An Unknown in Nature

This week's task was interesting for me.  I was looking for something I couldn't identify in nature, and there are many things that would fill that bill!  The challenge would be to capture enough of the characteristics in a few photographs so that others could help me with the identification.

I decided to go out for a jog in the woods and look for 'unknowns"!  Quickly, the problem presented itself.  There were so many choices; what should I photograph?  The first thing that caught my eye on this sunny but chilly early morning run was a patch of moss on the trail with its reproductive structures??  Are there different species of moss?  Could I figure this out from my photo?  Oops.  I forgot to bring my camera, so I would have to return home to get it.  And a ruler.  The assignment required a scale object in the photo to help with identification.  Quickly I ran home, not wanting to lose the morning light.  Since this was a photography class, I was working on improving the lighting in my photos.

What kind of moss is this?

After taking the photo, I continued on my loop run and found another interesting object.  But this one I knew!  It is important to me as I help teachers discover nature because so many people think it is poison ivy.  It is "leaves of three"...but many things are.  I love to pick a leaflet in front of the teachers, crush it, and put it under my nose. It smells so good to me.  When I do, they realize it is not poison ivy but a look-alike plant.

Can you name this plant?

But close by, another plant caught my eye.  I wasn't sure what it was, and it didn't have a flower, but I thought it could be identified from the distinctive inflorescence.

There were several curved branches where the compact cluster of flowers had been; now, the flowers had finished blooming and gone to seed.  I looked carefully at the leaf.  It had a strong central vein, slight serrated edges, and was tapered at the base and tip.

The entire plant was bout 2 1/2 feet tall.  Notice the blue ruler in the ground by the plant.  Note to self:  next time try a white ruler; it would show up better.

The leaves appear to be bigger at the bottom of the plant when compared to the top. 

I next took a photo of the general habitat.  This plant is growing along a path which is on the dirt bank of a stream that borders the woods on our property.  This area gets lots of sunlight.

Now I thought I had all my clues in photographs and it was time to head back home to see if I could figure out what species this was.  I checked my Ozark Wildflowers book by Don Kurz.  I thought I had the right family and was close to an identification, but two species were quite similar.  The difference between the two were gray hairs on the stem.  I had not noticed this, so I had to return to the plant.  This time I took a magnifying glass.  Sure enough, I saw the hairs.  But the pictures did not turn out--you'll have to take my word for it.

Can you identify the plant??

I didn't get far on my run, but it was a pleasant morning spent on the woodland paths at my home.  This has been a fun assignment.