英語の後に日本語が続きます。
A couple on a holiday morning.
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| 2025/4/29 |
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| 2025/4/29 |
Clematis クレマチス
英語の後に日本語が続きます。
These are clematises. Their deep purple flowers are so beautiful. The first two photos are (I believe) of Clematis patens or in Japanese "Kazaguruma (meaning pinwheel)" for their pinwheel like flower shape. What look like petals are actually the calyx.
These are clematises. Their deep purple flowers are so beautiful. The first two photos are (I believe) of Clematis patens or in Japanese "Kazaguruma (meaning pinwheel)" for their pinwheel like flower shape. What look like petals are actually the calyx.
The plant is called in two ways in Japan, "Clematis" or "Tessen," and according to Global Center for Natural Resources Sciences, Kumamoto University, Tessen and Kazaguruma are original species native to Asia and by crossing these and other original species, about 300 types of Clematis have been produced so far. If you're interested in double-flowered clematises, read this post!
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| 2025/4/27 Kazaguruma or pinwheel? |
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| 2025/4/27 |
Hiding Your Head But Not Your Butt 頭隠して尻隠さず
英語の後に日本語が続きます。
This is a real life embodiment of the Japanese saying 頭隠して尻隠さず or "Hiding your head but not your butt." The saying figuratively means that there is no perfect cover-up and, just to be sure, the stink bug was not doing anything wrong.
This is a real life embodiment of the Japanese saying 頭隠して尻隠さず or "Hiding your head but not your butt." The saying figuratively means that there is no perfect cover-up and, just to be sure, the stink bug was not doing anything wrong.
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| 2025/4/27 |
Manchurian Violet (Viola Mandshurica) スミレ（菫）
英語の後に日本語が続きます。
These are Manchurian violets (Viola mandshurica), the second type of violet I've seen following Viola grypoceras. Both are violet color but Manchurian violets are deep while Viola grypoceras pale. Despite their pretty, delicate appearance, violets are very hardy growing on sidewalks.
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| 2025/4/22 |
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| 2025/4/22 |
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| 2025/4/22 |
Miquel's Mazus (Mazus Miquelii) ムラサキサギゴケ（紫鷺苔）
英語の後に日本語が続きます。
These are Miquel's mazus (Mazus miquelii). They resemble Japanese mazus (Mazus pumilus) very much in terms of the flower color, shape and size, but you can tell which is which based on the direction of growing. Japanese mazus grows upward while Miquel's mazus grows low to the ground. But still so confusing.
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| 2025/4/19 |
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| 2025/4/19 |
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| 2025/4/19 |
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| 2025/4/19 |
Sato Cherry (Prunus Serrulata) ヤエベニトラノオ（八重紅虎の尾）
英語の後に日本語が続きます。
Oshima cherry blossoms have almost all fallen in Tokyo and now late bloomers, such as Sato cherry (Prunus serrulata), are in full blossom! There are various types of Sato cherry trees and the first three photos are of one of them, named Yae beni toranoo, meaning "double flowered pink tiger tails" after its branches with dense clusters of pale pink blossoms that look like tiger tails. Gorgeous!
Oshima cherry blossoms have almost all fallen in Tokyo and now late bloomers, such as Sato cherry (Prunus serrulata), are in full blossom! There are various types of Sato cherry trees and the first three photos are of one of them, named Yae beni toranoo, meaning "double flowered pink tiger tails" after its branches with dense clusters of pale pink blossoms that look like tiger tails. Gorgeous!
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| 2025/4/19 Yae beni toranoo ヤエベニトラノオ |
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| 2025/4/19 |
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| 2025/4/19 |
Green Cherry Blossoms (Gioiko Cherry) 緑の桜「ギョイコウ（御衣黄）」
英語の後に日本語が続きます。
I enjoyed YELLOW and GREEN cherry blossoms yesterday at Hama-rikyu Gardens in Tokyo, one is Ukon (see this post) and the other is Gioiko (Cerasus Sato-zakura Group ‘Gioiko’ Koidz.) in this post!
The name "Gioiko" is after the yellow color of Japanese nobility clothing, but as you can see, these blossoms are rather green. The chloroplasts of Gioiko and Ukon both contain carotenoid (i.e., yellow pigment) and chlorophyll (i.e., green pigment) but Gioiko's contain more chlorophyll, producing yellowish GREEN flowers while Ukon's contain less chlorophyll, producing greenish YELLOW blossoms.
Despite such green blossoms, its Japanese name "御衣黄" contains "黄," which means yellow. It's so confusing.
Cotton Weed (Pseudognaphalium Affine) ハハコグサ（母子草）
英語の後に日本語が続きます。
They're cotton weeds, plain weeds but one of the following seven herbs used to make seven-herb rice porridge eaten on January 7 in Japan to bring longevity and health:
They're cotton weeds, plain weeds but one of the following seven herbs used to make seven-herb rice porridge eaten on January 7 in Japan to bring longevity and health:
- Water celery (Oenanthe javanica)
- Shepherd's purse
- Cotton weed (Pseudognaphalium affine)
- Chickweed (Stellaria media)
- Nipplewort (Lapsana)
- Turnip
- Daikon radish
The plant is called by various names in Japan, e.g., "awagome (millet and rice/corn)," "usagi no mimi (rabbit's ears)," "kyaro tsuri kusa (plants to catch frogs)," suggesting the commonness of cotton weeds.
