What's up, Forsyth?

What's Up, Forsyth? For this next post, we’re not just thinking about what's “up,” but what's all around us! Have you ever seen one of these before?  …or one of these? …or, perhaps, something like this? These specimens may look a little like a plant (think moss) or a fungus (think mushroom), but they're something different altogether—they’re lichens! A lichen is an organism that forms when a fungus, alga, and/or cyanobacterium enter into a special relationship called a symbiosis . The photosynthetic partner (photobiont) in the relationship—either a type of algae or cyanobacteria—produces food for the entire organism. The fungal partner (mycobiont) provides a structure/home for the photobiont (and sometimes microorganisms like  tardigrades ), which protects it from harsh conditions. Because the mycobiont relies on the photobiont for food, lichenologist Trevor Goward has described lichens as  "fungi that have discovered agriculture." Lichens can grow almost any...

    Plantain: Nature's Band-Aid Written by Anne Ambs, Allergy and Asthma Center of NC, Cone Health Medical Group For this week’s adventure, I had to go no further than my own back yard, much to my chagrin, to find plantain weeds nestled in among the other herbaceous plants and bushes. This plant, which originated in Eurasia, has followed human migration patterns throughout history and is now found in nearly every state in the US. The genus Plantago , commonly referred to as plantain, includes over 200 species and is widely distributed around the world. Most are herbaceous perennials with similar growth patterns. Herbaceous plants have flexible green stems with few to no woody parts. Low to the ground, the leaves grow in a rosette pattern with a spikelike flowering structure towering above it. This plant’s leaves are low enough to the ground to evade lawn mower blades and are tough enough to bounce back to life, even if stepped on. Image 1: English Plantain.  Photo credi...