Saturday, January 7th, 2012
Since the beginning of October, we – or, more precisely, Duncan with the occasional help of Wayne – have been working hard in the woods above the terraces. These steep slopes of predominantly Maritime pine (Pinus pinaster) have been neglected for a number of years and were overcrowded with self-seeded saplings, wind-blown fallen trees and sparse but flammable understory of Carqueja (Genista tridentata), tree heath (Erica arborea) and bracken (Pteridium aquilinum).
The woods before clearing began
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Tags:Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, Carqueja, Castanea sativa, Cork oak, Erica arborea, Genista tridentata, Maritime pine, pine wilt nematode, Pinus pinaster, Portuguese oak, Pteridium aquilinum, Quercus faginea, Quercus suber, sweet chestnut
Posted in Ecology, Energy generation, Groundworks, Growing things, Renewable energy | 3 Comments »
Sunday, October 2nd, 2011
Shouldn’t someone be telling this bracken it’s October, not April? Bracken is a perennial fern, but the fronds generally emerge in the spring and die off in autumn. I’ve never seen this before.
Tags:bracken, Pteridium aquilinum
Posted in Climate and weather, Wildlife | No Comments »
Friday, May 29th, 2009
After posting about nettles and docks, I got to thinking about brambles (Rubus fruticosus) and bracken (Pteridium aquilinum) as well. Also mint (Mentha arvensis) which we have in abundance and which spreads in a similar fashion, and mimosa (Acacia dealbata) which we don’t have on the quinta but which is another “problem” plant in Portugal. All these plants are vigorous, resilient and quickly outcompete most other herbaceous species. The primary means of their rapid spread and apparent monocultural tendency are their extensive creeping rhizomatous root systems.
Nettles, brambles, bracken and mimosa
What I was thinking about was what do all these plants have in common besides these characteristics? What’s their role in nature? Is there an analogous process we can easily relate to that’s more useful and true to the state of things than this notion of “noxious weeds”?
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Tags:acacia, Acacia dealbata, blackberries, bracken, brambles, broom, Cytisus scoparius, gorse, invasive weeds, Mentha arvensis, mimosa, mint, nettles, Pteridium aquilinum, Rubus fruticosa, Ulex europaeus, Urtica dioica, weeds
Posted in Ecology, Growing things, Principles, Wildlife | 10 Comments »
