One of PEI’s most common woodland plants is often overlooked, occasionally misidentified, and fruiting now. Meet Sarsaparilla (pronounced ‘sass-parilla’, Aralia nudicaulis). Sarsaparilla is about 30 to 45 centimetres (a foot to 1.5 feet) tall and is divided into three branches, each with three to five leaflets (main photo). Those leaflets are often reddish when they first appear in spring, and they turn red again in fall. This, coupled with the old saying “leaves of three,

Earlier this year, my youngest (and largest) dog was cornered on the deck by something that was clearly very scary. I rushed to rescue him and immediately saw the fearsome creature: this lovely Northern Parula Warbler ( Setophaga americana ). ( No birds were harmed in the taking of this photo ). The Northern Parula is one of about 20 species of migratory warblers that breed on PEI. I’m no birder, but the Parula Warbler’s distinctive call is one of the few I recognize: a fast

On PEI, autumn is for Asters. These beautiful and often colourful flowers can be found in literally every Island habitat right now: sand...