Thursday, October 8, 2020

"Now He's Becoming a Horticultural Nerd Too?"

I saw colored leaves on this bush and thought, “There IT IS!! Fall is HERE!” But, after checking my "plant identifier" app, I’m... not so sure. 

The Nandina schrub (an Asian import popular in Japanese gardens) apparently has leaves all year round and its own schedule for dropping the red ones. This is an unusual, colorful bush. 

Those red berries add further visual variety (and they usually get bright red). That's important to remember, because “bright red” is nature’s “DANGER: POISON” sticker. 

The entire plant is “cyanogenic” — so it can kill birds or small animals if they eat it, and you... shouldn’t put this in the salad (why would you want to?😝). 

It’s also a “hardy plant” (several US states consider it invasive). 

Am I becoming a horticultural nerd too?😳😉