Snow

 

It’s snowing today in Yokohama.

But, spring is near.

If you have any questions about Yokohama’s Green Tax and Green Up Plan, please make a contact with

Strategic Planning Division, Green Environment Bureau, City of Yokohama
横浜市みどり環境局戦略企画課

Phone: 045-671-2712
FAX: 045-550-4093

Email: mk-kikaku@city.yokohama.lg.jp

Gotcha! I collected pollens of Cephalanthera falcata

 

Cephalanthera falcata is a member of orchid family. In 1997 it was nationally designated as endangered species of VU. Before, its yellow flowers were familiar spring Prima donna in Japanese countryside. Its “pretty in yellow” backfired. Many of them were stolen from forests. Alas, it‘s orchid, and so, mycoheterotrophic plant (my post on August 12, 2022). It cannot survive without underground network of mycorrhizal fungi that can feed them. You dig up a pretty yellow flower and plant it in your cute pot. Sooner or later, the beau is starved to death. Hence is the current VU status.

Its buds are waiting to flower …

In addition to their eating habit, orchids are very fastidious flowers. Basically, the propagation of any orchid from seed is very difficult. One reason is their mating habit. They have very tiny pollen that chooses very special insect carrying for pollination. Accordingly, their anatomy of flower is a bit different from ordinary flowers. OK, that’s their strategy. For me collecting pollen to admire them under microscopes (my post on April 28, 2023), it means pasting Cephalanthera falcata's pollen on scotch tape is VERY difficult. Their tiny pollens are on gynostemium which is an amalgam of stamens and pistil. I could not be sure if I have collected the minuscule pollens from gynostemium … Last year, I failed completely. My scotch tape was empty under the microscope. This year, I took a deep breath, and told myself “Slow, slow, and very gentle …” I tried several times patting the flower … And, I think I managed to have them this year. Here is the microscopic photo. According to Google search, the pollens of Cephalanthera falcata are yellow and tiny. I think these yellow dots on the black drawing paper are pollens … Don‘t you think?

Pollens of Cephalanthera falcata.
Their streaks look like some astronomical objects ...

Sure, gynostemium of Cephalanthera falcata is obvious.
But do you think we can recognize pollens on it?

Cephalanthera falcata is not the only flower for us to identify stamens. Fringed iris, Iris japonica, is actually not Japanese endemic, but brought from Chinese Continent more than 1000 years ago. Some say ancient Kreans carried them to our archpelago when they immigrated, as its roots were/are emergency food for famine. (To eat their roots, we have to grate and wash them to collect starch from it, same as we do for potatos. Then, we need to expose the starch powder under running water for days. You have to be careful. If your clearance is not enough, the taste of it is VERRRRRRY bitter, it is said.) Why can we say their origin for sure, you think? Well, unlike their cousins in Asian continent, Japanese fringed iris are all autopolyploid, or triploid to be exact. They have three sets of chromosomes, and so sterile. Even though, it is not at all difficult to find them in Japanese forest especially when there are/were human settlement. i.e. They were artificially planted, often millennium ago, and propagated by separating roots. For me, this special feature of the flower makes it difficult to identify stamens for collecting pollens. “I don’t want to crush the flower, I don’t want to crush the flower, I don’t want to crush the flower …” I recited the mantra and patted the flowers very gently. Here is my catch this year!

Pollens of Fringed iris.
They look like rolled oats, don’t you think?

Fringed iris in Mt. Ogusu.
Sure enough,
the place was once for Japanese samurais.

The color and the form of pollen are so diverse from each species. It’s fun to collect them especially in spring when lots of flowers burst open … and I noticed pollens of Asteraceae family are so so so COVID-19 lookalike. Heck. I’m getting better.

