Often mistaken by those not in the
know as a 'Thistle', the Teasel will be recognised by many in
it's brown lifeless state after it has finished seeding. The
Teasel flowers for only 2 months of the year and is a biennial
plant, meaning it flowers on alternate years - you will often
see flowering teasels alongside dead ones until they are
harvested for use by florists. With prickly leaves and stem,
they are brown and dry for 10 months of the year, however they
are easily recognised during July and August by the dark pink
or lavender flowers on the top of the stem - and visited by
many pollenating insects especially bees.
The genus
name 'Caprifoliacae' is derived from the word for thirst of
water and refers to the cup-like formation made where sessile
leaves merge at the stem. Rain water can collect in this
receptacle; this may perform the function of preventing
sap-sucking insects such as aphids from climbing the stem. A
2011 experiment has shown that adding dead insects to these
cups increases the seedset of teasels (but not their height),
implying partial carnivory.
This
particular specimen was photographed along the bank of the
Titchfield Canal in Hampshire - part of the River Meon; it is
now a narrow stream and was once used for transportation of
goods. If you being your walk along the path from the car park
at the north end in Titchfield, you will find the Teasels just
a few hundred feet or so down, on the edge of the stream. Here
you will find an open field with the occasional togger sat
waiting to spot Roe Deer which frequently traverse through the
meadows here - although they are best spotted early morning or
when they return as the sun goes down.
This photo
was taken with a Canon 100-400L lens, as what is known as a
'psuedo macro' - named as such because it doesnt give you true
1:1 reproduction but rather a close-up. Shooting flowers like
this with a long lens does give an impressive buttery smooth
bokeh and therefore good isolation from the background -
something you cannot do consistently with a shorter focal
length. |
