Mason Heberling

This specimen of  common evening-primrose (Oenothera biennis) was collected by Mary Joy  Haywood along South  Fork Tenmile Creek in Greene county, Pennsylvania on July 19, 1993.  Haywood was a biology professor at Carlow College in Pittsburgh, and  President of the Botanical Society of Western Pennsylvania for many years. 

A "late" bloomer, so to speak.  Common evening-primrose is a fascinating and important plant (ecologically  and culturally).  Perhaps among the most interesting reasons, its bright yellow flowers quickly open in the evening and close by noon the next day. 

Common evening-primrose is also famous for its ethnobotanical uses, for food and as medicine.  Common  evening-primrose oil, derived from its seeds, has been used by  many in a variety of ways. It is often suggested by midwives to pregnant women in the last weeks of pregnancy to prepare and induce labor.

The species can be found in open habitats across the world. Native to eastern and central North America, it has been planted in  gardens across the world and has since become widely  naturalized.   It is also a common member of the urban flora, especially along sidewalks, even  often growing out of sidewalk cracks.

Teaberry - a Pennsylvania staple?
 
This specimen of eastern teaberry (Gaultheria procumbens), also called American wintergreen, was collected on July 12, 1963 by Leroy Henry (Carnegie Museum Curator of Botany at the time) and Dean Ross in a cranberry bog in Somerset county, Pennsylvania.
 
Perhaps best known by many as a unique wintergreen flavor of chewing gum and ice cream, especially in Pennsylvania.  Atlas Obscura calls Teaberry ice cream: “sometimes looks like Pepto-Bismol and smells like Bengay.”  Penn State Berkey  Creamery  as  the  “best treat of a bygone era.”
 
Teaberry is in the heath (blueberry) family, Ericaceae.  It is a small shrub growing along the ground, found across the Eastern US and distinctive evergreen leaves.
 
Find high resolution image of this teaberry specimen (and more) online here:
http://midatlanticherbaria.org/portal/collections/list.php?db=328&catnum=CM075420&othercatnum=1  

A plant popular during the Revolutionary War
 
Happy Independence Day! What better way to celebrate than with herbarium specimens of New Jersey tea (Ceanothus americanus), named for the fact that is was used as a substitute for tea by colonists and American soldiers during the American Revolutionary War. There was presumably a shortage of black tea, which were imported. Although the leaves contain no caffeine, it fit the bill. The plant also has a much longer history before European settlement.  Tribes of the Missouri River used the leaves for tea as well, and tribes of the Great Lakes used the plant to treat digestive ailments.  
 
New Jersey tea, also called Indian tea, can be found not only in New Jersey, but across the eastern United States.  It is in the buckthorn family (Rhamnaceae), which is unsurprisingly also family to introduced shrub/tree, common buckthorn  (Rhamnus cathartica).
 
These specimens  below were both collected in Pennsylvania on the 4th of July. 

One in Luzerne county by Alfred Twining 1907, who wrote a flora of Northeastern PA ten years later (https://archive.org/details/floraofnortheast00twin/page/n7).  Many of his specimens are at the Everhart Museum of Natural History, Science, and Art in Scranton, PA (http://sweetgum.nybg.org/science/ih/herbarium-details/?irn=165032).

The other Independence Day New Jersey Tea specimen was collected by Robert Leberman in Crawford county in 1986.  Leberman established the bird banding program at the Carnegie Musuem of Natural History’s Powdermill Nature Reserve in 1961.  It continues today as the longest running, year-round banding research operation in the country.  
 

New Jersey Tea is a beautiful shrub, important for many pollinators, and food source for other wildlife. The plant is also sold commercially by many native plant nurseries to plant in your yard or garden.
 
All plants have a cultural history and a scientific one. As you remember the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the American Revolution, think too about New Jersey Tea’s impact on our country. Did John Hancock drank it before signing? (Totally made that up).  
 
