Seeds of Showy Milkweed / Asclepias speciosa

On 19 September 2015, I went to an Open House at the home of our main leader for both birding and botany. This was to mark the end of the botany season, which is always sad. We went on one last walk, around the neighbourhood, stopping to look at various plants in people's gardens, and then went back for tea and coffee and yummy snacks. This photo is of a Showy Milkweed seedpod in their garden, bursting its seams to release the beautiful seeds. I think I have only ever seen Milkweed growing in the wild in one location.

""Pollination in this genus is accomplished in an unusual manner, as the pollen is grouped into complex structures called pollinia (or "pollen sacs"), rather than being individual grains, as is typical for plant pollen. The flower petals are smooth and rigid, and the feet of visiting insects (predominantly large wasps, such as spider wasps, which visit the plants for nectar) slip into notches in the flowers, where the sticky bases of the pollinia attach to the feet, pulling the pollen sacs free when the pollinator flies off. Bees, including honey bees only gather nectar from milkweed flowers, and are generally not effective pollinators despite the frequency of visitation.

Species in the Asclepias genus grow their seeds in pods. These seed pods contain soft filaments known as either silk or floss. The filaments are attached to individual seeds. When the seed pod ripens, the seeds are blown by the wind, each carried by several filaments.

Native Americans used fiber in the stems for rope, basketry, and nets. Some Native Americans believed the milky sap had medicinal qualities. However, most species of milkweed are toxic." From Wikipedia.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asclepias_speciosa

I suspect the mushroom season is over, too, as I went to Brown-Lowery Provincial Park a few days later. The grasses and plants have withered and, along with fallen leaves from the deciduous trees, have covered anything that might just be hiding underneath. The very few fungi that I did see were mostly old and definitely not photogenic. Most of my photos came out blurry, too. I didn't see many birds on this drive, either, not a single raptor, and mainly Magpies. Can't wait for next spring!!