On the weekend, I went to visit the first flower of the year in Hangzhou - single-leaved clematis. This flower has been pushed many times, and I will not repeat it in this article. (Every January, I go looking for these two wildflowers) But that doesn't mean I'm tired of taking a different perspective, walking with different people, and even if I look at the same flower over and over again, something new will always emerge.
And, while the goal is important, there are also surprises along the way. On the way to find the single-leaved clematis this time, I was "pinned" by the moth vine for a long time.
Now is the fruiting season of the moth vine (Porana racemosa, Spiralaceae), and although the vine is yellow and the leaves are gone, its fruit shows a different kind of vitality. There are almost so many moth vines on this road that they are overflowing, and the bunches of fruit hang from the vines, trembling slightly in the northwest wind.
This scene reminds me of a small outbreak of mayflies that I encountered in Xishuangbanna in 2020. As I drove past a small bridge, I suddenly saw countless points of light on the river in the distance, which were reflected by the sun as the mayflies flapped their wings. It was as if the air was shining with sparkling waves, and one couldn't help but suspect that they had encountered a mirage.
This moth vine has a similar visual effect, the sunlight shines through the five thin, translucent sepals of the moth vine, flickering brightly and darkly, floating and golden. In the center of the sepal is the fruit of the moth vine, a small round ball that looks like it is falling heavily, ready to break away from the mother with five wings.
But this time I forgot to test the flying ability of the Moth Vine Fruit, and I'll have to try it the next time I see it. As a widespread weed, it shouldn't be difficult to say goodbye.
If you go back to September ~ October, it is the flowering period of the moth vine. As a spiral plant, the leaves of the moth vine are the same as those of the morning glory, but the crack of the corolla is much deeper than that of the morning glory, and it does not look like a big trumpet, but it seems to have 5~6 petals.
Its flowers are light little white flowers, with a corolla diameter of less than a centimeter, and several small flowers arranged in sparse panicles. But gathering less into more can also form a grand flower event.
↑ The picture shows three rows of moth vines
The three-row moth vine (Porana duclouxii) seen in Sichuan before looks more like a morning glory because the corolla fissure is not deep. The flowers are purple and quite beautiful.
Author: Jiang someone
Image: Jiang someone
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