Ostrich Fern Reverting to Baby Mode

Ok 'baby mode' may not be the technical term, but it looks like my ostrich fern (Matteuccia struthiopteris) is putting out little tiny fronds. Either this is a reflection of the size of the fronds that the new root system is able to support, or maybe the fern only puts out large fronds once a year and doesn't have enough juice in the tank for larger ones.

Tiny ostrich fern frond growing away from the main root crown

Now the tiny baby fronds aren't just coming out of the head/crown of the fern root system, but they're popping up a little ways away. Probably growing from roots further out. I think it's a good sign, but is it enough growth to last through the coming Fall and Winter?

This massive fern looks like it reverted to a juvenile form after being transplanted

Update 9/10/2015: New fern growth is opening up even more, nice!

Echeveria pulidonis Propagation Update 9 Months

It's been about 9 months (36 weeks) since I pulled a leaf off my Echeveria pulidonis succulent on January 2, 2015. I've been posting a few updates since then following the progress with photos. I wanted to post this update to show the latest progress! I also noticed my babies look very different from the mommy plant, and I think it has to do with the amount of sunlight they get.

Echeveria pulidonis - Propagation 9 months

The mommy plant sits on the lower shelf of a window table and doesn't get as much sunlight, that probably explains the longer leggy leaves and lack of red tips

Compare the mommy plant to the baby - pretty easy to see the difference! I don't know if I would think this was the same plant if I didn't know it was a leaf propagation. It's technically the same exact plant, same genes!

The parent plant sits in a succulent pot on the lower shelf of a window table and gets less sun than my windowsill babies

Identify American Toad and Northern Leopard Frog

My suburban Indiana backyard is feeling much more exotic this summer compared to last year. In this post I'll show some photos I took of a common toad in my backyard and a new frog I saw today for the first time. I like to try to identify plants as precisely as I can, and so I'll do the same with these backyard garden guests.

Northern Leopard Frog - Rana pipiens

My housing development was completely stripped down to bare clay when the houses were built all around the same time. That means wildlife is coming back bit by bit from basically a blank slate. We had a super rainy June/July, and now a rather dry August/September.

American Toad (Eastern American Toad Anaxyrus americanus)

American Toad, very similar to a Fowler's Toad except this only has 1-2 warts per dark spot whereas the Fowler's Toad will have 3+ small warts in each dark spot. Check out this description by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources and also Wikipedia. I still can't tell. The Fowler's Toad has a white chest/belly and this one appears to have a blotchy chest.

Northern Leopard Frog (Rana pipiens)

As the name suggests, this frog has a gorgeous leopard print of dark brown spots with a lighter edges. Compared to the toad, this frog has a narrower head and no parotoid glands. The Northern Leopard Frog has a very striking pair of dorsolateral folds running down its back like bright ridges or white stripes.

I wasn't sure if maybe this was the Southern Leopard Frog because it's lacking a snout spot. Indiana is on the border where I'm thinking it could be both. My friend Mike told me it's Northern Leopard Frog and he's like SUPER into herpetology so I'll take his word for it. Hi Mike!! :) He just told me he was distracted when he looked at the pic on his phone, and it could be the Southern Leopard Frog because of the lack of nose spot.