Flora

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Growing Up Alone

March 30, 2011 Flora

photos ©ingridtaylar – email me for permissions First signs of spring at the Center for Urban Horticulture in Seattle. I posted a mini history of the Montlake-Fill-to-Union-Bay-Natural-Area transformation over at Seattleography.

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Fennel

Phases of Fennel

April 17, 2010 Bay Area Faves

The fragrance of fennel always takes me to Southern California . . . to the untamed hillside of my parents’ home . . . years ago now . . . where she and my dad landed after a lifetime of soaking up maritime fog . . .

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Never Underestimate a Cattail

April 14, 2010 Bay Area

Today, I watched a Marsh Wren collect soft fibers from the head of a cattail — and dive into the abyss of cattail leaves to build up a hidden nest.

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One Tree, Many Lives

April 9, 2010 Bay Area Faves

Every spring, the wood chipper shows up. One morning, Fargo-like, it just appears . . . always while I’m in my bathrobe, never after I’ve quaffed my caffeine . . .

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Brave New Poppies . . . and David Lynch

March 14, 2010 Flora

I appreciate spring this year. I didn’t in 2009. Our California sod is parched from recent drought — and the whimsy of a winter that flitted through last year felt like hope lost.

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A [Still] Golden Autumn

December 5, 2009 Flora

I realize it’s still autumn. But does this look like December 5? Our trees are still crimson, gold and amber — attributed to minimal rain and a mild autumn. We’re bracing for a storm next week which might send these leaves tumbling. But for now, fall lingers just outside my door. These photos were taken [...]

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Yellow Star Thistle and the Reticular Activating System

August 25, 2009 Flora

Invasive plants and motivational seminars collide in my world. If you’ve ever attended a goal-generating seminar, you’ve probably heard the term Reticular Activating System (RAS) tossed around. It’s used in motivational circles to describe our physiological capacity to pay attention. The RAS is part of a large network in our nervous systems, controlling consciousness, sensory [...]

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The Goldfinch and Thistle (A Pub With No Pints)

August 22, 2009 Flora

The Bay Area has a thistle problem, but goldfinches weren’t complaining on our hike yesterday. As stated in this sign, there are earnest efforts to limit the spread of wild artichoke thistle which tends to push out native plants and grasslands. Invasive thistles are aggressive, using up water resources and messing with habitat for wildlife [...]

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Bees and Their Fennel

August 11, 2009 Bay Area

It never fails that fennel is the best medium for my bee photography — even if it does render consistently yellow backdrops for my bee images…

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Studies in Vagueness: Everyday Translucence

July 24, 2009 Edibles

I was filling up the compost pail and decided the items on my fridge deserved a photographic tribute for the good works they do.

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The Art in Bull Kelp

July 4, 2009 Bay Area

I never appreciated kelp until, 1) I first saw this particular monster of a kelp, and 2) I saw close-ups of kelp shot by better nature photographers than I — capturing the golden palette of this gargantuan plant.

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A Day in the Life of a Corpse Flower

July 2, 2008 Flora

Well, more than a day actually . . . It’s supposed to smell like rotting flesh, hence the name. But during our visit with the corpse flower (Titan arum) at UC Berkeley Botanical Garden, the plant was nice enough not to pulsate and stink up the joint. The smells come in pulses, often more pungent [...]

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