How are spots formed?

Spots in plants are caused by areas of darker pigmentation, usually red anthocyanins.  Plants sometimes have paler spots on their leaves which are caused by an absence of chlorophyll and are discussed in my blog on Variegation.  This blog will focus on a few species with spots as I could never hope to cover all the spotted plants in one blog (or one lifetime!).  The spots seen on fungi relate to their anatomy rather than the chemistry of their colour.

Orchids

Many orchids have dark spots on their lowest petal, the labellum.  The labellum is the landing pad for potential pollinators and its shape plus these markings attract insects.  Most orchids are pollinated by beetles and hymenoptera.  These insects assume they will access nectar produced at the labellum base and in the spur behind the flower, but in many cases Dactylorhiza orchids are food-deceptive, luring the pollinators in (and being pollinated) without giving them a nectar reward. (First Nature)

Diagram showing the position of the labellum

Orchids: Early Marsh Orchid

One orchid that does this is the Early Marsh Orchid Dactylorhiza incarnata ssp coccinea.  Each flower has a pattern of spots on the labellum, guiding the potential pollinators to the pollen-producing heart of the flower.

Early Marsh Orchid Dactylorhiza incarnata ssp coccinea

Plants growing in areas with less nectar-producing neighbours, such as heaths and bogs, do better with their trickery than those surrounded by flowering plants who deliver on their visual advertising. (Dactylorhiza incarnata and deceptive pollination by Lammi and Kuitunnen 1995 in Oecologia)

Orchid flower of Early marsh orchid Dactylorhiza incarnata ssp coccinea

Orchids: Common spotted orchid Dactylorhiza fuchsii

The Common spotted-orchid appears early in the year and not only has spotted flowers but also spotted leaves.  These are not always present, in plants with paler flowers these are less likely to appear.  There is variation in the leaves, both in the intensity of the colour and the number and shape of the spots.  In some plants, there will be a paler area within each spot, giving the plant a leopard-like appearance.  The spots are created by the purple anthocyanin which may also flush the stems and leaf tips red.  The spots run cross-ways to the longitudinal veins.

Common spotted orchid Dactylorhiza fuchsii

Heath spotted orchid Dactylorhiza maculata and Southern Marsh Orchid Dactylorhiza praetermissa are closely related and may also have spotty leaves and flowers.

Heath spotted orchid Dactylorhiza maculata

Orchids: Bee orchid

It would be hard to find a spottier orchid than the Cycnoches guttulatum.  This epiphytic plant attracts the Orchid bee Euglossa cybelia and glues its pollen-filled pollinium onto the insect, ensuring cross pollination with other plants of the same species.

Orchid bee Euglossa cybelia with Cycnoches guttulatum orchid

Perforated St Johns wort Hypericum perforatum

St. John’s wort is also spotted, but this is not to do with pollination.  The little “holes” that pepper the leaves of this plant are glands which contain a cocktail of hypericin and other chemicals.  These are thought to dissuade insects from eating the leaves.

The flowers also have spots, or little dots.  These are black, and appear of the edges of the petals.  You can also see them on the calyx edges, and they appear in many Hypericum species.

Slend St. John’s wort Hypericum pulchrum

Foxglove Digitalis purpurea

Nectar guides appear on flowers to guide pollinators to the centre of the flower.  Many are invisible to us as they operate within the spectrum of light that bees and butterflies use, which includes UV light.  You can see these if you shine a UV torch on open flowers at night.  However, some flowers have spotty nectar guides that are easy for us to see.   One example of this is the Monkeyflower Mimulus bolanderi, another is the Foxglove.

Foxglove Digitalis purpurea

Nectar guides radiate outward from the nectar reward and the high contrast also helps attract potential pollinators.  Foxglove are interesting as they have a guard system to help keep out insects who would like to take their nectar but would be unable to carry pollen and help in pollination.  At the throat of each flower there are a few stiff bristles which prove no problem to bees and bumble-bees but deter smaller insects.  In fact, the hairs might help bees scramble into the flower.

Flower of the Foxglove showing the nectar-guide spots

Another way foxglove select their pollinator is by having the nectar reward at the very base of the flower.  This means only long-tongued bumblebees such as the Garden bumble bee Bombus hortorum can access it.  However, some bees bypass the security system by chewing holes in the base of the flower and stealing the nectar.  For more on Foxglove pollination, check out Ray Cannon’s blog.

Foxglove Digitalis purpurea flower with White tailed bumble bee Bombus leucorum

Research proves that nectar guides are important.  When covered up, the scent and shape of flowers still attracted pollinators.  But there was a significant reduction in the percentage of those who inserted their proboscis to access nectar and then to pollinate the flower. (Dennis Hansen 2011 Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Floral Signposts)

Lamiaceae: Skullcap

The Lamiaceae or nettle and mint family also have clear spotty nectar guides on their lower petals.  This can be seen clearly in the Skullcap Scutellaria galericulata.

Skullcap Scutellaria galericulata

In cross section, you can see the position of the pollen-laden anthers, directly above the spotted landing pad on the lower corolla lip.  In many of these flowers, the weight of the visiting insect will cause the flower to rock forward and deposit pollen on its back.  (For a more detailed look at the mechanics of these levers take a look at Floral Construction and Pollination Biology in Lamiaceae by Claßen-Bockhoff in the Annals of Botany 2007)

Cross section of Skullcap Scutellaria galericulata

Lamiaceae flowers are pollinated by bees 66% of the time; but ants, hawkmoth, flies, and butterflies also play a part. (Shrishail Kulloli in Nectar guides in Lamiaceae, Current Science 2011).

Lamiaceae: White deadnettle Lamium album

The White dead nettle also has small spots on its lower corolla lip.  In this case they’re green dots against white.

White dead nettle flowers Lamium album

White dead nettle also attract pollinators with scent, oil, lipids and polyphenols. (Lamium album and nectar guides by Aneta Sulborska-Rozycka et al 2023 in Micron).

