In the beginning

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As you saw last time, the lower surfaces of the leaves of Vitis mustangensis, the mustang grape vine, are covered with so many downy hairs that those undersides look as if they’re made of felt. When the vine’s small and soft new leaves form, their fuzziness predicts the later lower surfaces, but they also have conspicuous traces of magenta that don’t make it into the mature leaves. Slightly down and to the right of center in today’s picture you can see parts of a few emerging buds, whose tips have magenta “stars” or “crosses” on them.

Despite the title of this post, it’s the sixth and last entry in the current series about the mustang grape vine. For more information about Vitis mustangensis and to see a state-clickable map of the places where it grows, you’re welcome to visit the USDA website.

© 2012 Steven Schwartzman

Upstairs, downstairs

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The last four posts have dealt with the mustang grape vine, Vitis mustangensis. Here you see that its leaves have an upper surface that’s a shiny bright green interspersed with traces of white-haired wispiness. Based on this view of the upper surface, can you imagine what the underside is like?

To find out how reality matches up with what you’ve imagined, click the tiny icon at the beginning of the next line and you’ll see the lower surface of a mustang grape leaf.

For more information about Vitis mustangensis and to see a state-clickable map of the places where it grows, you can visit the USDA website.

© 2012 Steven Schwartzman