The First Wildflower here in Pennsylvania
Feb 17, 2022 00:05:01 #
Walking along Lake Perez which is located in Penn State University's Stone Valley Recreation Area here in Central PA, came across the first two Skunk Cabbage Spathes thrusting their thermogenic little heads out of the frozen ground. Thermogenic in this case means that the Spathe is capable of self-generating heat and maintains an even temp of 70 degrees F within the casing; regardless of the surrounding temperature. This gives it a big jump on all the other wildflowers.
Feb 17, 2022 01:52:52 #
You've got me curious as I'm a bit south of you in Franklin County and there's a big patch of this in a swampy area along a local creek within walking distance of me. We've got sixty degrees, but rainy on the agenda for tomorrow, so I'll have to go see what's poppin' if I can sneak between the drops. Thanks for the pic and the heads up about thermogenesis!
Feb 17, 2022 05:10:40 #
cmc4214
Loc: S.W. Pennsylvania
You can often se them popping up with snow melting around them from their heat...lean down and take a good sniff, you'll know how it got its name lol.
Feb 17, 2022 15:44:14 #
cmc4214 wrote:
You can often se them popping up with snow melting around them from their heat...lean down and take a good sniff, you'll know how it got its name lol.
That was my first thought after checking out thermogenesis. Does the self-warming characteristic contribute to the smell? I've been losing my senses for many years with the sense of smell going first. One upside of that is missing out on things like the skunk and his cabbage patch odors. 😉
Feb 17, 2022 19:39:06 #
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