The Travels of Tug 44 |
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Chinese Lantern Plant |
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I have these Chinese Lantern Plants growing in my back yard on the Champlain Canal. The seed pod consists of a little red berry with a seed in it, covered by the flower petals, resembling a paper lantern. I cut this one open to show the seed berry inside. They are very hardy and can survive our brutal winters at 35 degrees below zero. In fact the bright orange/red balloons survive half way through winter. high-res
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They grow on a vine-like plant, mine are growing up the bark of a giant cottonwood tree. high-res
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A closer look at the orange/red seed pods. high-res
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In late winter and spring, the covering vanishes, and leaves behind the dried seed pod, covered by a spidery network of veins. This photo came from Wikipedia, I'll replace it with my own in the spring. high-res |
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