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| 2025/4/18 |
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| 2025/4/18 |
Pink Sorrel (Oxalis Articulata) イモカタバミ（芋酢漿草、芋片喰）
英語の後に日本語が続きます。
They're pink-sorrel (Oxalis articulata), often confused with another pink (wood)sorrel (Oxalis debilis). The two are both pink but Oxalis articulata (pink sorrel in this post) is deeper pink than the other. Oxalis articulata translates into "potato" woodsorrel in Japanese because it has underground stems (i.e., rhizomes) like potatoes, whose underground stems are not rhizomes but tubers, though.
They're pink-sorrel (Oxalis articulata), often confused with another pink (wood)sorrel (Oxalis debilis). The two are both pink but Oxalis articulata (pink sorrel in this post) is deeper pink than the other. Oxalis articulata translates into "potato" woodsorrel in Japanese because it has underground stems (i.e., rhizomes) like potatoes, whose underground stems are not rhizomes but tubers, though.
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| 2025/4/5 |
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| 2025/4/5 |
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| 2025/4/5 |
Flowering Dogwood and Cherry Blossoms 花水木（ハナミズキ）とサクラ
英語の後に日本語が続きます。
Following the Chinese quince yesterday, today's post is about flowering dogwood (Cornus florida) starting to bloom against the backdrop of cherry blossoms. Cherry blossoms are beautiful themselves but can also form a magnificent backdrop to other plants and flowers.
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| 2025/4/12 |
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| 2025/4/12 |
Viola Grypoceras タチツボスミレ（立坪菫）
英語の後に日本語が続きます。
They're Viola grypoceras or tachi tsubo violets on sidewalks and under cherry trees. There exist many types of violets but this type is most prevalent in Japan and can be seen often in sunny spots, which is true. All of these violets were enjoying plenty of sunshine.
They're Viola grypoceras or tachi tsubo violets on sidewalks and under cherry trees. There exist many types of violets but this type is most prevalent in Japan and can be seen often in sunny spots, which is true. All of these violets were enjoying plenty of sunshine.
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| 2025/4/8 |
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| 2025/4/8 |
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| 2025/4/8 |
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| 2025/4/8 |
Fertile Shoot of Field Horsetail (Equisetum Arvense) ツクシ（土筆）
英語の後に日本語が続きます。
These are fertile shoots of field horsetail (Equisetum arvense). I didn't expect them to grow in such a busy place close to a waste collection site. (You can see blue plastic bags piled up in the 1st photo.) I've seen fertile shoots of field horsetails many times but only in the field.
These are fertile shoots of field horsetail (Equisetum arvense). I didn't expect them to grow in such a busy place close to a waste collection site. (You can see blue plastic bags piled up in the 1st photo.) I've seen fertile shoots of field horsetails many times but only in the field.
They also made me realize that I didn't know what they were at all, i.e., that they're shoots; that they're reproductive stems; and that they're surrounded by their green relatives, i.e., sterile shoots. Such ignorance, however, may not be necessarily all my fault. In Japan, a fertile shoot of field horsetail is called tsukushi, considered (by many) as a different plant from field horsetail, which is called sugina. There's even a children's song in Japan entitled "Whose child is a fertile shoot? It's field horsetail's."
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| 2025/4/9 |
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| 2025/4/9 |
Incised Fumewort (Corydalis Incisa) ムラサキケマン（紫華鬘）
英語の後に日本語が続きます。
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| 2025/4/8 |
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| 2025/4/8 |
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| 2025/4/8 |
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| 2025/4/6 |
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| 2025/4/6 |
Rose-Gold Pussy Willow (Salix Gracilistyla) ネコヤナギ（猫柳）
英語の後に日本語が続きます。
They were fluffy buds in mid-February (6th photo) and today they're fully open, partly frozen in an unexpectedly cold weather (3rd photo). They're rose-gold pussy willow flowers (Salix gracilistyla). The rose-gold pussy willow is dioecious, which means this willow is male or female, but it was too difficult for me to determine the sex, so I gave up.
The rose-gold pussy willow is called "neko yanagi" in Japanese, which translates to "cat🐈 willow," unusually the same meaning between English and Japanese. The willow symbolizes freedom.
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| 2025/4/1 |
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| 2025/4/2 |
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| 2025/4/2 |
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| 2025/4/2 |
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Cleavers (Galium Aparine) ヤエムグラ（八重葎）
英語の後に日本語が続きます。 Cleavers (Galium aparine) are native to East Asia, Europe, and North Africa and can now be found across Japan, producing tiny...
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英語の後に日本語が続きます。 I read "A Pale View of Hills" by Kazuo Ishiguro a few years ago. The book was my second Ishiguro's book after...
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Japanese follows English. 英語の後に日本語が続きます。 Is he being boiled to death? (This is a revised version of the story originally posted on Se...