Salmonberry Surprise

The idea of nature turning death into life is not new, but some of the ways it does that can still surprise us.

Today's surprise came in finding a salmonberry plant at a place on my parents' property where a tree had uprooted seven years ago. According to descriptions of the plant, salmonberries often start to grow in disturbed ground. However, they like wet areas, and my parents' land dries out in the summer, a fact that created some disbelief when I first saw the plant.

I have been able to confirm the plant is a salmonberry, and it appears to be doing quite well in its home. It's doing so well that it has started sending out shoots (check out the photograph of the new start coming up near the parent plant).

This is a much better surprise than finding the English laurel in December. Salmonberries are native to the area, and it's cute how the leaf pairs look like a butterfly.

I never doubted the area around the fallen tree would be settled by other plants (foxgloves moved in almost right away), but I didn't expect one of the new occupants would be a salmonberry.

Unwelcome Find

Invasive English laurel

Not all of my discoveries on nature walks have happy endings.

I've found plenty of cool things while on my walks. The evergreen huckleberry bush I blogged about recently is one example. I also found salal two years ago. However, last week, I came across two invasive species.

First, I found some ivy. Seven years ago, I removed a patch of ivy, but apparently, I left a piece because a new vine was starting to spread in the same place. I quickly pulled it up. A few days later, I found a plant I had never seen before. We checked with Sound Native Plants and the Washington Native Plant Society, and they informed us that it was an English laurel, which is starting to invade parts of Washington state. We'll be removing it.

It's always fun to find a native species, but finding an invasive species can turn a nature walk into a security patrol.

To learn more about plants native to Washington, visit the Washington Native Plant Society and Sound Native Plants. For information on removing ivy, visit Ivy Out.