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This is Page 1 of 2 - the best of May 2005!
posted: June 3rd, 2005
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Photos included this month include only those taken from April 29 through May 29, 2005. There were 468 photos taken between those 2 dates, so it was difficult to pick and that also explains why there are 2 pages. Maybe some photos are better suited to researchers this month. Click on any thumbnail to begin.

  In this row you can see a nice picture of some pea family flower, a Morel Mushroom - we found enough of them to have Morel's with supper 2 times - and an Iris Flower arrangement which Kazuya made. He often arranges flowers in nice flower vases for our house.
NogawaPkApr29_PeaFamily01RC.jpg
NogawaPkApr29_PeaFamily
01RC
NogawaPkApr29_MorelMushroom01RC.jpg
NogawaPkApr29_Morel
Mushroom01RC
KazuyaIrisArrangement_a.jpg
KazuyaIris
Arrangement_a

  On April 30th we climbed Mt. Sogaku and Mt. Gozen in Okutama. The first picture shows an interesting Paris tetraphylla and the next 2 are 2 different species of Viola. We believe that the first one is Viola rossii and that the second one is Viola bissetii. Could be wrong though.
MtSogaku_Paris_tetraphylla03RC.jpg
MtSogaku_Paris_tetraphylla
03RC
ToMtSogaku_AkebonoSumire10RC.jpg
ToMtSogaku_AkebonoSumire1
0RC
ToMtSogaku_NagabanoSumireSaishin03RC.jpg
ToMtSogaku_NagabanoSumire
Saishin03RC

  Well, the first picture is labeled Viola bissetii, but it's probably not correct, because bissetii is not supposed to be hairy! The second flower is correctly labeled, and the 3rd one - well, no idea. It appears to be some plant which is lacking in chlorophyll, but I couldn't find it on the web. If you have any idea, please help me out with an e-mail.
MtSogaku_Viola_bissetii14_HAIRYRC.jpg
MtSogaku_Viola_bissetii14_HAIRYRC
MtSogaku_Gentiana_zollingeri01RC.jpg
MtSogaku_Gentiana_zollingeri01RC
MtSogakuNoChlorophyll_03RC.jpg
MtSogakuNoChlorophyll_03RC

  The same weekend continues. The first photo is kind of a pass between Mt. Sogaku and Mt. Gozen, with some weird plants growing there. The next one is a Trout lily (Erythronium japonicum) and then maybe a Viola tokubuchiana var. takedana
MtSogakuTrailBigPlantKazuya02RC.jpg
MtSogakuTrailBigPlantKazuya02RC
MtSogakuTroutLily04RC.jpg
MtSogakuTroutLily04RC
FromMtGozen_HinaSumire02RC.jpg
FromMtGozen_HinaSumire02RC

  In this row you can find a picture of a species of Chrysosplenium and 2 pictures of Viola phalacrocarpa - the Hill Violet. The Violets are really difficult to positively identify - first of all, there are way too many of them, and secondly, they hybridize very easily, so - the easiest way to tell the difference between these two - for example - is that this one is more fragrant than this one! How do you like that for identifying characteristics? If anybody knows of an authoritative book on Japanese Violets, please let me know.
DownMtGozen_Chrysosplenium_sp01RC.jpg
DownMtGozen_Chrysosplenium_sp
01RC
DownMtGozen_Viola_phalacrocarpa02RC.jpg
DownMtGozen_Viola_phalacrocarpa
02RC
DownMtGozen_Viola_phalacrocarpa05RC.jpg
DownMtGozen_Viola_phalacrocarpa
05RC

  First photo is a nice waterfall we ran into on the way down Mt. Gozen. The 2nd shot is another kind of Violet, and you gotta click on the next image and check out that greedy little Hover Fly - AMAZING!!
FromMtGozen_WaterFall01RC.jpg
FromMtGozen_WaterFall
01RC
FromMtGozen_PurpleEdgedWhiteVioletBRC.jpg
FromMtGozen_PurpleEdgedWhite
VioletBRC
ToMtSogaku_FudeRindou02BCropRC.jpg
ToMtSogaku_FudeRindou02B
CropRC

  The first 2 shots are taken on Mt. Takao on May 1st and show the male leaf and unopened flower buds of Helwingia japonica.The final shot shows the female leaf and flower.
MtTakao_HanaIkada01RC.jpg
MtTakao_HanaIkada
01RC
TakaoMay1_Helwingia_japonica_Male05RC.jpg
TakaoMay1_Helwingia_japonica_
Male05RC
TakaoMay1_Helwingia_japonica_Female04RC.jpg
TakaoMay1_Helwingia_japonica_
Female04RC

  The 1st shot is another female flower of Helwingia japonica. The 2nd shot is a repeat from last month - an Asarum caulescens. I wanted to show it again for comparison to the next 5 pictures. The 3rd shot is another species of Asarum. Can't positively identify it, too many species of Asarum around here. In this shot you'll notice a distinct difference in the leaves when compared with the next row. The flowers look very similar though.
TakaoMay1_Helwingia_japonica_Female05RC.jpg
TakaoMay1_Helwingia_japonica_
Female05RC
04_17_05HikageAsarum_caulescens05RC.jpg
04_17_05HikageAsarum_
caulescens05RC
TakaoMay1_Asarum_sp01cRC.jpg
TakaoMay1_Asarum_sp01cRC

  The first 2 shots are the same Asarum plant, one taken specifically for the flowers and the next one taken to show leaf detail. The 3rd shot was taken at Jindai Botanical Gardens. Ha, there was a sign which said Asarum tamaense, but there are 2 different species (this shot and first one in next row)! What good is the sign?! You can see - both the leaves AND the flowers are different.
TakaoMay1_Asarum_sp12RC.jpg
TakaoMay1_Asarum_sp12RC
TakaoMay1_Asarum_sp15c3RC.jpg
TakaoMay1_Asarum_sp15c3RC
Jindai_Asarum_sp01RC.jpg
Jindai_Asarum_sp01RC

  Here's the last Asarum plant - compare it to the final one in Row 9. On May 4th we went to Rikugien Gardens in Tokyo. It was the middle of the Golden Week Holiday, so it was rather crowded. It's kind of beautiful, but why the word "Gardens"? There aren't any gardens to speak of, it's mostly old growth forest. Anyway, interesting place, and you can see a few more pictures of it on the next page.
Jindai_Asarum_sp02_2RC.jpg
Jindai_Asarum_sp02_2RC
RikugienGardens24aRC.jpg
RikugienGardens24aRC
RikugienGardens02RC.jpg
RikugienGardens02RC

That's all on this page, please take the time to visit Page 2 to see the continuation of the trip to Rikugien Gardens plus the Okutama Old Road (Mukashi Michi) and other places. Go To Page:


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