Near the soccer field
Goldenrod sways in the wind
Green will soon be gone
Haiku by Sujomi
TIME: 9:36 AM
PLACE: Soccer fields
SUBJECT: Goldenrod
This morning, I parked at a different location at the soccer park and took the scenic route - a mowed strip of grass between the highway and a fallow field - to get to his game. The goldenrod was in abundance…I liked the yellow-green color of the ones that were just starting to mature.
“What, will the line stretch out to the crack of doom?”
William Shakespeare (1564-1616), Macbeth. Act iv, Sc. 1
TIME: 8:10 PM
PLACE: Back yard
SUBJECT: Cracks in the dry ground
We are still under an extreme heat wave. The ground is dry and cracking. With no rain in the forecast until Sunday (and then only a 30% chance), it will only get worse. I’ve only one question…why do weeds still manage to pop up during a drought, while my garden plants wither and die? That’s just not right.
“Untilled soil, however fertile it may be, will bear thistles and thorns; and so it is with man's mind.”
St. Teresa of Avila (Spanish Nun, Mystic and Writer, 1515-1582)
TIME: 8:12 PM
PLACE: On the banks of Richland Creek near West Monroe St.
SUBJECT: Musk or Nodding Thistle
This is the Musk Thistle prior to blooming. It is a native of Western Europe and was introduced in the U.S. in the early 1800’s. It has been declared a noxious weed here in Illinois.
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MonkeyBoy had a baseball game under the lights at 8:15 this evening. They lost.
“So, when my mistress shall be seen
In form and beauty of her mind,
By virtue first, then choice, a queen”
Sir Henry Wotton (1568-1639), British poet. On His Mistress, the Queen of Bohemia (l. 16-18). . . New Oxford Book of English Verse, The, 1250-1950. Helen Gardner, ed. (1972) Oxford University Press.
TIME: 7:51 PM
PLACE: South 11th Street
SUBJECT: Queen Anne’s lace, Daucus
carota (Family Apiaceae)
I tell ya, I am always learning about new things while doing this photo blog. I for one, did not know that Queen Anne’s lace is a wild relative of the carrot. And did you know, according to the World Carrot Museum, “the root of the wild plant can induce uterine contractions and so should not be used by pregnant women. A tea made from the roots is diuretic and has been used in the treatment of urinary stones. An infusion is used in the treatment of oedema, flatulent indigestion and menstrual problems. The seed is a traditional 'morning after' contraceptive and there is some evidence to uphold this belief. It requires further investigation. Carrot seeds can be abortifacient and so should not be used by pregnant women.” I find this fascinating.
“Who gathers thistles, may expect pricks"
Proverb
TIME: 7:23 PM
PLACE: West Monroe Street by the Richland Creek bridge
SUBJECT: Canadian Thistle
A double-header tonight for MonkeyBoy - they've quite a bit of rainouts to make-up. The only catch - it was still 95 degrees at 6pm when they started. By the time they finished at 10:00pm it had cooled down all the way to 84 degrees! Ah, well, they won both games so that was good.
This is another noxious weed that I think is quite lovely when not irritating the farmers. I think it looks like the Truffula Trees in the Dr. Seuss book, "The Lorax". At the risk of being politically incorrect, I never thought the Lorax character was a hero - I always felt that he was too big on complaining about what was happening to the trees and way too ineffective in actually doing anything to help save them. It was the Once-ler who saved the last Truffula seed and gave it to a child in the hopes of growing more. I think that this post at Super Punch really hits the nail on the head.
"What ye have been ye still shall be,
When we are dust the dust among,
O yellow flowers!"
Henry Austin Dobson (English poet and essayist, 1840-1921)
TIME: 10:17 AM
PLACE: North side of Cemetery on Green Mount Road
SUBJECT: Tansy Ragwort (Senecio jacobaea)
I went back today to try to capture a photo of the yellow flowers I mentioned yesterday. They are called "Tansy Ragwort". This plant is an invasive, toxic biennial and is classified as a noxious weed in many states here in the USA. This weed is one of the most common causes of poisoning in horses and cattle if consumed. Even the milk from affected cows can contain this plant's toxins. Still, I thought the fields looked pretty with all of these yellow flowers blooming in them.
