Greetings everyone. A couple of weeks ago, a friend and I went to a nearby bog close to Wooster, Ohio. With my friend being a high school horticulture teacher and me being a high school science teacher, we spent a long time looking closely at the plants.
I'm wondering if someone could correct/verify an observation I made? I noticed that the snow around the Sarrs (purple variety...I believe) were melted. My question is, why?
My theories are: #1. The decaying sphagnum, underneath is generating heat. #2. The sarrs are generating their own heat. #3. The dark color of the sarrs allows more heat to be absorbed from the light. #4. The sarrs have a "natural anti-freeze" that prevents them from freezing.
I'm going to try to post some pictures...I'm a novice at posting pictures on this website...we'll see if I can do it.
Thanks,
Dwight
http://s270.photobucket.com/albums/jj82/bethanddwight/Browns%20bog/?albumview=grid
Panoramic of Brown's Bog
I'm wondering if someone could correct/verify an observation I made? I noticed that the snow around the Sarrs (purple variety...I believe) were melted. My question is, why?
My theories are: #1. The decaying sphagnum, underneath is generating heat. #2. The sarrs are generating their own heat. #3. The dark color of the sarrs allows more heat to be absorbed from the light. #4. The sarrs have a "natural anti-freeze" that prevents them from freezing.
I'm going to try to post some pictures...I'm a novice at posting pictures on this website...we'll see if I can do it.
Thanks,
Dwight
http://s270.photobucket.com/albums/jj82/bethanddwight/Browns%20bog/?albumview=grid
Panoramic of Brown's Bog