Find high resolution images of these specimens (and 290 more!) online: http://midatlanticherbaria.org/portal/collections/list.php?db=328&taxa=Ceanothus+americanus&usethes=1&taxontype=2

Some dogwoods for the dog days of summer
 
Who doesn’t love a good dogwood? Perhaps you are most familiar with flowering dogwood (Cornus florida), with the beautiful showy white flowers in woods and wooded roadsides across Pennsylvania in the spring.  Or perhaps, the commonly planted Japanese dogwood (Cornus kousa) from...you guessed it...East Asia.  But there are many different dogwood species, all in the genus Cornus.  Species in the genus are distributed across much of the temperate world in the Northern Hemisphere.  Rhoads & Block Plants of Pennsylvania list nine species found in the wild in our state.  They are trees or shrubs (with one exception). The veins on their leaves are quite distinctive, as is their bark and flower structures.
 
Why are these shrubs called dogwood?  There are several stories behind the unique common name. One is that the name was derived from the Celtic word “dag”, referring to its use of its nice wood as a dagger like tools or skewers. Another explanation is that the bard was once used as a treatment of mange for dogs.
 
Four dogwood species were collected on June 28 in Pennsylvania: 69,  37,  26, and 23  years ago:
 
Red-osier dogwood, Cornus sericea (aka Cornus stolonifera) June 28, 1950 in Erie County. Beautiful bright red stems.
 
Gray dogwood, Cornus racemosa June 28, 1982 in Blair County.
 
Cornus ammonum June 28, 1993 in Clarion County.
 
Cornus florida June 28, 1996.  White flowers from the spring are long gone.  (Well, the white structures aren’t actually petals, but modified leaves called bracts that surround a cluster of small yellowish flowers).
 
Over 2,600 dogwood (Cornus) specimens in the Carnegie Museum herbarium from across the world are available online, many with high resolution images: http://midatlanticherbaria.org/portal/collections/list.php?db=328&taxa=cornus&usethes=1&taxontype=2

Whoa, this plant will catch your attention!  Although towering in at up to 8 feet tall with leaves 2 feet wide, Cow parsnip (Heracleum maximum, aka Heracleum lanatum) is not a tree, but herbaceous (non-woody). This species is the largest member of the carrot family (Apiaceae) native to North America. It can be found along shaded roadsides, waterways, and edge of woods. Its flower structure consists of many small white flowers on short stalks connected at a single point – an umbrella of flowers - botanically known as an “umbel.” Umbels are characteristic of the carrot family (think of the perhaps better recognized Queen Anne’s lace, Daucus carota, which is also known as “wild carrot”).
 
These specimens were all collected on June 21– but years apart - on 1907 (Westmoreland county, PA), 1934 (Pittsburgh), and 1960 (Beaver county, PA).   
 
This species is often confused with giant hogweed. Cow parsnip is often confused for the non-native plant called giant hogweed (Heracleum mantegazzianum). Giant hogweed has hit the news media in past few years and on many people’s radar, as it is considered a significant public human health concern. This plant is highly poisonous and designated as a federal noxious weed.  The sap of giant hogweed causes “phytophotodermatitis,” meaning serious skin inflammation occurs when contacted skin is exposed to sunlight.  Skin rashes can be very severe.  The sap can cause temporary or permanent blindness. Cow parsnip has a similar set of chemicals in its sap, and although not as poisonous, be  careful around these plants.
 
Giant hogweed can be 8-20 feet tall with leaves up to 5 feet wide!  It is thought to be eradicated in Pennsylvania. Although similar to the Pennsylvania native species cow parsnip, giant hogweed is noticeably larger in height and flower size. (see herbarium specimen here – it took 6 sheets!)
 
See here for a nice comparison between these similar species. https://www.maine.gov/dacf/php/horticulture/hogweedlookalikes.shtml
 
Given the size of members of the genus, the name Heracleum (derivative of Hercules) is quite fitting.
 
Specimen records and images for this species in the CM herbarium are now publicly available online:
http://midatlanticherbaria.org/portal/collections/list.php?db=328&taxa=Heracleum+lanatum&usethes=1&taxontype=2

Not all bittersweet vines are invasive to Pennsylvania. This specimen was collected on June 14, 1965 by botany curator Leroy  Henry  in Clearfield county,  along  Rt 969. American bittersweet (Celastrus scandens) is a woody vine that  blooms in June, which turn to beautiful clusters of orange/red fruit in late summer/fall.  The species is native to eastern USA, found along open thickets/edge of woods.