Pollens of flatweed

If you find environmental issues in Kanagawa Prefecture, please make a contact with Kanagawa Natural Environment Conservation Center 神奈川県自然環境保全センター

657 Nanasawa, Atsugi City, 243-0121
〒243－0121　厚木市七沢657
Phone: 046-248-0323

You can send an enquiry to them by clicking the bottom line of their homepage at http://www.pref.kanagawa.jp/div/1644/

The New Plan Is Underway: Biodiversity project for Hakone Sengokubara National Treasure site 箱根仙石原

 

Continuing my spring adventure last week in in Hakone Sengokubara National Treasure site 箱根仙石原, the Botanical Garden is currently the only place for Sengokubara wetland open to the public. Immediately to the west along Shitsugen Street is more or less developed for vacation houses and commercial facilities. Between such places and the national treasure site, there is a forest. It is closed off, open only for the permit holders. The 2.33 ha of the forest was donated to Hakone Town from the previous owner, and the rest 6.83 ha was bought by Kanagawa Trust, Kanagawa version of English-style National Trust. The purchase was funded by a broad donation from the public. The legal process to close off the National Treasure with the surrounding forest was completed in 2021. From 2022 a scheme was started to protect and improve the biodiversity for the wider Sengokubara wetland area. The very first yearly project cycle is being completed now. We had a chance to enter the off-limit site how it goes. For me, the difference in scenery between autumn and spring was astonishing in Sengokubara. The open space of the wetland in spring gave us the opportunity to understand the actual working of the project easily. Let me explain.

First, we have to start with the deer problem in Hakone. As I told you in my 3 postings from July 7th to July 21st 2017, Kanagawa Prefecture, especially in Tanzawa Mountains 丹沢山地, there was/is a serious problem of population explosion of deer. Deer is voracious and fecund. Unless we protect the plants, they will eat all the vegetation they can reach in their habitat. Doe start giving birth when they are 1 year old, and produce 1-2 Bambi every year until they die at around 20 or so years old. When I posted these stories in 2017, Hakone was at a sort of borderline. Governmental panel was concluding their discussion on how to protect the National Park area from the deer, and issuing an advisory report on how to proceed. 8 years have passed since then. Now the prefectural snipers for controlling deer population are deployed to stop the collapse of forests in the National Park. Protecting Sengokubara and its ecosystem from Bambi explosion is urgent. When the acquisition of land around the National Treasure site was completed, the first thing Hakone Town, Kanagawa Midori Trust (for National Trust), and the Ministry of Environment had done was building fences surrounding the entire Sengokubara ecosystem to fend off deer. In last April, there was no tall reeds blocking our sight in the Sengokubara National Treasure site. We can find the long fence, surely surrounding the area. Hmmmmmmmmmmm … At least the deer-issue is taken care of for Sengokubara. Next, people must begin to restore and enhance the biodiversity of the deer-free Sengokubara.

The border line

For centuries people managed Sengokubara by open burning in March. The burnt reeds and pampas grass return nutritional base such as potassium to the soil that helped rice cultivation. The remaining roots soon sprout new shoots that were harvested in early summer for roofs of thatched houses and raincoats (yes!). Such circular management began collapsing during the industrialization in the late 19th century. In the middle of the previous century, the ferocious “nature protection” movement was popular that drove in 1970 the public opinion to halt completely open burning in Sengokubara. On the other hand, with rapid mass tourism development of the area by paved car roads and heavy usage of ground water for hotels, the wetland was pushed quickly to aridification. Natural succession kicked in, which meant for this area the invasion of taller trees, beginning with Japanese alders. When the wetland was designated for the National Treasure in 1934, the place was graced by elegant wild Japanese water irises. They rapidly disappeared during the 1970s. It affected the bottom line of the local tourism industry. Confused people started in 1985 research for managed protection of the wetland. The place for trial was the experimental area of present-day Hakone Botanical Garden which was till then rice paddies. In 1991, they concluded from the study returning the traditional way, i.e. open burning and early summer mowing, was the most effective for restoring biodiversity of the area. The tradition resumed. The new plan from 2022 with deer fence is the extension from here.

