Alaska is one of the only places in the world where peony flowers grow in the summer months. But the unusually cold, wet weather this year is delaying the blooms by weeks.
Red currant leaf consumption by something was observed by my supervisor while walking along a salmon stream.
Buds are appearing right as we move into a 2-day cold spell of below zero nights. An adjacent willow budded a few weeks ago during a similar cycle of warmth followed by cold, and it appears to be putting some buds out, although on different branches.
The unthinkable (ripe Alaska walnuts) a few decades ago is potentially our new reality as our climate continues to shift (warmer summers and longer falls). As our climatic parameters shift, so does our opportunity to diversify our edible plantings!
Late-blooming lily may benefit from warm temperatures in late September/early October.
Anemone narcissiflora, which typically blooms in June, is experiencing a second bloom in Hatcher Pass.
On another year, Christy might just now be finishing up the harvest. But today, the only flowers left from this season are stored in a walk-in cooler.
Browning on birch leaves before time for the fall season transition.
"The spruce bark beetle epidemic currently ravaging Southcentral AK's spruce trees is well-known, but I haven't heard mention of other pests occurring in conjunction."
The latest tally of beetle kill shows more than 550,000 acres of forest with dead spruce from the ongoing infestation this year alone, much of it in Mat-Su.
Tall Fireweed (Chamerion angustifolium)
Raspberries (Rubus idaeus) are Ripe
Early hay crop harvest
Early fireweed (Chamerion angustifolium) bloom
Birch leaves bud early.
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