During recent early morning walks at UW-Madison’s Picnic Point and Arboretum, I spotted some interesting flora and fauna.
I captured an elusive yellow warbler at Picnic Point, as well as a similarly colored American goldfinch at the Arboretum. According to the ornithological authorities at Cornell University, “goldfinches are among the strictest vegetarians in the bird world, selecting an entirely vegetable diet and only inadvertently swallowing an occasional insect.”
Listen to the Goldfinch’s trademark po-ta-to-chip flight call:
At the Arb, I was drawn to the distinctive puffy plumes of a daydream smoke tree. The excitable enthusiasts at Plantlust.com cite UW’s own Ed Hasselkus, who “rates it highly… among the hardiest of any smoketree cultivars out there, tolerating the extreme winter lows of Madison.” They also offer this description:
With prolific and large ultra-fluffy plumes, packed full of shell pink and maroon flowers, winsome bluish-green foliage and a compact multistemmed hearty habit, what’s not to love about this daydream? Its over-the-top floriferous display and fiery scarlet autumn encore were first observed more than 50 years ago at Michigan’s Newport Nursery and subsequently patented in 1959. Highly prized by horticulturists and savvy gardeners alike, ‘Daydream’ promises to lull your senses when ensconced near cohorts such as Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Ruby Slippers’ and Panicum ‘Warrior’.