If we leave the Sengokubara wetland to its own devises,
it becomes like this within 10-20 years.

And this is the experimental area of Botanical Garden.
In Hakone, Sengokubara is the only place
where the wetland remains
(; my post on October 29, 2021).

In 1991, open burning returned but the surrounding forest where aridification started was left as-was. During the 1990s, the role of adjacent environment for the wetland was not yet clear for humans. People wondered what to do in this place. Besides, it was a private property. Legally, only the landlord can decide for the matter, even if that person was clueless. I guess the previous owner was wondering if it was profitable to bulldoze the forest for new cafés or something for tourists. Luckily, Japan entered “the lost 30 years” after the burst of the Bubble economy. Developmental pressure was not so strong for the area. The forest was sold as a “national trust area.” Eventually the understanding of the importance of ecosystem became mainstream. Pros, including the people for the National Park management, began to consider the entire area for the wetland management. Let’s start with water. Supply of water for the swamp comes from Mt. Daigatake 台ヶ岳 and from one of the water sources for River Hayakawa 早川. (In addition, beyond the Sengokubara Street, there is Itari Pond イタリ池 whose water is pumped up to Oakudani 大涌谷 to be heated and distributed to the hotels as “hot spring water.”) To maintain the wetland, the Offices secured water supply from these places by public works. Do you remember the ditch we washed our boots before entering the closed-off place (my post on November 5th, 2021)? The gutter was one of such result of public works. Next, monitoring devices for ground water level were situated here and there of the Sengokubara to make it sure the water supply is OK. The basics for maintaining wetland water have done. Next is to manage the natural succession.

We wash our feet first there in the gutter.

Measuring the underground water level

The result of water management

The main approach for stopping natural succession in Sengokubara was clear: open burning in March, and mowing in early summer. The issue was how to treat the surrounding forest. From purely practical point of view, the role of forest for open burning was to seal the man-made structures in the area from the burning. But after studying the ecology in the semi-dried forest, researchers have noticed the system there was to buffer the direct impact from touristic development on the ecosystem of wetland. In addition, for Kanagawa Prefecture, Sengokubara is the only wetland and its surrounding forest with Japanese alders is more and more rare in the urbanized cities and towns. The wet forest itself has a rich biodiversity that is to be protected. So, in the new management plan, the adjacent forest is also the place whose ground water level is monitored to be maintained as is.

The border between the forest and the wetland.
After open burning, reeds will sprout from
the wet ground on the rim of the forest.
To begin burning, people first hand-mow these reeds
adjacent to the forest, then ignite fire.
The open space after mowing becomes a buffer against direct fire.
The shrubs at the hedge of forest protect
the life in deeper part of the forest.

After burning, new shoots of reeds are coming, but
not overwhelming to cover the groundof Sengokubara proper.
Potentilla freyniana won’t miss this opportunity
of sunshine and flowering here and there.

Cirsium sieboldii were thriving this year in Sengokubara.
There are many species of Asteraceae in Sengokubara.
Some of them are in the Red List for endangered species.
So, I don’t show you the photo of them today … Sorry.

Actual place designated for National Treasure is
within the area surrounded by wood fences.
It’s not much, really.

Carex thunbergii Steudel that is common
in Sengokubara in spring.
 In general, they thrive in wet soil and sunshine
 on footpaths between rice fields.
Footpath is often mowed for easier access
to the rice paddies that makes a happy environment for them.
 In contrast, in Sengokubara,
once the tall reeds dominate the place,
Carex thunbergii cannot win the game.
Spring is a rare chance for them.

