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Threatened plant bloom

Gallery: Macro & Close-upPosted April 19, 201150 views11 comments

Erythronium hendersonii, Henderson's Fawn Lily, is a member of the Lily family that is endemic to southwest Oregon, and barely reaching into Northern California. It can be locally very abundant within its range which is basically restricted to the Rogue River, and Applegate River drainages in Josephine County and Jackson County in Oregon, and barely into northern Siskiyou County in California.

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Henderson's fawn lily, Henderson's fawnlily

Erythronium hendersonii, a monocot, is a perennial herb (bulb) that is native to California and to Oregon.

It is included in the CNPS Inventory of Rare and Endangered Plants on list 2.3 (rare, threatened, or endangered in CA; common elsewhere). 7th Edition / 8th Edition

We have had, so far this spring, 5 blooms on 3 separate sets of bulb leaves on the small wooded portion of our property. We do have other single leaves that appear to look exactly like the double leafed sets that bloom, but these single leaves have never, that I've seen, produce a bloom. I am wondering if in subsequent years
they will develop double leaves and bloom.

Community: Yellow Pine Forest
Affinity to serpentine soil: 2.5 (strong indicator) [Safford et al

2005]

Family: Liliaceae

Olympus E-5
Zuiko 50 mm F2 macro
Aperture priority
1/250 sec f11.-o.3 EV
Fill flash ON
High Key
spot metering
ISO 200
manual focus

Comments

11 comments

Comment posted by Mark Seaver on April 19, 2011 at 9:22 PM

Lovely shot with great dof. I like the arc of the step, it adds some dynamics. Your description of this flower sounds similar to what we see around here with the pink lady's slipper, a reasonable number of plants, but seemingly random flowering. I suppose the botanists know something about what triggers these plants to bloom. It's way cool to have these on your property.

Registered on January 23, 2011, 1103 Posts, 17270 Comments

Comment posted by Charlie Baugh on April 19, 2011 at 11:02 PM

Yea, Mark I think it's cool too. I only found out what this was about 2 months ago. There apparently are a lot of very similar other species with the "Erythronium" primary name. If you did a search I bet you would fine the one you have near you. I've thought about asking some advice. The one source of data on this says it "Affinity to serpentine soil" I have no idea what that is.

Registered on April 18, 2011, 329 Posts, 1985 Comments

Comment posted by SandyRichardsBrown on April 20, 2011 at 12:23 AM

Beautiful!
Perfect DOF, gorgeous pink and maroon colors, and great comp.

Sandy

"Serpentine soil" = (from the Net)
The soil which is derived from weathered serpentinite rock is called serpentine. It is the predominate soil found in Poly Canyon and elsewhere on Cal Poly land, which may be viewed in our Locations page. As a corollary to serpentinite rock, serpentine soil carries the unique chemical composition containing high amounts of magnesium and low amounts of calcium. The pH of the soil greatly varies, ranging from 6.1 (slightly acidic) to 8.8 (slightly basic). In many cases heavy metals, such as chromium, nickel, and iron, are present and give the soil its red color. Serpentine soil is typically a shallow and rocky, not suitable for retaining water. These conditions inhibit plants from developing deep roots, also making serpentine soils highly vulnerable to erosion. The abnormal chemical composition of serpentine also restricts the growth of normal plant habitats, instead supporting its own unique flora which have adapted over time

Registered on November 24, 2003, 3937 Posts, 12909 Comments

Comment posted by Charlie Baugh on April 20, 2011 at 1:44 AM

Thanks for your nice comments Sandy and thanks for the data on Serpentine soil. The mention of red color fits perfectly. We love this property as the best place we ever lived but the ugly red soil is the only thing we dislike. Since it brings us this beauty every spring I don't dislike it as much as before

Registered on April 18, 2011, 329 Posts, 1985 Comments

Comment posted by Howard Cheek on April 20, 2011 at 8:22 AM

One has to see the LP to fully appreciate this Charlie, nicely done.
Thanx for the info on this beautiful perennial as well

Registered on July 24, 2008, 1201 Posts, 10758 Comments

Comment posted by Mike Moats on April 20, 2011 at 8:26 AM

Hey Charlie, I like the comp and details, moody light looks good.

Registered on October 20, 2004, 892 Posts, 6324 Comments

Comment posted by Monica Siri on April 20, 2011 at 2:26 PM

Charlie,
beautiful flower very well captured. I love the delicate color of the flower against the dark background. Great detail too.
We have plenty of Erythronium here in the Liguria woods but, of course, not hendersonii.
Very interesting info and beautiful image.

Registered on September 20, 2009, 132 Posts, 3764 Comments

Comment posted by Charlie Baugh on April 20, 2011 at 3:21 PM

Thanks Howard. Mike I'm concentrating on improving my flash usage so please comment on anything you see that I could be doing or changing that will bring me along in that regard. Thanks.

Registered on April 18, 2011, 329 Posts, 1985 Comments

Comment posted by Barbara Graham on April 21, 2011 at 12:42 AM

Charlie, wonderful comp, great colors and detail.

Registered on July 27, 2010, 1310 Posts, 5035 Comments

Comment posted by Varina Patel on April 25, 2011 at 6:16 PM

The lighting is really nice here - especially the soft line of light along the stems behind the flower. Beautiful color, and very nice background. Well done, Charlie!

Registered on August 22, 2008, 45 Posts, 1578 Comments

Comment posted by Charlie Baugh on April 26, 2011 at 9:23 PM

Hi Varina, I'm just getting around to notice your post. I've been useing a ring flash for a couple of years now and think I am finally getting the hang of it to the point of not being too blaringly un-natural. I still have a way to go.

Registered on April 18, 2011, 329 Posts, 1985 Comments