Wandering off the trail, we stumbled and splashed our way through a part of the Gabriola forest where everything is huge, probably due to the wet conditions and rich soil. Sword ferns, which grow knee-high at our place, were almost as tall as I am in this part of the woods. I brought back a [...]
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Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning is in the news again. That reminded me of this story from October 1888. It’s from the Gabriola Edition of the Nanaimo Free Press: Charlie Peters, a Penelecut Indian, sworn, deposed: "Last Friday, I and my klootchman, Tsameston, and another Indian eat a kettleful of mussels. When we had done so our [...]
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Oregon Grape is native to Gabriola, and is wonderful for 74 different reasons. Right now many of Gabriola’s Oregon Grape plants are in bloom; perhaps you’ve noticed their yellow flowers. Now we’re seeing the transition between blossoms and tiny little berries. (Yes, those berries are edible, but not until they’re purple.) I highly recommend this [...]
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I’m always amazed at the designs Oregon Grape leaves make as they age. They don’t just do an all-over mottled thing the way so many leaves do, nor do they turn brown as a unit. No, these leaves have their own ideas. Some Oregon Grape plants are all bright red right now, while others are [...]
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