From copper lily to copperleaf

On August 18 along Great Northern Blvd. I photographed this inflorescence of a little native plant in the genus Acalypha. I’m not sure of the species but some in this genus are known as copperleaf, so combine that with the subject of yesterday’s post and you’ve got today’s title.

You’re looking at the male flowers; the female flowers in this species are on a separate plant. The whole spike shown here, including the part with the leaves, might have been about 2 inches (5cm) long. That makes this one of those lie-on-the-ground-and-aim-slightly-upward sorts of pictures that are so much “fun” to take.

© 2016 Steven Schwartzman