As we’ve completed only the first year of the first phase of the project, no one knows how this approach for the management of Sengokubara turns out. The people, including Mr. Katsuyama, hope once the stabilization is completed for the ecosystem of Sengokubara, Hakone town may be able to extend the pedestrian deck from the Botanical Garden to the Sengokubara for experiencing the wider wetland ecosystem. At such a stage, the wild irises should return with lots of cool purple flowers dotting the large space. It can attract more entrance fee that will support the maintenance of fragile ecosystem ... Anyway, that’s the idea. We’ll see how it goes. I realized the things for Sengokubara are similar to the Satoyama management in Niiharu Citizen Forest 新治市民の森. In the climate of Kanagawa Prefecture, without human intervention, the village forest around us will be dominated by large evergreen Quercus myrsinifolia. With its broadleaves, the forest floor of the place is dark with smaller biodiversity. If we control the tree by mowing, thinning, pruning …, forest becomes brighter with more species here and there. Our great-great grandparents utilized the mowed grass, thinned and pruned tree trunks and boughs for daily use and for fuel. That’s the circular economy of rich Satoyama. Rich wetland is the same in our Prefecture … Mr. Katsuyama said “In terms of climate, Kanagawa Prefecture is not suitable for low or high moor. Having Sengokubara is a sort of miracle, and probably the passing scenery in the process of shrinking Lake Ashinoko 芦ノ湖 and aridification of the area for these 60 thousand years. Even so, with the wetland, the number of species dwelling in our home is definitely higher. It’s worthwhile to do our best to protect the fragile National Treasure.” OK. It would be another way for us to talk with the nature in this age of global warming …

Inside the surrounding forest of Japanese alders

The ground was swampy and there were colonies of
Carex dispalata with which people make sedge hats.

They also flower in spring!

There were lots of Viola verecunda in the forest.

If you find environmental issues in Hakone, please make a contact with Hakone Visitor Centre 環境省箱根ビジターセンター

164 Motohakone, Hakone Town, Ashigarashimo-gun, Kanagawa Prefecture 250-0522
250-0522 神奈川県足柄下郡箱根町元箱根164
TEL：0460-84-9981
FAX：0460-84-5721 

https://hakonevc.sunnyday.jp/

We’re thinking how to go with biodiversity: Hakone Botanical Garden of Wetlands 箱根湿生花園

 

In my posts for the fall 2021 (October 29, 2021 and November 5, 2021), I told you my adventure in Hakone Sengokubara National Treasure site 箱根仙石原. This spring I returned there and experienced the place for spring. The people who’re taking care of the site, citizen volunteers, academia, Hakone Town, Kanagawa Prefecture, and the Ministry of Environment of Japan has decided a new plan how to proceed the conservation effort. FY 2022 was the first year of this endeavor which ended just last March. Next week, I tell you what the design intends to do. This week, I report my experience in Hakone Botanical Garden of Wetlands 箱根湿生花園 in more detail. According to Mr. Teruo Katsuyama 勝山輝男, the Researcher Emeritus for Kanagawa Prefectural Museum of NaturalHistory, and the Chairperson for Flora Kanagawa Association, in the newly started conservation scheme, the business plan of Botanical Garden works as a benchmark in order to ensure the sustainability of the idea. I think knowing the Garden would help understand the new strategy which I will explain to you next week. So, this week let’s stroll the tranquil wetland garden.

The Gate to Hakone Botanical Garden of Wetlands

A mini review of my posts from 2021. Hakone Botanical Garden of Wetlands 箱根湿生花園 is owned by Hakone Town and shields the wetland from urbanization by resort development. The place has well-tended native and otherwise vegetations for temperate mountainous area. The majority of the road inside the Garden is barrier-free so that wheelchair users are able to experience nature of National Treasure. The access to Botanical Garden is either by car from Gotemba 御殿場 IC of Tomei Expressway, or by bus from Shinjuku (with Odakyu Hakone Expressway Bus 小田急高速バス) or from Odawara (with Hakone-tozan Bus 箱根登山バス, commuter bus services to Kojiri/Togendai 湖尻/桃源台 Terminal; the timetable here). You get off your bus at Sengoku An’naijo-mae Stop 仙谷案内所前, walk 20m or so to the north and turn left at the corner of Lalique Museum. From there it’s one way stroll of less than 10 minutes to the entrance of Botanical Garden. Individual entrance fee for adult is 700 yen, but they have several discount tickets depending on the group visit, combination of the other museums of Hakone, and of transportation services. So please check their HP. Oh, payment is cash-only … gee. It’s too “bureaucratic” as a facility of municipality ...

