

4.) Saturday: There are fewer weeds and hardly any house tails. There is a new trail and I know which area I need to develop, in the Riparian Forest.

Sunday: Permission to transplant wild ginger and a skunk cabbage into containers for

school project and I did that.Monday: I built a rock border and I planted the wild ginger plants in the Riparian Forest and placed the skunk cabbage in better container until it is approved for the Longhouse garden.

5.) What are the light green plants with the white flowers and the segmented black worm-like creatures with yellow spots? Are they wanted or unwanted? Are more Wild Ginger plants or skunk cabbage plants wanted? On land where it is permitted

what other plants should I look to procure?

6.) Total time spent is 6 hours and 30 minutes.

Laura Pingree
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