Fungi: Fly agaric Amanita muscaria

It feels wrong to put a fungus in at the end of a blog about flowers as they are a whole other kingdom.  However, one HAS to include the Fly agaric in a blog on spots.

Fly agaric Fly agaric Amanita muscaria

The distinctive white spots on the cap of this iconic fungus do not seem to have any purpose, or not that I found literature on.  They are remnants of the universal veil, a white sheath that covers the fungus’ fruiting body as it grows from the ground.  The toadstool breaks through the sac, and small warts of white tissue remain.  These may wash off in the rain.

Fly agaric Amanita muscaria cap

Fly agaric are poisonous and packed full of hallucinogenic chemicals.  However, the red colouration doesn’t seem to suggest toxicity in fungus.  The Ox tongue fungus Fistulina hepatica and Crimson waxcap Hydrocybe punicea are both red and edible (the latter is rare so please don’t eat it).

It is interesting that such a stark colouration on a toxic fungus seems to have no link to warning colouration.  Such a pattern on a beetle, fish, or butterfly would probably be a warning of toxicity.

Completed illustration of Fly agaric with materials

Conclusion

This whistle-stop tour of spotted plants and fungi has shown that the most common reason for spots on plants it as a nectar guide for pollinators.  However, some spots are glands and others, such as the warts of Fly agaric, appear by chance.

Whatever their purpose, the spots that we find on plants and fungus are both stunning and a treat to illustrate.

The post Spotted Plants and Fungi appeared first on Lizzie Harper.

Overview of the Carbon Cycle

Reduced to its simplest form, the Carbon cycle describes the flow of Carbon, and the gas Carbon dioxide, through the organic processes that happen in our world.

The Oxford English dictionary definition of the Carbon cycle is, “The movement of carbon through the surface, interior, and atmosphere of the Earth. Carbon exists in atmospheric gases, in dissolved ions in the hydrosphere, and in solids as a major component of organic matter and sedimentary rocks.” So we’re already looking at Carbon in the air, in earth, in rocks, and in water.  As ions in solid and gas form.  Maybe that illustration won’t be so straight-forward after all.

Early thumbnail sketch trying to incorporate the different elements of the Carbon cycle

When plants and animals die, they rot down, depositing carbon into the soil.  This travels and seeps through the soil, and although some is used by micro-organisms, fungal hyphae, and roots in the soil; some turns into sedimentary rocks.  Over time, some will be compressed and form fossil fuels.

Now we need to introduce Carbon dioxide, a gas, into the cycle.  This is exhaled by animals, both below the soil on a microscopic scale, and on land (and in water and air), on microscopic and macroscopic scale. Carbon dioxide (CO2)  is used in photosynthesis.  This image is getting complicated.

Completed tree with roots, fungal hyphae, and leaf litter.  No gas clouds added…yet

The Carbon cycle and Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration

An extra and vital step in the Carbon cycle is the role of both photosynthesis, and respiration.  Photosynthesis occurs within green leaves and produces sugar and Oxygen in sunlight, created from water and Carbon dioxide.  Respiration is practised by all living organisms (including plants) and is almost a reversal of photosynthesis.  Oxygen and sugar are broken down to release ATP (whose purpose is defined in the Encyclopedia Britannica as, “ATP captures chemical energy obtained from the breakdown of food molecules and releases it to fuel other cellular processes.”)  By-products are CO2, and water.

Diagram showing the process of photosynthesis (purple arrows are glucose, red arrows CO2, pale blue arrows O2 and dark blue arrows show water)

Perhaps an easier way of showing photosynthesis is using an entire plant?  At this stage, I’m wondering how to streamline the cycle and manage to show all the elements involved.  Looking at work I’ve done in the past for other jobs (like this leaf and plant diagram) is really helpful, although provides no instant solution to the challenge.

Annotated Photosynthesis diagram using the Japanese Knotweed

Untangling the steps of the Cycle

Having got my head round what needs including, I have to decide the best way to do this.

I want the entire illustration to be more or less cyclical, although it’s not as clean-cut as perhaps an illustration of the water cycle might be.  So the central image needs to be a tree.  Let’s make it stately, with plenty of room under the soil for roots, and enough of a canopy above to give space to include information on photosynthesis and respiration.  I illustrated a tree which will provide the perfect scaffold for the cycle last year.

White Oak Quercus alba with stylized root system

Other images can be shown as vignettes.  It’s important to make this picture visually pleasing as well as comprehensible, so I’ll balance the vignettes.  One on either side below the soil.  A mirrored pair at soil level.  And two overlaid on the tree canopy.  Sounds like a plan.

Vignettes: Below the soil: Micro-organisms

One shows soil micro-organisms.  These use Carbon from the tree and the soil to build themselves.  They also release Carbon when they die, and as CO2 from respiration.  Organisms living in the soil like this are often tiny, and can be simplified to six main groups.  Bacteria, virus, algae, fungi, protists, and nematodes.  It goes without saying that there is vast variety in each group, and these vary from habitat to habitat.

Micro-organisms in the soil

So I show a simplified representative of each.  The virus look like spiky balls.  Bacteria are spherical or rod-shaped.  The fluffy spores and hyphae on the right represent fungus.  Protists are shown by the flagellates in the centre.  Algae are represented by the diatom at the top left and the volvox-like organism by the hyphae.  Wriggling behind, we have the head end of a nematode worm.

Vignettes: Below the soil: Roots

The sister vignette on the opposite side shows a close-up of a root-tip.  It grows (using Carbon), practises respiration (producing CO2) and dies (releasing Carbon).   I can’t really show it dying in such a small space.  I’m hoping accompanying text will cover this.  The root tip cells which slough off should suggest this senescence, if the viewer knows about root anatomy.  Each root cell has a cellulose cell wall, a central space or vacuole, and cytoplasm around the edge.  In truth this is a gross simplification.  Cells in the root tip can become Parenchyma cells, which absorb and carry nutrients.  Or they can be Sclerencyma cells, which form the cell wall.   In the cytoplasmic matrix are all the cell’s organelles, along with a nucleus.

