Yesterday was beautiful. It was sunny and warm. Today you can see your breath, or at least you could this morning, and as of just after lunch, the clouds and rain are back again. It's fall, but the only riot of color we have to signify it is the yellowing of the leaves of the plants on the ground, and two small deciduous trees planted behind the house. Pretty much all of the other trees here are conifers, or pine trees, so they are always green. The mushrooms are unlike anything I have ever seen. Most of them are poisonous, and they can grow to be quite large if left undisturbed. Alaska has the most interesting plants, and the very best part, no ticks or poison ivy! It does however have horseflies. It also has Devil's Club and Indian Rhubarb. Devil's Club looks like a big brown stick with spikes all over it. It has HUGE leaves, I am talking bigger than your head. It takes a bit, I am told, to get injured by the barbs, just brushing against it won't hurt you. You have to really smack it. Indian Rhubarb is fine coexisting with you, until you cause trauma to the plant somehow. The sap inside gets on your skin and can cause blistering sores and burning, especially if the affected skin is exposed to sunlight. A lady that was here on a work team thought it was Queen Anne's Lace because it has these delicate looking white flowers. It's a good thing she didn't pick any!
Skunk Cabbage Flowers
Close Up of Devil's Club
There are no skunks here, which surprised me, since they have a plant called "skunk cabbage". That's another odd looking plant. In the spring, it has huge yellow flowers, and by late summer, those flowers have turned green and the leaves surrounding them are the size of snowshoes! Bears like to eat them, but I'm not sure if they like the leaves or the flowers. I've also heard they can smell pretty bad if disturbed. I've never gotten close enough to find out.
