Monday, August 31, 2009

Touch-Me-Nots

I remember being shown Touch-Me-Not plants as a kid where we used to go camping up north. Palmer Lake is INFESTED with them. Since July they've been growing like mad and some of the plants are over 6 feet tall. Only recently have the seed pods come out so I figured I'd try to capture a movie of their infamous "exploding" seeds.
An interesting phrase from Wikipedia: These plants derives their scientific name Impatiens (Latin for "impatient") and the common name "touch-me-not" in reference to their seed capsules. When the capsules mature, they "explode" when touched, sending seeds several meters away. This mechanism is also known as "explosive dehiscence"; see also Rapid plant movement. Other than that, starting to see a few large grasshoppers here and there. Also, in the same place as always the wild vines are starting to take over the underbrush and even the trees. Every year they create these cool looking sloped walls or "tents" that you could probably camp right under if you could stand the mosquitos.

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