Sengoku An’naijo-mae Stop 仙谷案内所前

From the bus stop,
there is this sign showing the way
to the garden. Follow it!

Entrance to the garden.
Immediately after the gate, they have a souvenir shop
that has several garden plants and bonsais.
If you have a garden,
the place could be for your interest.

As this is a botanical garden, it changes its presentation from season to season. In 2021, I tell you my visit for fall. This time it is spring. When we enter the gate and pass the admin office and souvenir shop, there next to the map of the garden is a bulletin board telling us the flowers we can meet for that day. It is helpful referring the list and the map to remember “what to see” at “which place.” As we’re introduced to the numbered place for each flower, we notice the garden is demarcated into 8 sections. They are (1) a forest of deciduous broad-leaved trees, (2) vegetation for dry grassland, (3) vegetation for low moor, (4) vegetation for wetland between low and high moors in altitude, (5) alpine vegetation, (6) vegetation for high moor, (7) plants found here in Sengokubara Wetland, and (8) wet forest. Have you noticed? The garden does not limit its collection to local flora, but introduced non-local species.

The map of the Garden …

With the list of flowers in season

There is a reason why they do not take puritanic approach for the garden collection. As this is the place open to the public for a fee, there is a demand to have flowering something year-round. “In order to fund the conservation plan for long term, we need money, you know? It’s important to encourage people who’re not so “in” for plant-admiring before coming here go home becoming a supporter for natural ecosystem. They can help funding more the place someday. Maintaining easy-to-understand presentation always is the key.” Mr. Katsuyama said. Understand. For that purpose, the inside garden is really well-maintained with variety of flowers. Here are some representations for this idea. Let’s start with Pteridophyllum racemosum.

This pretty flower is Japanese endemic species, but does not exist wild for Hakone. It loves floor of sub-alpine coniferous forest that does not exist in Kanagawa Prefecture. Here in the Botanical Garden, they show us in April pretty flowers under the planted conifers. The same is true for Asian skunk cabbage that does not exist in Hakone for wild, but they are uber-popular as it resonates with “natural beauty of Oze wetland.”

They do not restrict Japanese natives to show possible plants for Sengokubara wetland. Lotus is definitely came from India long ago. Japanese endemic species of lotus family is Pigmy water lily that flowers between June to September. April is a bit early, but we can anyway enjoy Indian pink thanks to the foreign transplants.

So far, I showed you comers that add colors for spring Hakone Botanical Garden of Wetlands. The Garden also has locals. Here is Marsh marigold commonly seen in the banks of streams in Hakone.

Or, this is endangered species categorized as VU. It’s Elaeagnus matsunoana, belonging to the group of plants called “Fossa magna elements” (; more for Fossa magna elements later in my post).

Or beautiful Paeonia japonica which can be found wild in Hakone, but categorized as NT by the Ministry of Environment of Japan.

These plants are intentionally located by professional botanists in order to show the potential of biodiversity for the area. The most typical representation of this approach is in the area for Sengokubara Wetland restoration experiment. There, the water flow overland or otherwise is carefully controlled from off-limit Sengokubara Wetland and Mt. Daigatake 台ヶ岳to maintain the place “wet.” Then, professional landscapers and botanical researchers annually mow the common reeds and silver grasses by hand. Next week I tell you how Sengokubara Wetland itself looked like in spring, and the way to maintain the place “as is.” The main approach there is field burning that has been employed since the place was used as rice paddies. This traditional way has pros and cons. The experimental area of the Botanical Garden is a sort of identifying “con” element of it. Manually controlled area has wooden decks for visitors to stroll and to watch wetland nature close. Mr. Katsuyama’s ambition is to make Sengokubara Wetland have similar access for tourists that would generate fund in addition to educational opportunity for general public by experiencing the wonder of natural biodiversity. OK. Next week, I tell you my adventure in Sengokubara Wetland for spring 2023.