Cellular image of a root tip

The lateral projections are tiny root hairs.  These increase the surface area of the root, and allow for absorption of water and nutrients from the surrounding soil.

At the tip of the root you find the root cap.  This area is vital to plants.  Information as to gravitational and growth response occurs here, along with responses to different external environmental stimuli.  The root cap also protects the growing meristem cells.  Root cap cells are short-lived, being sloughed off  and destroyed as they nose their way through tough soil particles.  In the root cap you also have acidic hydrogen ions.  These break down the soil chemically, which allows minerals and nutrients to be absorbed by the root hairs.  For more on the structure of root tips, please visit the ehow site, or this overview from the Journal of Experimental Biology (June 2015, Kumf and Nowak).

Vignettes at Soil level: Detritovores

Mirrored vignettes at soil level show detritovores which break down Carbon from fallen leaves and twigs.  These are just flipped around the central axis of the tree trunk.  The creatures in this assemblage also breathe, exhaling CO2.  When they die, they release Carbon back into the soil.  And, of course, they use Carbon in the soil to build and grow themselves.

This is my favourite part of the illustration.  I get to cram lots of delicious invertebrates into this vignette.  Despite my best efforts, this illustration only touches the surface of the animals that make their home in the leaf litter and surface layers of soil.  As before, it’s grossly simplified.  Every habitat, in fact every plant, may have a different assemblage of detritovores associated with it.  This activity from Scientific American tells you how to see what decomposers are in your local patch of leaf litter.

Detritovores in the leaf litter

Representatives I include here are based on invertebrates I find most often when scrabbling about in leaf litter.  And ones I love illustrating.  So there are snails and slugs.  Spiders and mites.  We have a woodlouse (I love woodlice as they carry their developing young around with them, slung in a brood pouch).  And an earthworm.  I could have included another Nematode, but the scale made it tricky.  We have ground beetles, some of whom are ferocious predators, capable of slicing a slug in half with one snip of their mandibles.

Earwigs scuttle about, as do the remarkable Psedoscorpions.  There are millipedes and centipedes.

Detritovores that don’t get included

As with all of these vignettes, it has to be simplified.  Remember in fact that even within this assemblage you have herbivores (like the millipede) and carnivores (like the centipede).  Hunters (like the ground beetle and spider) and prey (the slug).  You even have parasitic relationships going on, with mites exploiting ground beetles.

Centipede

Some sources, such as Frontiers, prefer to show the leaf litter as a cycle in its own right.  This makes sense, especially when we remember that there are the same micro-organisms at play in the leaf litter, along with fungal and tree activity.

Lots of fabulous invertebrates, like springtails, thrips and ants, failed to make the cut.  For an overview on detritovores by the Biology dictionary, click here.

Soil level: The importance of fungus

At soil level, other things need to be included if we’re going to see the Carbon cycle as a whole.  Fungus is front and centre.  It’s only comparatively recently that the intense and vital relationship between roots of plants and of fungus is coming into view.  Brilliant books like “Entangled Life” by Merlin Sheldrake have popularised it, and we’re now realising that fungus plays a massive role in allowing communities of trees and other plants to communicate at a sub-soil level.

Irrelevant of communication, fungus are also indispensable to the carbon cycle.  Their hyphae spread out under the soil, going massively further than the surface-level fruiting bodies might suggest.

Fungus with hyphae diagram

These mycelium break down wood and other organic matter.  They can also store and disperse these nutrients.  At this point in my research I also clocked that, if I was going to do this right, I ought to tie in the Nitrogen and Phosphorous cycles.  But you have to draw a line somewhere!  Mycelium move Carbon and other nutrients cover vast networks, using them for their own growth and delivering them to plant roots.  It’s well understood that plant and fungal roots are symbionts.  For more on how these sharing networks can be studies, check out “The role of wood decay fungi in the carbon and nitrogen dynamics of the forest floor” by Watkinson, Bebber et al (2009)

Fungus in my Carbon cycle illustration

I choose a few representative fungal species I see often in leaf litter.  These include notorious wood rotting species like the Honey fungus Armillaria mellea, which attacks living as well as dead wood.  There’s a representative Russula species, and a Shaggy Ink cap Coprinus comatus.

Fungus in the Carbon cycle

I also include the Fly agaric (on the opposite side of the illustration), because it’s so instantly recognizable as “fungi”.  This is disingenuous.  Agarics have lost the enzymes needed to decompose leaf litter, and are wholly reliant on their tree hosts for nutrients.  With the network or entangled roots described above, they’re the epitome of a symbiotic relationship between tree and fungus.  The fungus carry nutrients to the tree, the tree feeds the Fly agaric. (Read more on this on Woodlands.uk blog).

Fly agaric Amanita muscaria

I pop in some representative lichen.  Lichen is a symbiotic organism, composed of algae and fungus (or cyanobacteria).  Their role in the Carbon cycle is less as a decomposer, but more as a Nitrogen and Carbon fixer. They’re vital to both cycles, so need including, but on a diagram of this scale there’s no space to explain that rather than rotting down wood and leaves, they’re more important for their role as photosynthesizers.  The same is true of the tufts of moss I include.

Soil level: Larger animals and death

Obviously, it’s not just the micro-organisms and invertebrates in the leaf litter that contribute to the Carbon cycle.  Larger animals exhale CO2, and when they rot, they’re turned back into Carbon and basic nutrients by animals living in the leaf litter.  Some specialised creatures, like the rather glorious Sexton beetles, have eveolved to fit this ecological niche. I choose a rabbit as my larger animal representative, and just the other side of a log, I add some bones to show how death and decay feed into the cycle.

