#cycad

[turndecassette2]

[girls--complex]

Grove

[ruthbancroftgarden]

Cycas panzhihuaensis

The Chinese cycads are not as well-known or as widely grown as Cycas revoluta, the Sago Palm (which comes from Japan). Cycas panzhihuaensis is native to Sichuan and Yunnan Provinces, and it was not officially named until 1979. Our plant is a female, as shown by the rounded cone (male ones are more elongated).

-Brian

[lost-lycaon]

Mombasa cycad, seen at the Milwaukee Horticultural Domes

[owtechnolich]

Outer Wilds vines pt 5

When I design a Nomai I look up the plant they're named after and try to base their appearance on that a little. :>

Also, there may not be giraffes in OW, but the vine just didn't feel right with anything else...

I have so many Feldspar vines, but they're just vine bait. smdh

[etherealyearning]

Latest bloom at Missouri Botanical Gardens inside The Climatron ₍ᐢ. .ᐢ₎𖹭

The Cyad (Encephalartos Ferox) produces the large, vibrant red cones. In 2018 and 2019, it produced two cones, but this year, it's got three!

[stamps-are-pawsome]

cute dinosaur images from the children's educational site enchantedlearning; in order the images are... allosaurus, pterodactyl, ceratosaurus / sauropelta, kronosaurus, dilopho / albertosaurus, rhamphorhynchus, apato / archaeopteryx, brachiodone / compy, trex, deinon / diplo / pteranodon, giganotosaurus, quetzalcoatlus / cycad, trex skull, dinosaur / trex boxing / yangchuanosaurus, pangea breaking up / velociraptor, utahraptor

[mineralsrocksandfossiltalks]

FOSSIL FRIDAY

Today we will talk about Petrified Wood!

One of the most common fossils, petrified wood is is tree or tree-like wood that has either been fossilized through replacement or permineralization. Usually, the organic material is replicated by silica (quartz or it's microcrystalline forms opal or chalcedony).

Petrified wood forms when woody plants are buried in saturated sediments with dissolved minerals in solution. The lack of oxygen slows decay and allows fossilization to occur.

Below are petrified wood and cycad specimens I have collected over the years from various localities I have worked at. All come from Late Jurassic sites.

The first is from the Salt Wash Member of the Morrison Formation in northwestern Colorado. It has been replaced by silica, most likely the microcrystalline quartz form, chalcedony.

The second is from the same location and has definitely been replaced by chalcedony. In this case, it looks to be the "flint" variety.

The third photo contains pieces of of wood from the Late Jurassic Swift Formation in northwest central Montana (It's a huge state. I need to be that weirdly specific). These are partially petrified and partially coalified. They still retain some of the original organic material which leaves a black residue on the fingers.

The fourth photograph are pieces that came from the Brushy Basin Member of the Morrison Formation in the San Rafael Swell of Utah. These have been permineralized by quartz.

Finally, the last two show cycads, a type of woody plant that was a prominent part of the Mesozoic woodlands and prairies. These specimens came from the same Salt Wash site as the first two tree specimens. These have also been replaced by chalcedony.