The experiment area for wetland in Botanical Garden.
All the mowing here is done by hand.
The effort is … huge, I guess.

The spring fruit of such labour.
Lots of Potentilla freyniana were flowering.

The place is wet like this in spring.
Carex thunbergii were flowering.

If you find environmental issues in Hakone, please make a contact with Hakone Visitor Centre 環境省箱根ビジターセンター

164 Motohakone, Hakone Town, Ashigarashimo-gun, Kanagawa Prefecture 250-0522
250-0522 神奈川県足柄下郡箱根町元箱根164
TEL：0460-84-9981
FAX：0460-84-5721

https://hakonevc.sunnyday.jp/

Miniature wonder: admiring Asteraceae pollens under microscope

 

Er … a sort of Naomi’s boom for Spring 2023. I’m in for collecting pollens these days. It’s not for culinary purposes or something, but to admire them under microscope. Actually, last fall when I walked Niiharu Citizen Forest with the researchers from Kanagawa Prefectural Museum of Natural History, they taught me this fun. The way to collect pollens is simple.

<What you need>

1. Black construction paper, cut into, … er … 3cm*5cm cards, or in a similar size.

The card is small enough to carry to a field, but large enough to work with.

2. Transparent Scotch tape, preferably 2cm or so wide.

Here.
The white sticker on the construction paper is
to write down the name of flower.

<What to do>

1. Put 2-3 cm long scotch tape on a flower, gently push the sticky side on the stamen to collect pollens.
2. Paste the scotch tape with pollens on a card of construction paper. 

3. Enjoy them under microscope!

Flatweed flower with scotch tape.

I pasted the tape with pollens on a construction paper card …

and admire them under a microscope on my desk.

I’m still sorting out my collection ... This week, I’ll show you some of my cards for the flowers of Asteraceae family.

Oriental false hawksbeard

Their pollens look like yellow confetti. 😊

Common sowthistle

Theirs are also like candies, but the spikiness is, it seems to me, sharper than Oriental false hawksbeard.

Jersey Cudweed

Hmmmm. This candy-like pollen looks like a petit potato.

Flatweed

So far, this looks the most appetizing as a candy, don’t you think?

Eastern daisy fleabane

Wow. These fecund-looking pollens are true to their notoriety as super-invasive species!

It’s interesting the pollens from the same family look similar each other. I mean, pollens for Asteraceae family all have spikes … like COVID viruses … Are the spikes do something for their procreation? For contrast, here is from another family, Garryaceae to be exact.

They are pollens for Japanese laurel. I used thick double-sided tape for this photo. Pro for this approach was I don’t have to carry a tape cutter, as long as I prepare the card beforehand with the tape. But the level of transparency is lower with double-sided tape. In addition, the tape was too thick to stabilize microscope over it. So I abandoned this approach.

I’m sorry for these out-of-focus photos from microscope. It’s difficult to stabilize my Android over the microscope … Also, I think I need to find better Scotch tape with more transparency. My trial continues …

If you find environmental issues in Kanagawa Prefecture, please make a contact with Kanagawa Natural Environment Conservation Center 神奈川県自然環境保全センター

657 Nanasawa, Atsugi City, 243-0121
〒243－0121　厚木市七沢657
Phone: 046-248-0323

You can send an enquiry to them by clicking the bottom line of their homepage at http://www.pref.kanagawa.jp/div/1644/