alyxs_death_blooms

Rumbling Bridge, near Kinross, Scotland. The upper section was built in 1816, while the lower bridge was built in 1713.

The Whistler Tree, located in the Alentejo region of Portugal, is the largest and oldest cork tree in the world. It was planted in 1783
Cork for various uses is produced from the spongy bark of the oak (Quercus suber). The trees are native to the Mediterranean and live on average 200 years. It takes 25 years for cork oaks to reach a diameter of 70 cm (27 inches) when their bark is first stripped. It regenerates naturally, but the next harvest does not occur before 9-18 years. The cork from the first two harvests is of very poor quality and is not suitable for bottle caps. Starting from the third harvest, over 50 years after their planting, cork oaks produce quality material. The bark is stripped with an axe, carefully so as not to damage the tree itself, and left outdoors for 6 months to stabilize.

The Whistler tree has been harvested more than twenty times in its life. The 1991 harvest is the most famous and largest ever recorded:

2,645.55 pounds of bark was removed from the tree.

that bark record earned well over 100,000 individual caps.

Just for comparison - if an average cork tree is harvested, there will be about 100 pounds of bark, enough corks for about 4000 bottles.

Make your best meme

Also thanks for the tip plant buddy 😆

Yeah I'll be using this one.

Orchids are crazy this is them mimicking a carnivorous plant which is just one of many species of animal and plant they've stolen traits from and use to their advantage... They're the ultimate manipulators of the plant world... Not only that but they're actually parasitic meaning they grow on other plants and take away things from them such as sunlight and water... They're the rogue of the plant world for sure

The audacity of this orchid is off the charts.

The pink lady's slipper (Cypripedium acaule) is quite something. This showy orchid is found across much of the eastern half of the United States and typically blooms between May and July.

Here's the best part about pink lady's slipper - they kidnap bees! Ok, it's more of a bee-nap. Various bee species are the main pollinator of this orchid. The bee is lured in by the bright color of the flower. Ooooo, the bee must think. There must be some delicious nectar inside. WRONG! There is a small opening at the front of the flower petal. Once inside, the bee is trapped, and it can't go back out. And the worst is, there's no sweet nectar reward. It's the ultimate catfish!

There's only one way out for the trapped bee, and that's to go through a small opening at the top of the flower. This is a tight squeeze for the bee and as it exits, it rubs up against the pollen of the flower. After it makes its escape from the catfish orchid, it will fly off covered in its pollen and be lured in again by another pink lady's slipper to help pollinate the next generation.

Photo by Keith Ramos/USFWS

The audacity of this orchid is off the charts.

The pink lady's slipper (Cypripedium acaule) is quite something. This showy orchid is found across much of the eastern half of the United States and typically blooms between May and July.

Here's the best part about pink lady's slipper - they kidnap bees! Ok, it's more of a bee-nap. Various bee species are the main pollinator of this orchid. The bee is lured in by the bright color of the flower. Ooooo, the bee must think. There must be some delicious nectar inside. WRONG! There is a small opening at the front of the flower petal. Once inside, the bee is trapped, and it can't go back out. And the worst is, there's no sweet nectar reward. It's the ultimate catfish!

There's only one way out for the trapped bee, and that's to go through a small opening at the top of the flower. This is a tight squeeze for the bee and as it exits, it rubs up against the pollen of the flower. After it makes its escape from the catfish orchid, it will fly off covered in its pollen and be lured in again by another pink lady's slipper to help pollinate the next generation.

Photo by Keith Ramos/USFWS

Ok well I have a new project

One day around 32,000 years ago, an arctic ground squirrel ate parts of a plant, silene stenophylla, including its seed. The squirrel was digesting it when its life ended.
Its body was recovered from permafrost and examined. Scientists germinated this plant seed. This silene stenophylla just bloomed.
It is 32,000 years old.
The strength, the vitality and stamina of living things — of life itself — is incredible.

Hi, I am a SNAIL. I know I sometimes cause trouble by feeding on your garden plants. But please, don't kill me with poisons that cause suffering and contaminate your garden! Instead, use coffee grounds around your plants. I'll stay away, and you'll nourish the soil since coffee grounds make a great fertilizer.
If you see me stuck to a pot, don't pull me away; my protective covering will break, and I could die. And if you notice small snails following me, please leave them be. They are my delicate offspring with soft, fragile shells. Not many of them survive, but we are essential to the ecosystem and have an ancient history.
Help us survive.

Tephrocactus geometricus

My cousin Stephanie Purvis brought this gorgeous orchid hybrid to my attention

The rare Gomesa Jiaho Queen

Albuca concordiana is a small, perennial plant, reaching a maximum height of 20 centimeters. It tends to offset to form clumps. Its most striking feature are the coiled, corkscrew-shaped leaves, up to 7 centimeters long and 4 millimeters wide, bluish-grey, flat, glabrous and furrowed by fine longitudinal channels. The coiled leaves look like curly hair and make A. concordiana very sought after among succulent lovers.

The bulb is tiny and almost perfectly spherical, with tunics that get papery near the neck. When the plant is in bloom, the leaves wither: the inflorescence appears in August and the blooming period lasts until late September. The inflorescence is a raceme (the botanical term to refer to a cluster) of scented flowers, with six yellow petals, adorned by a longitudinal, green stripe.

▪Scientific Name: Albuca concordiana

▪ Synonyms:
•Albuca aperta
•Albuca pruinosa
•Coilonox concordianum
•Ornithogalum apertum
•Ornithogalum concordianum

● Scientific Classification ○

▪Family: Asparagaceae
▪Subfamily: Scilloideae
▪Genus: Albuca
▪Habitat:
Albuca concordiana is native to an area extended between southern Namibia, until the north-western Cape to Karoo and the south-eastern cape in South Africa. It grows on stony flats in xerophyllous scrubs in hot, arid climates, with winter rainfall.

See more👇

▪ • Plants info • ♡

gumiho🦊

Interesting

How to Grow Orchids in Water: 3 Easy Steps
Full guide in the first comment 💬👀

This is a real orchid! Fungus gnats pollenate them by attempting to mate with the flower. This is called genitalic pseudocopulatory pollination. Pollenation via hu***ng, if you will. Nature is wild. I love how the flower almost looks like a tiny embroidery on a felt leaf. Such a unique species!!

Tropical plants, coffee, and grimey beats are the only known cures for seasonal depression. I don't make the rules.

The scariest Halloween Costume for a plant nerd hands down 😂