#common plantain

[fennopunk]

For fuck's sake...

The "backyard" of my apartment building is kinda sandwiched between the building and a small forest except from one short side that has a walkway going by it. And no one really uses it because you have to go around the building to go there and even the people on the bottom floor would need to climb up and down from their balconies.

So hardly anyone sees it and no one uses it, yet the building management insists on using money to maintain the lawn and they just sent people with leaf blowers AGAIN to blow off the leaves. This is at least the second time this fall and the surrounding trees have enough leaves that they probably will come back once or twice more. At least they're just blowing the leaves to the forest and leaving them there, but the whole thing is just so damn pointless.

I'm not sure if me last year "accidentally dropping" common plantain seeds from my balcony did anything, but I think I might have a little oopsie daisy with forget-me-not and/or self-heal seeds tonight 👀

[ayanos-pl]

ぼろぼろのキタテハがいた（4月10日）

[faguscarolinensis]

Erigeron philadelphicus / Philadelphia Fleabane at the Sarah P. Duke Gardens at Duke University in Durham, NC

[headspace-hotel]

The knowledge of some common plants

Since many people don't know most of the plants around them, this is information on some plants that are commonly seen in many places throughout the world

This is Lamium purpureum, also called Purple Deadnettle.

It's called deadnettle because it looks like a nettle but it doesn't sting you

This plant is a winter annual—it grows its leaves in the fall, lasts through the winter, and blooms and dies in the spring

Its pollen is reddish orange. If you see bees with their heads stained reddish orange, it is likely because they have visited Purple Deadnettle

This is Trifolium repens, white clover

It is a legume (belongs to the bean family) and fixes nitrogen using symbiosis with bacteria that live in little nodules on its roots, fertilizing the soil

It is a good companion plant for the other members of a lawn or garden since it is tough, adaptable, and improves soil quality. According to my professor it used to be in lawn mixes, until chemical companies wanted to sell a new herbicide that would kill broadleaved plants and spare grass, and it was slandered as a weed :(

It is native only to Europe and Central Asia, but in the lawns they are doing more good than harm most places

Honeybees love to visit clover

Four-leaf clovers are said to be lucky

This is Achillea millefolium, Common Yarrow

It has had a relationship with humans since Neanderthals were around, at least 60,000 years, since Neanderthals have been found buried with Yarrow

Its leaves have been used to stop bleeding throughout history, and its scientific name comes from how Achilles was said to have used Yarrow to stop the blood from the wounds of his soldiers. A leaf rolled into a ball has been used to stop nosebleeds

It is a native species all throughout Eurasia and North America

This is Cichorium intybus, known as Chicory

The leaves look a lot like dandelion leaves, until in mid-spring when it begins growing a woody green stem straight up into the air

Like many other weeds, it has a symbiotic relationship with humans, existing in a mix of domesticated or partially domesticated and wild populations

It is native to Eurasia, but widespread in North America on roadsides and disturbed places, where it descended from cultivated plants

Its root contains large amounts of inulin, which is used as a sweetener and fiber supplement (if you look at the ingredients on the granola bars that have extra fiber, they usually are partly made of chicory root) and has also been used as a coffee substitute

A large variety of bees like to feed upon it

This is Phytolacca americana, known as Pokeweed

It is easily identified by its huge leaves and its waxy, bright magenta stem

It can grow more than nine feet tall from a sprout in a single summer!

If you squish the berries, the juice inside is a shocking magenta that is so bright it almost burns your eyes. For this reason many Native American people used it for pink and purple dye.

It is a heavy metal hyperaccumulator, particularly good for removing cadmium from the soil

All parts of the plant are poisonous and will make you very sick if you eat them, however if the leaves are picked when very young and boiled 3 times, changing out the water each time, they can be eaten, and this is a traditional food in the rural American Southeast, but I don't want to chance it

British people have introduced it as a pretty, exotic ornamental plant. I think that is very funny considering that here it is a weed associated with places where poor people live, but maybe they're right and I need to look closer to see the beauty.

