Some rain, coffee, giant finger & sunflowers

[Stig / Major Tom]

Last night 60% chance - so laid out my wet gear.
4:00AM report, "no rain until afternoon"
So, didn't wear rain gear. And it rained.

Somebody's going to get a leaf blow and toweling in the garage....


Love these big sycamores!



foto mit der finger snappan



Went right by this field in the dark - didn't see these until heading home.



Stig

[Neil955i]

Isn’t always the way? Had you worn rain gear… no rain!  Forecast here today dry & sunny and 12-17c, perfect day for a ride.

[Iahawk]

love to see the water beading on a shiny scoot!...and beware the giant seed bombs from a Sycamore tree...I had one at my first house and the seed bombs are the size of golf balls and leaves the size of dinner plates! Pretty to looks at..in someone else's yard!

[Neil955i]

love to see the water beading on a shiny scoot!...and beware the giant seed bombs from a Sycamore tree...I had one at my first house and the seed bombs are the size of golf balls and leaves the size of dinner plates! Pretty to looks at..in someone else's yard!

I'm left wondering if what you call sycamores are different to English sycamores Hawk.  The seed clusters on ours are made up of wing-like appendages coming out of the seed?

[Iahawk]

I'm left wondering if what you call sycamores are different to English sycamores Hawk.  The seed clusters on ours are made up of wing-like appendages coming out of the seed?

Neil, your seeds look more like our Maple tree seeds. I've attached pics of Sycamore seeds and some info. Lots of these were planted here to replace our Elm trees, which were decimated in the 60's / 70's. Sycamores are large trees which grow quickly and provide a lot of shade, just like the beloved Elms did...but Sycamores are very messy trees.

[Neil955i]

Wow Hawk!  Well looking at that seed pod, we got nothing like that native to here.   Out of curiosity, was it Dutch Elm disease which decimated your Elms?  Because if so, yes, it did the same here.

[Stig / Major Tom]

I've sat under these big Sycamore trees, without a helmet, drinking coffee for 10 yrs.
And in spite of what my daughter says - I have no signs of brain damage.



Stig

[Neil955i]

Har har*

* © Karl, AKA Crossbolt

[Iahawk]

Wow Hawk!  Well looking at that seed pod, we got nothing like that native to here.   Out of curiosity, was it Dutch Elm disease which decimated your Elms?  Because if so, yes, it did the same here.

yes, Dutch Elm disease took all of ours..I wasn't aware it happened to you guys, too?!

[Neil955i]

It did Hawk.  From memory some 90% of Elms affected with arboriculturalists attempting to breed from the disease resistant survivors? Not sure how that’s going.

[Stig / Major Tom]

love to see the water beading on a shiny scoot!...and beware the giant seed bombs from a Sycamore tree...I had one at my first house and the seed bombs are the size of golf balls and leaves the size of dinner plates! Pretty to looks at..in someone else's yard!

I don't doubt you Hawk - but I have to say I do not recall seeing any seed pods fall while I'm sitting under Sycamores. And I have sat under a pair of large ones many times, for years, often with wife and/or daughter.
I have witnessed dead branches falling on cars parked in front of me....but no pods.
Pup & I out for a walk at the reservoir this morning - I checked under 5 different Sycamores.....no pods spotted. Maybe wrong time of year - or the rangers are mowing them up?




Stig

....sometimes I think M.T. invents reasons to post pix....!

[Iahawk]

I don't recall exactly what time of year they fell..probably late summer / Fall? I just remember that they'd fall and then spread out horizontally to about the size of a saucer plate..and if left alone would kill the grass underneath. So before each mowing I would have to pick up all the seed bombs and scrape up the ones that had already spread out..and the bark always peeled off...and the giant leaves...ugh..