Bones

Soil level: Leaves

It’s self-evident, but probably worth mentioning that the main component of leaf litter is…leaves.  There are twigs, branches, dead detritovores and a host of other goodies in leaf litter.  But your main component are leaves.  These need to be shown as they rot down, but also falling from the tree, bringing their own personal packet of Carbon to the ground.

Falling leaves adding to the leaf litter layer

I include leaves from other species too, easily representing this in a simplified form by varying the leaf margins.  I make some fresh and green, and others browned or yellowing, referring to the glut of carbon-rich leaves which fall every autumn.

Now, finally, we can cast our eyes upward.

Vignettes at Sky level: Photosynthesis and Respiration

I want to include visual information on Photosynthesis, but representing it in diagrammatic form proves tricky, and too complicated.  This is also true of Respiration.

Initial Thumbnail rough Carbon cycle

I’m relieved when the client asks if we can replace the leaf cross sections you can see in the rough above with the equation for each process.  However, I don’t want the space around each equation to feel dead, so I provide simplified motifs for Carbon dioxide, Oxygen, Sugars (C6 H12 O6), Water (H2O), and ATP.

Simplifying photosynthesis

For the record, the equation for Photosynthesis, which occurs thanks to chlorophyll, in the presence of sunlight, is CO2 + H2O = O2 + C6 H12 O6 (glucose).  Respiration, occurring in plants as well as animals, is O2 + C6H12O6 = H2O + CO2 +release of ATP.  And no, I’m not tempted to get into the details of how turning ATP into ADP gives living organisms the energy they need to exist!  If you want more on that chemical process, also known as Hydrolysis, find it here.

Simplifying respiration

The last thing that needs adding to the carbon cycle illustration is, oddly, a suggestion of day and night.  This is because photosynthesis can only occur in the presence of sunlight.  And, in most plants, respiration occurs mainly at night.  I add a little sun above the Photosynthesis equation, and although I want to add a little moon above the respiration one, this is vetoed by the client.

Done.

Annotated Carbon cycle illustration

Conclusion

So several rabbit holes and a whole lot of research later, I finish my Carbon cycle illustration.  It’s too simple and doesn’t reflect the complexity of nature.  It fails to reference the interactions between the Nitrogen, Phosphate and Carbon cycle.  It doesn’t show the ongoing inter actions on a smaller scale, or how each living animal is exhaling CO2, and rotting down to Carbon after death.  I’ve more or less left out the Carbon getting trapped in soil, and rocks.  I’ve only given a superficial nod to the accumulation of carbon in the soil in rocks which get compressed to form fossil fuels  And when I introduce arrows, I feel the whole image becomes more, rather than less complicated.  But nature doesn’t keep to clean, proscriptive shapes; there are endless exchanges on a smaller level, and fascinating details like fungus, lichen, and insect parasitism to consider.

Finished and annotated carbon cycle

However, as an exploration and an illustration to accompany those four little words,. “illustrate the Carbon Cycle”?  I think it’ll do.

And here it is, on the pages of the Tradgardens Klimatnytta brochure, produced by Riksforbundet Svensk Tradgard.  The brochure will be published soon.

Carbon cycle page from the TRÄDGÅRDENS KLIMATNYTTA brochure, produced by Riksforbundet Svensk Tradgard

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British earthstar Geastrum britannicum

The British earthstar is one of a family of fungus, the Geastraceae.  Related to puffballs, they all have the same distinctive shape, with rays supporting a central spore sac.  There are 15 UK species, and  can be found in the colder months, making them a good target for winter wildlife forays.  Many appear in churchyards, as with our British Earthstar.

They differ in the size and shape and colour of the spore sac, the way the rays (basal supports) present, and in habitat.  For more on UK earthstars, check out the Discover Wildlife magazine article by wildlife author and naturalist Phil Gates.

British Earthstar: Species identification

Our British earthstar has a distinctive brown spore sac, carried high on a stalk above the rays.  There are 4 or 5 rays; these are pale, and recurved, resembling legs. They grow out of matted hyphae and organic matter at the base of the fungus.  The most important distinguishing features of this species are the ring and inner halo around the base of the beak (the pointed bit at the middle of the spore sac).  The beak itself is grooved and erect when fresh, and is “fimbriate”, meaning it emerges from a fringe at the top of the spore sac.

British earthstar Geastrum britannicum

The spore sac sometimes has a mica-like patina on its’ surface, and sometimes a hanging loose collar appears.  Spores are all  smaller than other Earthstars, being 3 – 3.5 micrometers.

It’s easy to muddle up Earthstars, and it’s only when all these indicators are combined that you can assume you’ve got a G. britannicum.  This is especially likely if the fungus you’re examining is growing in a graveyard, and near Yew.

This fungus was only “discovered” in 2015; before then it was probably lumped in with other Earthstar species.  But for now, although mycologists believe it may well be quite common, it has only been recorded on a few UK sites.  Including Cusop churchyard.  It made newspaper headlines when it was first discovered!

For more on this Earthstar check out Jeremy Bartlett’s blog and photos; and for more on the discovery of this species, check out page 9 of the Herefordshire Fungal Survey Group’s spring 2015 newsletter.

Plums and Custard Fungus Tricholomopsis rutilans

This is not a rare or newly discovered fungus, but is beautiful nonetheless.   It’s a member of the Tricholomas family whose members include the Grey Knight Tricholoma pardinum and Coalman mushroom Tricholoma portentosum, among many others.  They grow in woodland, and all have white spores, pale flesh, and mostly carry gills which grow into the stipe.

This species is found across Europe and in North America, and also Australia (where it’s thought to be a non-native introduction).  Like many fungi, Plums and custard are saprophytes, feeding off dead wood.

Illustrating Plums and Custard

Plums and Custard: Species identification

Sometimes known as “Strawberry mushroom”, it has a very distinctive pink-red colouring.  It grows amongst moss, often under confer trees (and Yew).  Large groups are often clustered together, growing in thick green moss and looking very photogenic.