American bittersweet (Celastrus scandens) might be easily  confused with the much more common Asian bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus).  There are two major visual  differences between the species: 1) flower/fruit --  native species has single terminal cluster of many flowers/fruits at tips of branches, whereas the invasive has flowers/fruits at axils of leaves (where leaves connect to stem; and 2) leaves -- native  species' leaves are more elongate, whereas the invasive species' leaves are more round, often even circular ('orbiculate').

American  bittersweet is no longer common in Pennsylvania, most likely taken over by the closely  related Asian bittersweet.   Asian bittersweet  is a relatively newer addition to the  flora of Pennsylvania, not showing  up  in  western PA and  the  Pittsburgh region until  the 1980s.  Given its abundance and distribution throughout the region  now,  it is hard to fathom it was not present only several decades ago.

Research over the past decade has shown that the invasive species hybridizes with the native, likely contributing to  the decline  of the native American bittersweet.

Keep a look out for American bittersweet in our region.  (I have  not  seen it in Allegheny county, although we have historic  records)

This specimen image is now publicly available online:
http://midatlanticherbaria.org/portal/collections/individual/index.php?occid=12131436&clid=0

This is a special specimen.  The Carnegie Museum herbarium is full of specimens of scientific and historical importance.  And this is a notable one, collected in June 1830 by William Darlington in West Chester, Pennsylvania.  William Darlington (1782-1863) was an important figure in the history of Pennsylvania botany. Darlington was a physician, politician (US House of Representatives 1815-1823),  and as  you might guess – a botanist!  At the University of Pennsylvania, Darlington studied botany under Benjamin Smith Barton, a well-known botanist who also trained Meriwether Lewis (of the Lewis & Clark Expedition). Darlington wrote several He spent most of his life in West Chester, PA. He wrote some of the earliest botanical works, including a flora of Chester County in 1826 and others on agriculture.  Many of his specimens are among the earliest documentation of Pennsylvania’s flora and are preserved in the William Darlington herbarium at West Chester University.
 
This particular specimen is of the native shrub Euonymus americanus, commonly called “strawberry  bush.”  Despite the name, it is not related to strawberries, but in the bittersweet/spindle family, Celastraceae.  You may recognize some similarities with the related species from East Asia, burning bush  (Euonymus alatus), which is commonly planted for its bright red fall color (around Cathedral of Learning in Pittsburgh, and many other places).  However, burning bush should not be planted, as it is invasive, spreading into natural areas.
 
In the Carnegie Museum herbarium, there are 62 specimens collected by Darlington between 1828 and 1840, mostly from Chester County, PA. 
 
How’d some of Darlington’s specimens end up at the Carnegie Museum?  This specimen was part of Jacob Wolle’s personal collection, who was the grandfather of William Holland, the first director of the museum.
 
This specimen image is now publicly available online: http://midatlanticherbaria.org/portal/collections/individual/index.php?occid=12131484&clid=0
 
Read more about  Darlington and other influential figures in the history of Pennsylvania botany at Herbarium World: https://herbariumworld.wordpress.com/2017/07/10/william-darlington-and-the-pennsylvanica-botanical-circle/

Watch out for poison ivy!  Both because it is a fascinatingly cool plant but also a potentially dangerous one. 

This flowering specimen of poison ivy was collected on May 31, 1903 by John Shafer (first curator of botany at Carnegie Museum) and O.P. Medsger in the Laurel Highlands of southwestern PA.
 
Poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans) is a woody vine found in forest understories, but does especially well on forest edges. It is very common in urban and suburban environments. It takes many forms, climbing high up a tree, along the ground, or even a short shrubby thing. The leaves take a range of shapes, but as the adage goes (“leaves of 3, let it be”), it has three leaflets.
 
Poison ivy is known by many for its chemistry, producing a class of organic compounds call urushiol found in the plant’s sap and on leaves/stems/roots that cause a nasty rash to those who touch it. Not all people have a reaction (but most are sensitive), but don’t be too confident - it can develop with repeated exposure.  Incredibly itchy, the rash can become a serious health issue if infected, and especially if it oils get in contact with your eyes, face, or throat.  The rash can appear days after exposure and can last for weeks.
 