If you see magenta stains in bird poop it is because they ate pokeweed berries- birds can safely eat the berries whereas humans cannot

This is Plantago lanceolata, Ribwort Plantain

It grows in heavily disturbed soils, in fact it is considered an indicator of agricultural activity. It is successful in the poorest, heaviest and most compacted soil.

The leaves, seeds, and flower heads are said to be edible but the leaves are really stringy unless they are very young. Of course, it is important to be careful when eating wild plants, and make sure you have identified the plant correctly and the soil is not contaminated

I have also heard the strings in the leaves can be extracted and used for textile purposes

and that's some common plants you might often see throughout the world

[ckameley]

I got annoyed/upset earlier when I ordered a meal without cheese and sour cream and the waiter asked if I was sure cause then the meal would be dry. Why they tried to make me second-guess myself is beyond me, but it's moments like that that make me upset

I don't usually eat Mexican food because so much of the cuisine likes to mix dairy products into the rest of the food, and to have the waiter ask if I'm sure I wanted what I wanted when I'm a whole adult and clearly know what I want is kind of triggering because it reminds me of the years of feeling different because I couldn't/didn't eat anything at elementary/middle school parties

I have struggled to find food here in AZ and I don't know if it's a Phoenix issue or it it's a West Coast thing, so I've been more sensitive towards talking about the cuisine here

Thankfully my boss is an extremely awesome guy and he said something brief to help hush the waiter after he continued to talk after I said "yeah I'm sure" that was what I wanted. I really appreciated that a ton

[disownedbytiime]

I still haven’t made like a proper post (although I finally finished it!) but I still have to say that the first 2 parts of this update in the event were so gross. Not bc of what they talked about, but did they have to add those noises when they “ate” the fruits or whatever? I wanted to gouge my ears out. I hate those kind of noises, and yes I just switched off the sound after a while but I still wanna complain.

[virgobingo]

more insight on miles’ puerto rican heritage for your fics or fanart

- traditional quinceañeras (or as they are often called by puerto ricans quinceañeros) are really not that common anymore, most girls nowadays have pool parties or go on a cruise. if miles were to go to one of his cousins’ 15 birthday party, chances are it would be casual— no big poofy dress (his mom probably had one like that though)

edit: some people disagree on this. depends on how traditional your family and friend group is I guess, as well as which part of the island you’re from. on average, it seems to be a far bigger deal amongst some other latines. in my class in pr only 3 out of approx 30 girls had a big event like that. not a single one of my cousins had a traditional quince either so you could say I’m partly biased bc of my own experiences. i personally just had a big pool party

- plantains are a big part of our diet. also, pr being an island in the caribbean, coconut is in a lot of our desserts. if miles had to pick a favorite fruit I hc he’d pick either one of the two lol also please google our food, our food isn’t actually spicy so much as savory

- we “celebrate” thanksgiving like other americans. it’s about the only time we eat oven roasted turkey. for winter holidays (christmas eve/day, new years eve/day, three kings day/eve) oven roasted pork. chicken might be offered as a second option for people who don’t consume pork for whatever reason

- you’re pretty much taught how to dance as soon as you can walk. most of us have basic rhythms down. chances of miles dancing with his mom or friends at parties? astronomically high.

- the reason why our flag is everywhere, besides pride, is ‘cause it was illegal to own it. look up the gag law that prohibited us from even displaying it at our homes. so it’s actually an awesome detail in these movies

- this is my opinion/a fun fact but I feel like miles is basically an homage to black and puerto rican (specifically nuyorican) solidarity around the 70s-80s during the creation of hip-hop and rise of graffiti as a form of expression (you can easily read up on this or watch shows like the get down to learn more about this if you’re curious)

- whether you’re “nuyorican” or “from the island” spanglish is common so miles’ mixing english and spanish isn’t odd bc even rio does this as miles points out in the party scene. he isn’t a “no sabo” kid so much as someone with a strong accent. he understands his mom perfectly

- race ≠ ethnicity. there are plenty of black people in and from Puerto Rico, and miles’ pr family in the spiderverse films are designed to be for the most part afro-latine. so I wouldn’t really call him biracial

- the puerto rican day parade wouldn’t be a thing he skips, he’s gifted a special suit for it in a comic run. his puerto rican heritage is important to him!