Gills are bright yellow, crowded closely together, and wide; however, the spores are white.  Unlike many other Tricholomas, the gills barely run into the stipe .  The cap colour is  yellow thoroughly speckled with tiny red scales which are often seen emanating radially from the centre of the cap.  The cap itself is convex and domed in young specimens, and flattens with age, occasionally becoming almost completely flattened.

In dry weather, the scales can crack into tiny mosaics of red, exposing the yellow flesh beneath.

Plums and Custard Fungus Tricholomopsis rutilans

Stems are white, or pale, with more red-purple scales, especially towards the base of the stipe.  The fungus smells of rotting wood, and is not considered edible.

For more on this species, please check out the i.d page on First Nature’s site.

Holly parachute fungus Marasmius hudsoni

The first thing to notice about this fungus is how exceedingly tiny it is.  Although considered rare, this is quite possibly because it’s so frequently overlooked.

A member of the Marasmiaceae, it grows on moist old holly leaves, often in the shelter of hedges.

The stems are slender and either clear or flushed red toward the base, and may have long hairs (setae).  The cap is white and convex, although it may flatten with age, and has long setae scattered across it which catch water droplets.  Caps are up to 5mm across, often much smaller.  At the base of the stipe is an area of blackish rhizomes.  Spores are white and tiny.

Unlike many other fungus, it doesn’t necessarily grow in groups, but often has quite a solitary habit.

For more on this beautiful little fungus, please check out First Nature’s page, where you’ll find the fabulous comment:  “Culinary Notes: The Holly Parachute mushroom is so diminutive and insubstantial that any attempt to make even a mushroom morsel never mind a meal would be quite ludicrous.”

Holly parachute fungus Marasmius hudsoni

Conclusion

Doubtless there are many, many other fungi growing in Cusop churchyard.  But these three were flagged up as the most fascinating, and unusual.  What with the rarity of Holly Parachute and Earthstar records, and the beautiful colours on the Plums and Custard, it’s another reminder that we should keep our eyes open when we visit churchyards.  Caring for God’s Acre is a charity dedicated to supporting nature in UK churchyards.  They are well worth investigating and supporting.  I also like their work because I was lucky enough to illustrate the lower plants and common graveyard wild flowers on an identification guide for them!

The post Fungal treats at Cusop Churchyard appeared first on Lizzie Harper.

There are two main Birch trees in the UK, the Silver birch Betula pendula and the Downy birch Betula pubescens.  The Downy birch tends to grow better in wetter areas and in the north.  The Silver birch likes drier soils and is often found growing ornamentally in gardens and cities.

Both reach heights of 30m and can have a 20m spread.

They are pioneer species, easy to recognise, represent guardianship and fertility, and they are used to make everything from shoes to bobbins.  Birch also treats ailments as diverse as gout and skin disorders.

Birch trees support over 300 insect species, and birch woodland provides a wonderful habitat for woodland flowers.

This is one of a series of blogs I’m writing on common British trees.  You can also see blogs on the Elder, the Yew, the Ash, the Oak, the Holly, the Sycamore, the Rowan, the Beech, and the Hawthorn.

Identification: Tree shape

Birches have a slender shape, and twigs which can droop.

They are often the first to colonize a landscape which has been devastated by fire or deforestation.  When it comes to re-wilding, scrubby birch wood is often the first step.  This makes them pioneer species, settling the land and making it accessible to other plant species.

Birch is the commonest tree in Scotland, and the Downy birch stretches way up into the arctic.  For more on trees growing in such inhospitable climates, check out my blog on illustrating The Treeline by Ben Rawlence.

Identification: Leaves

Leaves are more or less triangles, with toothed margins.  Each leaf is up to 6cm long, and shiny green.  In autumn they turn to a bright, pale yellow.

Downy birch have less jagged margin teeth than the Silver birch, and the leaves are diamond-shaped, and less rounded.  However, the two birches frequently hybridize, hence me popping them into the same blog.

Identification: Flowers

The birch is monoecious, which means it carries male and female flowers on the same plant.   These are wind pollinated catkins.  Male catkins are yellowish, and grow through the winter maturing as the birch leaves grow in spring, then dropping.  These are long catkins, easily visible, and carried in groups of 3 or 4 at the tips of the shoots.

Catkins of the DownyBirch

Female catkins are smaller, and bright green.  They’re borne upright and flower in April through May,

Catkins of the Silver birch

Identification: Fruit

After pollination, the female catkin thickens and develops a dark crimson colour.  Masses of tiny seeds are released from this fruit, and borne off in the wind.

Fruiting catkins of the Downy birch

Identification: Bark

Silver birch bark is what gives the tree its name.  It’s paper white, and can be peeled from the tree in sheets.  There are often dark diamonds present, and older trees may have far darker trunks, especially towards the tree base.

The white colour reflects UV light, some suggest it works like a sunscreen in areas where reflected light from the snow can be blinding.

Buds are long, purplish and pointed.

Twigs are drooping and smooth, with dark warts.  The shoots of Silver and Downy birch can be used to tell them apart.  Silver birch shoots are smooth with warts, whereas those of Downy birch are rough, warty, and covered in short, downy hair.

Similar species

The white bark sets these trees apart from others, and the little triangular leaves with their jagged edges are unlike other large tree leaves.

Most sources suggest the main problem here is telling your Downy form your Silver birch, other species don’t get a mention!

History: Folklore

The Birch is seen as a guardian tree, and a way to keep evil spirits at bay.

Baby cradles would be made form birch to keep the devil away, and people would bring bundles of birch wood into their homes at Halloween to repel the evil spirits.  Birch brooms swept out dirt, but also got rid of the devil, and a garland of birch twigs might be hung over the door for protection.

However, witches broomsticks were also meant to be birch wood, so there’s some disconnect there.

Birch is also closely linked to fertility.  Using a switch of birch on a heifer would either ensure she got pregnant, or that the calf was healthy.

