Page 16 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – THURSDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2020 Saugus Gardens in the Pandemic A Here’s what’s blooming in town this week to make your walks more enjoyable By Laura Eisener s winter sets in it brings new opportunities for observing wildlife. When there is snow, tracks may be visible, alerting people to the presence of animals and birds who may not usually be seen because they are nocturnal or very wary of people. Sightings of hawks and eagles are more common. Also, animals may find their usual foods more difficult to obtain, so will be wandering closer to houses in search of it. Birds which have chosen to remain here rather than fly south for the winter appreciate seeds and fruit left behind on trees, shrubs, perennials and grasses or seed at bird feeders. Bare branches reveal different views than we can see when leaves are on the trees. Nests that were hidden in foliage in summer are now revealed. There is more opportunity to see the moon through the branches (last full moon of 2020 was Dec. 29). The branching structure of the trees is more easily discernible, and the buds that will unfold into leaves next spring are already formed. On some branches you may still find fruits or nuts that have not fallen off or been eaten by birds. Bradford pear The year 2021 IS KNOCKING ON OUR DOOR: “21” balloons for New Year’s – actually a celebration for Andrew Silva’s 21st birthday. PEOPLE LOVE THESE: This amaryllis in a Saugus kitchen is one of the most popular gift plants for winter. (Courtesy photos to The Saugus Advocate by Laura Eisener) (Pyrus calleryana ‘Bradford’), a popular street tree in many parts of Saugus, has a distinctive egg-shaped crown, espein average home conditions make it a very popular gift and indoor decorative plant. Popular flower colors are red, pink, apricot and white. A bulb purchased in late fall or winter is likely to produce a stalk with four blossoms, and sometimes a second stalk of flowers will appear soon after. Leaves will not usually appear until the flowers have finished. Bulbs can be forced into bloom in pots of soil or in a special shaped jar which allows the roots to grow in waThe large blossoms make it easy to see basic flower parts, so your winter decoration may be a great excuse for a botany lesson! The long nearly white style that extends down beyond the lowA PAIR OF SPECIAL BIRDS: The tree at Rockefeller Center in NYC may have had its owl, but this tree in Lynnhurst was a perch for two bald eagles in late December. cially when young. It still has tiny 1/4", speckled brown fruit on many branches. The fruit’s rounded shape will remind you more of an apple than a pear. Because of its small size, the fruit will not require much if any cleanup. Amaryllis (Hippeastrum A POPULAR SAUGUS STREET TREE: Silhouette of Bradford pear on Hitching Hill Road shows its classic egg-shaped crown. spp.) is a very popular indoor bulb from South America – it would not survive outdoors in our soil the way hardy bulbs like tulips, daffodils and crocus do, but its ability to produce large, showy flowers ter without rotting the bulb. Bulbs grown in soil have a good likelihood of blooming the following year if they get watered regularly when in leaf, are given sunlight through the summer and are brought back indoors before frost in fall. Bulbs coated with wax will not usually survive until the next bloom season, but if the wax is removed after the first bloom and the bulb develops leaves, it does have a chance of blooming again in subsequent seasons. er petal is part of the pistil, or “female” part of the flower. At the tip of this is the stigma, which receives the pollen. The stigma of an amaryllis is trifid form, which means it has three lobes. Surrounding the pistil and a little shorter are the six stamens. They look like tiny hot dog buns, and if you touch them you will get a dusting of yellow pollen on your finger. Of the six colorful “petals” behind these, only three would be called petals by a botanist. These three are in the inner layer closest to the stamens and pistil, while the three almost identical structures behind those are called sepals. If you think of the flower in bud, the sepals are on the outside. In many flowers, such as roses, the sepals are green and much less showy, often smaller than the petals. However, in amaryllis, lilies and many bulbs, the sepals are colorful and as showy as the petals. The blossoms of tulips and crocuses are other good examples. Where this occurs, the nearly identical petals and sepals can be called tepals. Editor’s Note: Laura Eisener is a landscape design consultant who helps homeowners with landscape design, plant selection and placement of trees and shrubs, as well as perennials. She is a member of the Saugus Garden Club and offered to write a series of articles about “what’s blooming in town, since so many people have taken to walking the streets in their neighborhoods as a way to get some exercise and get out of the house!”
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