This always happens -- I have grand plans to post while in the field, then things get too crazy and I don't end up writing anything til I'm back home. But better late than never, I suppose. Summer 2015 field season was hot, dry, and productive -- kinda like the Central Valley! As we all know, … Continue reading Summer Field Season 2015
Lightning Talk
I gave my first talk this week, at the UMN Plant Biology seminar. The format was a series of "lightning talks," meant to be a 5-minute synopsis of some cool work you're doing. You can watch mine below. Trapped! A SoCal species border from John Benning on Vimeo.
VWC sensor hack
I needed to quantify volumetric water content for a water stress experiment I have going in the greenhouse, but jeez, even a relatively simple setup can cost a pretty penny ($300 -$500). So I went the DIY route. You don't want to skimp on quality for the actual sensor -- for repeated insertion in greenhouse … Continue reading VWC sensor hack
The Grand Canyon
My first video post!
Into the Trees
You know how when you're a kid you want to climb everything? Tables, curtains, trees, chicken coops, cars -- you name it. Well, that inclination never really left me, and in August 2012 I was able to satiate those childhood urges under the guise of "work!" Leaving the Florida summer behind, I packed all my … Continue reading Into the Trees
Life in the Scrub
I spent the first half of 2012 wandering Florida's Lake Wales Ridge, an elevated, sandy spine that runs for 115 miles through the center of the state. A million years ago when peninsular Florida was largely underwater, higher elevations on the Ridge resulted in a series of islands which, now landlocked, are home to a … Continue reading Life in the Scrub
Last Days in the Desert
Here is the (largely pictorial) summation of my last wanderings in the desert; please forgive my extreme procrastination. Mexican Campion, Silene laciniata. You can see a closely related N.C. species (Silene virginica) in my July 2011 post about the Southern Appalachians. Forefront: Century Plant, Agave havardiana In mid-October Ben, Alex and I headed up … Continue reading Last Days in the Desert
Rattlesnakes and Jewel Bugs
So, what makes a desert? Lack of water, right? But why exactly do deserts lack water? There are a few possible explanations. Firstly, the simple fact of being far from the ocean, which is where most of the world’s atmospheric moisture originates, can cause aridity. As humid air moves inland, precipitation occurs, and the further … Continue reading Rattlesnakes and Jewel Bugs
A Rich Sparseness
“Water, water, water…There is no shortage of water in the desert but exactly the right amount, a perfect ratio of water to rock, of water to sand, insuring that wide, free, open, generous spacing among plants and animals, homes and towns and cities, which makes the arid West so different from any other part of … Continue reading A Rich Sparseness
The Southern Appalachians
Common Milkweed, Asclepias syriaca, is at first glance merely another pretty roadside wildflower making those long drives a bit more bearable. Growing up to six feet tall, it stands above the jewelweed and Monarda, showing off its spherical umbels of pink-purple blooms as if they were tiny planets orbiting the stem. It even emits a … Continue reading The Southern Appalachians
John Benning 