In Britain, if a couple wished to live together but not marry, they could step over a birch broomstick together.  Once done, they could live as man and wife.

When Beltaine came around on May 1st, with all its’ links to spring and fertility, it would be the Birch tree chosen as the wood for the maypole.  In some places, this festival meant any legal bonds between couples could be lifted for 24hrs, and there was frequently a spike in birth-rate at the start of the following February.  It will come as no surprise that these practices left the Christian church apoplectic, but powerless to do much about it.

Birch also relates to motherhood and femininity.  Russian folklore has the Birch as the “Lady of the Woods”, while there are close links between the Irish goddess Brigid and the Birch.  Brigid was the goddess of poetry, something of a muse, and responsible for spinning and weaving.

History: Mankind and Birch wood

Birch wood is pale and soft and not very durable.  It’s used for walking sticks and broom handles, and makes good charcoal.  It also makes good skateboards!  Bobbins and spinning reels were made of birch wood, back in the days of the Lancashire Cotton industry.

The bark has been used to make a plethora of things.  Sheets of bark were perfect as paper substitutes.  Applied to roofs, it provided a level of waterproofing against the rain.  You could mould the bark into shoes, or use strips woven together to make baskets for soft fruit.

Canoes and boats, hats, firelighters, and rolled bark candles were all made from Birch bark.

Powdered birch helped ensure you had a pale complexion.

Leaves yield a reddish dye, while the catkins provide a sunshine yellow colour.

History: Food and Medicine

The sap of the Birch was gathered and made into wine.  This was fed to those afflicted with kidney stones, or urinary tract infections.

Tea made from birch leaves worked on gout and again on kidney stones.  The leaves are indeed full of flavonoids, a type of anti-oxidant.

Birch bark oil was used to treat skin disorders like eczema and psoriasis; the same substance was used to waterproof boats.

In the north, after a sauna you can stimulate circulation by beating yourself with a birch stick.  And, while we’re on the topic of beating, the dreaded old school cane was often made of birch.

Birch and Wildlife

Birch woodland has a light, airy canopy.  This proves excellent for wild flowers like Wood anemone, Violets, Bluebell, and Wood sorrel, as well as for mosses.

Over 300 insect species are associated with birch, including a lot of aphid species.  In turn, this means that Birch trees are great for ladybirds who feast on the aphids.  Moths such as Angleshades, Buff tip, and Kentish Glory have Birch as host plant for their caterpillars.

Birds use the birch too; siskin and greenfinch eat the seeds while woodpecker nest in tree cavities.

Fungus are common on the woodland floor with Fly agaric, Woolly milk cap, Chanterelle, and the Birch polypore closely associated with the birch.

Fly agaric Amanita muscaria

Threats

The threats to Birch in the UK are limited,  Plantations can fall prey to Birch dieback, which is caused by two fungal species.  However, self-seeded trees seem more immune.

As with every single species, the climate emergency presents challenges to birch trees living very far north.  However, it’s probably the Downy birch tree’s incremental growth further and further northward that forms a more immediate ecological threat.

Conclusion

Birch are elegant ornamental trees, instantly recognised thanks to their white bark.

With links to protection and fertility, and the ability to heal skin diseases and be used for building canoes, it’s a fascinating tree.

The most common tree in the whole of Scotland, and stretching across vast swathes of the planet, the Birch is worthy of our respect, and love.

Online sources for this blog include websites of The Woodland Trust, Kew’s Plants of the World, Tree guide UK, Trees for life, and Naturespot.  Reference books for this blog include the excellent The Greenwood Trees by Christina Hart-Davies  , and the Reader’s Digest The Field Guide to the Trees and Shrubs of Britain (out of print but commonly available second-hand).  I also referred to The Tree Forager by Adele Nozedar and The Living Wisdom of Trees by Fred Hageneder.

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I draw and paint a wide range of different species for publishers, charities, packaging, ad companies, and design agencies. I am expected to know something (often a lot!) about the plants and animals I’m commissioned to illustrate.  As well as art school, I was lucky enough to do a Zoology degree, but this was many years ago now and a good deal of what I learned is now out of date.

Why Learn more?

Topping up my botanical and natural history knowledge is vital, and one of the best (and most fun) ways I’ve found to do this is by taking FSC Courses.  The more I know about a plant or an animal, the better able I am to understand it, and fit its form to its function.  More understanding means better natural history illustration.

Illustration of a Tulip with specimen, paint box, and brushes

Over the past ten years I’ve taken a wide range of FSC courses.  In all cases the tutors are enthusiastic and accessible, and the courses have taught me loads.  Everyone on the sessions is fired up with the same passion for nature as me.  It’s a comfortable and fun way to learn.

FSC Courses this year: Ants

This year I’ve fallen head first into loving ants, after a job illustrating the Wood Ants of the Cairngorm National Parks, which made me realise how little I knew about these amazing insects.  One FSC course led to another.  And another.  I’ve now invested in a lovely new microscope and have a three day residential course on identifying UK ants lined up, with Richard Becker.

Shining Guest ant Formicoxenus nitidulus

Other ant experts that’ve got me hooked this year are Gino Brignoli and Mike Fox.  See, that’s another amazing thing about these courses.  You often get taught by experts in the field, scientists and ecologists who are currently working, and provide these sessions on the side.  This means what we get taught is current, and relevant.

I love having the space and time to draw as I look at specimens through the microscope, and having such knowledgeable tutors on hand to help with learning and identification.

Annotated sketchbook page: Formicinae ants have hairs and an acidipore hair collar

The ant courses are part of an incredible array of online and in-person sessions offered by FSC called Biolinks, running from 2018 – 2022.  Funding allowed the organisers to keep costs absurdly cheap, and meant the courses were accessible to everyone.

Other FSC Courses this year

I’ve also taken plenty of other courses not under the biolinks umbrella.

