THE ADULTS Common brown stink bug This crop pest of China was introduced into Pennsylvania by accident in 1998, and has spread throughout the Northeast. The name “stink bug” refers to glands on the abdomen. When disturbed or if crushed the insect will release a potent and unpleasant odor – like potent skunk […]
SOIL GRUBS
Grubs Grubs are the immature larvae of various species of beetles: There are endless species of them. This is a mostly invisible pest – living its life cycle in the soil for most of the season. Grubs of different species tend to look similar except for their overall size The Adult Beetles […]
CEDAR APPLE RUST
WHAT IS THAT ! Fungal blisters on apple leaf As the summer progresses into fall gardeners start noticing these blisters on their apple tree leaves. It’s a fungus !!! This disease is one of several caused by the genus Gymnosporangium. Its called Cedar Apple Rust. Life cycle on broadleaf plants The […]
MORPHOLOGY
The shape of things “Morphology” – from the Ancient Greek – (morphḗ) meaning “form”, and (lógos) meaning “study”. In Botany it is used to classify plants based on the shape of their parts. Why pay attention ? What a plant looks like can give hints as to where it evolved and therefore […]
BUD WORMS – YUCK !
The Tobacco Budworm This is a familiar garden pest we encounter every season. It is a caterpillar that loves many of our favorite plants. It is also an agricultural pest of both tobacco and cotton. In our gardens it feeds on the flowers of geranium, petunia, snapdragon and nicotiana – sometimes even […]
REPRODUCTION IN PRIMITIVE PLANTS
BRYOPHYTES (mosses) Bryophyte umbrellas ! When a bryophyte spore settles somewhere, it sprouts and grows into a gametophyte. This then is egg and sperm producing plant. It is this stage we mostly see as green. This attached plant is green and leafy, but usually very small. Commonly called liverworts, their reproductive organs (eggs and […]
MODERN FLOWERING PLANTS
FLOWERING PLANTS Although still very old ( as in 125 million years ! ) flowering plants are considered “modern”. This is because they produce a seed inside a vessel. Unlike their ancestors, they also produce a flower containing both male and female reproductive structures. Flowering plants evolved into two main groups. Monocotyledons and dicotyledons. […]
BARK !
Introduction Bark is the outermost layer of tissue on a mature plant. It is made mostly of dead rectangular cork cells that fit tightly together. It is pretty much watertight! The bark on trees and shrubs is as distinctive and individual as the species that produce them. Not surprising, there is a large variation […]
WHAT A WASTE !
Introduction There are many steps in the metabolism of plants. These come mainly from photosynthesis and energy production. All these steps require an endless supply of substances available in the cell for them to work properly. Chemicals like proteins, acids, bases, and other molecular compounds. The total involved substances directly or indirectly in these […]