Research indicates poison ivy will get more poisonous with climate change, both in terms of growth and producing higher quantities of forms of urushiol particularly toxic to humans.
 
It is often considered a “weed” because of its fear-causing rash, but it is native to eastern North America.  The species has a wide distribution across our region, and across the world (native subspecies in China). Although native, the species seems to be getting more common as we create more forest edge habitat.   The colorful foliage can be quite beautiful in the fall, and the berries are a food source for birds and other animals. Humans seem to be the only ones allergic to it.
 
Poison ivy is often confused with other non-poisonous and poisonous plants. Some common confusions are 1) Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia), a vine in the grape but different leaves, and not with leaves of three and 2) Box elder maple (Acer negundo), a tree that has compound leaves unlike most stereotypical maples,  but with samaras (aka “helicopter” seeds).  
 
Poison ivy and some other rash-causing plants are in the cashew family (Anacardiaceae) – which also includes poison oak (not found in Pennsylvania, but in western USA), staghorn sumac (not rash causing), poison sumac (rash causing, but you likely won’t come across it unless in very wet habitats)....and even a few familiar species like  pistachio,  cashew, and mango (some people are allergic).  
 
What an amazing plant. 

This specimen image is now publicly available online: http://midatlanticherbaria.org/portal/collections/individual/index.php?occid=12232529&clid=0

In July 2017, I collected poison ivy, and was not careful.  Poison ivy rash on  your finger  tips is an awful experience.  This picture was from weeks after.

Collected 67 years ago, the specimen on the left of creeping phlox  (Phlox stolonifera) was collected by past Carnegie Museum curator Leroy Henry and Werner Buker, a long time museum volunteer and prolific plant collector.

Fast forward 65 years, the specimen on the right is of the same  species and collected in the same location in Somerset  County, Pennsylvania by Mason Heberling (me!) and Bonnie Isaac, collection manager. 

This specimen is part of a long-term recollection plan at the museum, where we are going back to sites across western PA on the same day as other botanists, decades or often a century  later, to document change through time.  By revisiting sites, we are able to  compare what is there that is still there, what was there that isn't there anymore, and what is there that wasn't there before (such as introduced species)!  And within  species, we are able to compare timing of flowering, plant size, etc.  

Many more (re)collections to come!

This four-leaf clover was collected by our very own mollusk curator Tim Pearce on July 5, 2014 in Pittsburgh. Tim must be a lucky person, having found several other four-leaf clover specimens and now in the Carnegie Museum Herbarium. This particular specimen is white clover (Trifolium repens), a species native to Europe but common in lawns worldwide. Many clovers have three leaflets (hence the genus name “tri” – “folium”), but according to folklore, those uncommon plants with four leaves bring luck.
 
This lucky specimen was imaged recently (along with many others in the clover family, Fabaceae) and is publicly available online: http://midatlanticherbaria.org/portal/collections/individual/index.php?occid=21236224&clid=0
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What’s a shamrock? There is no overwhelming scientific consensus on which species is the well-known Irish national emblem.  There was survey of Irish botanists in the early 1890s asking which species was the “true” shamrock.  A similar survey was repeated in 1988.  The results suggest the shamrock is either Trifolium dubium (aka “lesser trefoil”) or Trifolium repens (aka “white clover”).  The plants commonly sold around St. Patrick’s Day as “shamrocks” or “4-leaf clovers” are in the plant genus Oxalis (“wood sorrel”), which belong to different plant family than true clovers.
 
Top left: Trifolium repens (collected 1974 in Louisiana), aka “white clover”
Top right: Trifolium  dubium (collected 1961 in Pennsylvania), aka “lesser trefoil”
Bottom left: Oxalis tetraphylla (collected 1981 in India), aka “lucky clover,” although not a true clover
Bottom right: Oxalis debilis (collected 1989 in cultivation), aka “pink woodsorrel”
 
These specimens were recently imaged (along with many others in the legume family, Fabaceae) and are publicly available online: http://midatlanticherbaria.org/portal/collections/list.php?db=328&hasimages=1&includecult=1&taxa=trifolium&usethes=1&taxontype=2
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