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<a href="../ --089e0149bce2a4207d04e031e4eb Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Thanks for your suggestions, James and Jane! I had considered comfrey -- but I'm familiar with the plant, having seen it under cultivation over the years, but thought that the flowers and leaf size of the new plant weren't "right". I think that James nailed the ID with his suggestion that it might be rough comfrey, an Old World species I had never heard of. The photos I found on the web matched exactly. Here's another botanical puzzler which will no doubt be obvious to NS natives. There is a peculiarly fleshy weedy plant which grows in ditches such as the canals feeding the Annapolis River at Bridgetown. It's tall, grows in dense colonies, and hasn't flowered yet. The stems are speckled and the leaves are broad and rounded. It has an "invasive alien" feel to it, at least to this observer. Any ideas? Larry Ayers On Thu, Jun 27, 2013 at 10:26 PM, James W. Wolford <jimwolford@eastlink.ca>wrote: > I'll bet Jane is right about you probably having common comfrey, Symphytum > officinale, which is currently in bloom along our rail trail in Wolfville. > We also have a less common second species, rough comfrey, S. asperum. > Cheers from Jim in Wolfville. > > Begin forwarded message: > > *From: *Dave&Jane Schlosberg <dschlosb-g@ns.sympatico.ca> > *Date: *June 27, 2013 7:49:59 PM ADT > *To: *naturens@chebucto.ns.ca > *Subject: **Re: [NatureNS] Bluebells (Mertensia) in NS* > *Reply-To: *naturens@chebucto.ns.ca > > Could it be comfrey (symphytum officinale)? Different family, but fits > your description. > Jane > > *From:* Larry Ayers <larry.ayers@gmail.com> > *Sent:* Thursday, June 27, 2013 4:58 PM > *To:* NatureNS <naturens@chebucto.ns.ca> > *Subject:* [NatureNS] Bluebells (Mertensia) in NS > > Hello -- I'm an American staying in the Round Hill area this summer, and > I've been trying to identify the native and alien plants in the > neighborhood. Lots of aliens in the Annapolis Valley! > > There's a road ditch in front of a vacant house on Hwy. 201 which harbors > a profuse growth of a plant which has flowers very like those of the > Eastern Bluebell, Mertensia virginica. It's a taller plant with rough-hairy > lanceolate leaves and I'm wondering if it might be Mertensia paniculata, > the Tall Bluebell. That species grows as far east as Quebec and could have > been brought to NS as a garden plant, perhaps. > > Has anyone seen these? > > Larry Ayers > > > --089e0149bce2a4207d04e031e4eb Content-Type: text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable <div dir=3D"ltr">Thanks for your suggestions, James and Jane! I had conside= red comfrey -- but I'm familiar with the plant, having seen it under cu= ltivation over the years, but thought that the flowers =A0and leaf size of = the new plant weren't "right". =A0I think that James nailed t= he ID with his suggestion that it might be rough comfrey, an Old World spec= ies I had never heard of. The photos I found on the web matched exactly.<di= v> <br></div><div>Here's another botanical puzzler which will no doubt be = obvious to NS natives. There is a peculiarly fleshy weedy plant which grows= in ditches such as the canals feeding the Annapolis River at Bridgetown. I= t's tall, grows in dense colonies, and hasn't flowered yet. The ste= ms are speckled and the leaves are broad and rounded. It has an "invas= ive alien" feel to it, at least to this observer.</div> <div><br></div><div>Any ideas?</div><div><br></div><div>Larry Ayers</div></= div><div class=3D"gmail_extra"><br><br><div class=3D"gmail_quote">On Thu, J= un 27, 2013 at 10:26 PM, James W. Wolford <span dir=3D"ltr"><<a href=3D"= mailto:jimwolford@eastlink.ca" target=3D"_blank">jimwolford@eastlink.ca</a>= ></span> wrote:<br> <blockquote class=3D"gmail_quote" style=3D"margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1p= x #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex"><div style=3D"word-wrap:break-word"> I'll bet Jane is right about you probably having common comfrey, Symph= ytum officinale, which is currently in bloom along our rail trail in Wolfvi= lle. =A0We also have a less common second species, rough comfrey, S. asperu= m. =A0Cheers from Jim in Wolfville.<br> <div><br><div>Begin forwarded message:</div><br><blockquote type=3D"cite"><= div style=3D"margin-top:0px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:0px;margin-left:= 0px"><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" color=3D"#000000" style=3D"font:12= .0px Helvetica"><b>From: </b></font><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" sty= le=3D"font:12.0px Helvetica">Dave&Jane Schlosberg <<a href=3D"mailto= :dschlosb-g@ns.sympatico.ca" target=3D"_blank">dschlosb-g@ns.sympatico.ca</= a>></font></div> <div style=3D"margin-top:0px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:0px;margin-left= :0px"><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" color=3D"#000000" style=3D"font:1= 2.0px Helvetica"><b>Date: </b></font><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" st= yle=3D"font:12.0px Helvetica">June 27, 2013 7:49:59 PM ADT</font></div> <div style=3D"margin-top:0px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:0px;margin-left= :0px"><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" color=3D"#000000" style=3D"font:1= 2.0px Helvetica"><b>To: </b></font><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" styl= e=3D"font:12.0px Helvetica"><a href=3D"mailto:naturens@chebucto.ns.ca" targ= et=3D"_blank">naturens@chebucto.ns.ca</a></font></div> <div style=3D"margin-top:0px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:0px;margin-left= :0px"><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" color=3D"#000000" style=3D"font:1= 2.0px Helvetica"><b>Subject: </b></font><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3"= style=3D"font:12.0px Helvetica"><b>Re: [NatureNS] Bluebells (Mertensia) in= NS</b></font></div> <div style=3D"margin-top:0px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:0px;margin-left= :0px"><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" color=3D"#000000" style=3D"font:1= 2.0px Helvetica"><b>Reply-To: </b></font><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3= " style=3D"font:12.0px Helvetica"><a href=3D"mailto:naturens@chebucto.ns.ca= " target=3D"_blank">naturens@chebucto.ns.ca</a></font></div> <div style=3D"margin-top:0px;margin-right:0px;margin-bottom:0px;margin-left= :0px;min-height:14px"><br></div> <div dir=3D"ltr"> <div style=3D"font-size= :12pt;font-family:'Calibri'"&