This summer I did a fabulous course on identifying grasses with Fiona Gomersall.  This helped me sort my sedges from my grasses, and rushes.  I also learned how to immediately spot lots of common UK grass species, both in flowering and vegetative states.  This proved massively useful when I taught a two-day botanical illustration workshop on Painting Grasses at Cambridge University Botanic Gardens.

Grasses False Oat Crested Dogs-tail Cocks-foot and Yorkshire Fog

I’ve also taken courses on Social wasps with Ian Cheeseborough, and worms with Keiran Brown; accessing online ones too, on subjects as diverse as the Biodiversity of Knepp, Soil health and dung beetles, and the importance of the Yellow Meadow-ant to ecosystem health.

Earthworm Lumbricus terrestris 

Past FSC Courses

Another great thing about the FSC courses is how widely spread they are, geographically.  They have 24 centres across the UK, and a wide array of courses available at all of them.  I’ve only been to a few sites; but want to take in Slapton Ley in Devon, Rhyd-y-creuau in North Wales, and Millport in Scotland.

In past years, I’ve loved learning about Pollinators down in Bushy Park in London, having a day in Epping Forest learning about bats, learning about Spiders at Bishop’s wood, and doing a residential course on Rocky shore ecosystems at Dale Fort.

Nursery web spider Pisaura mirabilis

The focus on invertebrates reflects my favourite subject area rather than what’s on offer.  And it has to be said that despite them being mammals, I was really pleased to learn lots about bats.  I went with my sister; I bought her the course as a Christmas present and we both had an excellent day learning about how to help bats, UK species, and getting to use bat detectors to tell what species were swooping over a nearby lake at dusk.

Daubenton’s bat Myotis daubentonii

A particular favourite was the Slugs course at Bishop’s Wood with Chris de Feu. Evolution of slugs, slug variety, media misrepresentation of slugs (no, really.  And it was interesting too!), the fact that slugs evolved from snails not the other way around….it totally changed the way I see these maligned invertebrates.

Green cellar slug Limacus maculatus live specimen examining my illustration

The Rocky shore ecosystem course was wonderful.  I learned a ridiculous amount, got to paddle about and find Pipe fish and Blue ray limpets, and chatted with a lot of lovely like-minded people as well as the expert tutor, John Archer-Thompson.

The best bit was that right after the course, I was commissioned to illustrate a Rocky Shore ecosystem for The Hidden Universe by Alex Antonelli, so I had all the information needed at my fingertips.

Rocky shore line ecosystem zonation of species detail

Natural History and Life-long Learning at FSC: I love it!

For me, learning about the natural world is thrilling, and fills me with wonder.  It re-charges my batteries, and helps remind me why nature is so important to me on a personal and professional level.  It’s also very helpful with my job.  I take copious notes when I’m doing courses, and often use these to write up blogs afterwards.  These provide me with invaluable reference when out of the blue I’m asked to illustrate a harvestman, or some sphagnum moss.

Moss: Sphagnum capillifolium

Every year I sit down with the FSC catalogue (or online) and flip through.  It’s like being a child in a sweetie shop.  I set a budget and mercilessly keep to it, despite temptation to throw financial cares out of the window.  Often I feel like doing nothing but courses all year long. (Saying that, the courses offer great value for money, I think, even when not subsidised).  Different subjects appeal at different times.  I’ve barely scratched the surface of the FSC birds, mammals, and fungi courses.

Edible fungi an array of seven edible species including the parasol

I guess that’s what I love about these courses.  There’s always so much more to learn and be inspired by.  It’s so easy to simply sign up and go along.  And change the way you feel about a whole new corner of the natural world.

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Drawing up the Fly agaric

First up, draw it.  I want to focus on the stem (stipe), so take reference from photos on how the ring (annulus) attaches to the stem.  Then I draw it up in pencil.  I like pentel P205 automatic pencils with an 0.5mm HB lead; and work onto fabriano artistico 100% cotton hot press paper.

The stipe is being eaten by a slug, so I pin it back together with an insect pin, and prop it up on a pile of stuff.  This means it holds its shape.

Painting the stipe (stalk) of the Fly agaric

I look at the stipe for a while before applying colour, and settle on a mix of yellow ochre, van dyke brown, and a touch of permenant violet.  I favour daler rowney or winsor and newton watercolours, and always use my trusty series 7 sable watercolour brush (no.1 size).

The base colour on the stipe is done.  Next I work into the soil and grass attached to the stipe’s tacky surface, and the swollen base of the stipe.  The soil is hard, lots of tiny dark brown spots.  They’re not regular sizes but vary.  Each area of earth has to be examined with a hand lens.

Illustrating the cap: Base colours

Next, I start work on the cap.  I take the liberty of adding some extra white scales as there’s loads of variation within different specimens.  Often they are far “spottier” than this one.  I plot the basic colour, and make sure I leave any paler areas where the light falls as white.  I’m using a mix of cadmium orange light and cadmium orange dark; along with a touch of yellow.  As always, I build up the depth of colour with tiny repeated brush strokes; these follow the shape of the object (and direction of growth).

Painting the lighter areas of the Fly agaric cap

Working into the lighter areas, I stick to pure cadmium yellow light and make sure there are colour gradations by overlapping the orange areas with the yellow.

The white scales cast shadows as they’re raised and textured.  I plot in these shadows and details.

Working into the darks on the cap

Darks.  I mix cadmium orange light and dark with alizarin crimson and layer on more colour.  This time I only paint the very darkest areas of the cap.  These are near the centre and  edges.

Working more into the cap, I try to make the areas of dark and white less stark by using cadmium orange and yellow, and doing lots of overlapping strokes.  I also put in the gills under the cap.  As I progress it is necessary to keep looking at the tonal shodows on the stipe and darkening them too.  This is done with a vandyke brown and yellow ochre mix.

