The Orphaned Woods, Mystery Catkins

When I found the catkins on the ground in the woods, I thought they came from the Cottonwood tree.   But when I got home and tried to find a picture of them, I thought they might be from a poplar.

Now I just don’t know. I’ve been going round and round online and in my field guide, but haven’t been able to figure it out.

Close up of catkins. I took this with my macro lens.

As much as I love to walk in the woods and pay attention to the trees around the farm, I’m finding that I know very little. Now I’m not even sure the two catkins are from the same tree.  The yellow flowers look like tiny peppers.   Maybe one flower is the female and the other  male.  Because that’s what these tiny buds are, flowers turning to seed.

Perhaps someone reading this knows what tree these come from. Or perhaps I’ll discover it myself as I learn more about the Orphaned Woods.  I know the more I pay attention to the woods around me, the more I’ll learn.

The two catkins 2-3 inches long
The tiny yellow “pepper” taken with my macro lens

 

6 thoughts on “The Orphaned Woods, Mystery Catkins

  1. It’s an aspen poplar, I have an app on my phone that identifies plants and trees.

  2. Found this in our newspaper’s Parade Magazine.

    “Part health trend, part mindfulness practice, SHINRIN-YOKU (known as forest bathing) is a Japanese form of ecotherapy that involves being immersed in the sights, sounds and smells of the forest.”

    Guess who I thought of?

    1. Ah Thank you Keith. I’ve recently heard of Forest bathing, but didn’t know the Japanese word for it. I’ll have to start a vocabulary of Japanese words. Tsundoku is the word for acquiring reading material but letting it pile up without reading it (thanks Sharon for that). And Ikigai is “reason for which you wake up in the morning.

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