I also make the grass attached to the stipe more orange than it is in reality.  This is a trick which allows the viewer’s gaze to travel across the whole painting rather than getting stuck on one area of vibrant colour.

Adding a top wash: An error of judgement?

I think perhaps my next step is an error.  I usei a light wash of Doctor Martin watercolour inks (scarlet plus orange) to add a kick to the cap colour.  As always, the lightest region is left white.  However, I think it swallows some of the tonal detail of the painting.  As a result so I need to go and work into the cap shadows again.

I also introduce a pale drop shadow below the gills and  annulus.  This is violet, van dyke brown, and a touch of ultramarine.

I also put a very light wash of the cap colour on the base of the stipe.   Again, this tricks the eye into including it when you look at the painting.

And here’s the final illustration.  The colours differ as this is a scan, not a photo.  You can see where I’ve worked into the darks again, and finished up the grass blade on the cap.  I tweaked the margin of the cap (which is a jazzy pale yellow sliced with scarlet) and darkened the darkest darks (middle of cap, junction with gills, bottom of stipe.)

It was a lovely specimen to paint, and went really fast; I manage to get it done in 5 hours, which is quite quick for me.  It’s definitely given me a taste to paint more, specially as the flowers are dying in the autumn rains…  For more of my fungal illustrations, check out my blog.

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How cool are fungus?  Very cool

“Check out these beautiful fungus that Lizzie has drawn. It is a little-known fact that fungi are probably the greatest species on the planet. Philosophically, biologically and edibly, they outstrip anything else by quite some distance (except possibly bamboo, but that is a subject for another day). Consider the following:

Field Mushroom by Lizzie Harper

Fungus as recyclers

Fungi are nature’s ultimate recyclers. Without them, we would be buried miles deep in unbiodegradable organic matter. Imagine all those twigs we’d have to climb through in order to reach the sun. But it’s not just twigs – fungi can eat just about anything and turn it into something more useful, anything from shoe polish to radioactive material. In the wake of Fukushima, mycological genius Paul Stamets has posited a ‘Nuclear Forest Recovery Zone’, harnessing the radioactive-reducing properties of fungi such as Gomphidius Glutinosus.

Fungus as Art

Fungal artist Phil Ross claims that ‘the future is fungal‘. He once made an archway using bricks formed from Reishi mushrooms in a Dusseldorf art gallery. The fungal bricks were boiled down and served to visitors as an immune system-boosting tea to visitors. What other organism offers this combination of artistry, functionality and health benefit? You could argue that bamboo comes close, but apart from that it’s hard to think of any.

Mycotectural Alpha, a tea house grown from the fungi Ganoderma lucidum, by Phil Ross.

A note of the Caterpillar Fungus

Some people spend their entire lives studying just one mushroom, for example, Cordyceps sinensis, also known as the caterpillar fungus. This fiendish fungi eats insects, such as caterpillars.. In Tibet, up to 60% of the population gathers these mummified specimens – 10 fungally murdered caterpillars can provide a weekly wage, since they are treasured in Chinese medicine. In fact this parasitic mushroom is the primary commodity of Tibet.

Pink Meadow Waxcap by Lizzie Harper

Hallucinogenic fungus

Meanwhile, hallucinogenic mushrooms underpin many of the world’s shamanic cultures, as well as being responsible for 37% of fairy tales. The two things are not unconnected. Alice in Wonderland appears to be the result of Charles Dodgson’s tripping mind, while the red and white of Father Christmas’s costume may lend more to Amanita Muscaria than Coca-Cola’s branding.

Fly Agaric fungus by Lizzie Harper

More Inspirational fungus

Also, the fastest organism on the planet is a type of mushroom called Pilobilus Crystallinus, or the hat-thrower.

I could go on. In fact I will. There’s a company making lightweight, biodegradable, indestructible packaging materials out of mushrooms.

Crimson waxcap by Lizzie Harper

And have you tried half a kilo of St George’s mushrooms, semi-illegally foraged from the grounds of a castle, fried up in butter with cream, garlic and parsley and served on toast?

There’s so much more to learn about fungus!

We don’t even have names for 90% of the planet’s fungi. Even among the world’s known fungal stock we’ve identified fungi that can eat polyurethane; fungi that produce biofuel as a waste product; and fungi that relieve cancer symptoms. And those are just the fungi we know about. If we understood the properties of the other 90%, we would probably be immortal.

Wood Blewit by Lizzie Harper (this one is edible.  How cool?)

In most people’s minds, the mushroom occupies a small corner reserved for ‘pizza toppings and vaguely poisonous things’. Can I humbly suggest, on behalf of the fungal kingdom, that this is not good enough.

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First was a day studying Lichen and fungi with Ray Woods, a mycological expert, at Gilfach.  Organised by Radnorshire Wildlife Trust; we got to search for fungus, learn about their biology and classification, and have lots of cups of tea.  The part on lichen was equally amazing as we learnt about fungi competing for symbiotic algal species needed to become a “lichen”, and got to key out species with the help of a dissecting microscope.

Today was the Fungal Rummage, at Wooton Devreaux farm organised by Dave Prescott of Hereford New Leaf.  Talks about the usefulness and wonder of fungi (for example this amazing insectivorous one) were preceded by a nature walk where we found lots of different species, and had a good go at keying some out. Tea and cake, and a good turnout made this a brilliant event that I was proud to be involved with.

Work wise, I’ve finished the proper rough of the dragonflies, and am now following up feedback before getting onto the painting stage.

I’m pleased with the composition; the dragonflies and nymphs forming a loose oval which should keep the eye moving around the whole illustration.

A new job’s come in, hen harriers chasing a red grouse in moorland.  I’m looking forward to getting going on that one.

I’ve also been sorting through my reference, a hideous and seemingly endless task which needs doing every few months.  Alphabetical files, glue, hole punches, and scissors sprawl across my desk.  But next time I need an image of cows grazing in a river, or a reed bunting; I’ll know exactly where to find them!

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