[allergytests]

Best Teas to Help With a Scratchy Throat

Many things can cause a scratchy throat, including allergies. When a scratchy throat comes on as the result of allergies, it can be accompanied by other annoying symptoms like runny nose and hives.

Although there are plenty of medications you can take to alleviate a scratchy throat caused by allergies, drinking tea is a natural route that many people find brings fast, soothing relief. If you experience a scratchy throat due to allergies, below are some of the best teas to help:

Horehound Tea

Horehound tea may not be as popular as other teas, but it can work wonders on a scratchy throat. Exposure to things like English plantains can easily give rise to an irritated throat, and allergy symptoms for English plantain exposure can also include itching and watery eyes. Thankfully, with a warm cup of horehound tea available, you don’t have to let allergy symptoms for English plantain exposure or exposure to other allergy-causing plants leave you feeling miserable.

Turmeric Tea

Turmeric has been lauded for its health benefits over the years, and brewing this powerful spice in a tea can help with scratchy throat symptoms that result from allergies. You might consider blending turmeric with other types of teas due to the pungent aroma and taste, but if you want to knock out a scratchy throat fast, turmeric is certainly one way to do so.

Slippery Elm Tea

Slippery elm has been known for centuries as a natural cure-all, and many people swear by slippery elm tea as a remedy for sore throats caused by allergies. One of the more interesting benefits of slippery elm tea as it relates to scratchy throats is that this herb easily coats affected areas for faster soothing relief.

Talk With Your Doctor

If you’re experiencing the effects of a scratchy throat, even if you think they’ve been brought on by allergies, it’s important to speak with your doctor to determine the right course of treatment. While drinking certain teas can be beneficial to combat allergy symptoms, only your doctor can evaluate your case to provide the right guidance.

Read a similar article about common pecan tree allergy symptoms here at this page.

[theblasianwitch]

So I've been spending the last few monthes reading, watching, walking, and just overall researching foraging safely and the types of plants in my area. Today was the first day with my spouse and son that I was able to identify some plants confidently... so of course with my direction we began foraging.

It saddens me that one of the main motivators for foraging today is knowing that my neighbors and my mother in law would be getting their lawns mowed soon and most of what I gathered today would've been lost. People just don't know what they have.

We pay to remove plants, herbs and even fruits growing naturally in our lawns, only to go buy the same plants from our grocery stores.

Plants found:

Dandelion: the whole plant is edible if you can spot it from its copycat. The leaves can be used the same way as most greens, it's roots when dried can be used to brew Dandelion coffee, and the flowers can be used for tea and to make honey

Chives and Onions: a common herb and garnish its stalks grow back once cut. If left to grow long enough they absorb nutrients better and can produce bigger onions but for now these chives were found before being mowed over and the onions are quite small but very strong and flavorful

Dead nettle: this one was new to me learning about it near the end of winter and seeing the small purple flowers growing. The flowers and leaves droop downward almost making a closed umbrella shape. It can be eaten raw or cooked and is used in salads and smoothies for garnish and flavor. They are high in nutrients and vitamins. Left to grow in the sun the purple turns almost pinkish and the leaves get lighter but still useful

Pine (cones, needles and seeds): I didn't forage the cones or needles today cause I knew I'd be busy, but baby pinecones can be cooked and eaten and the needles when cleaned and placed into an airtight container with water and sugar make a soda. I managed to find a few seeds in some of the fallen cones and saved them to plants in our future home

That's what we foraged. We are waiting for some more plants to develop and managed to convince my mother in law to leave certain sections of the lawn left uncut as some plants are still just starting back. Plants were waiting on are plantains, honeysuckle, and violets. Some plants are still too early to identify.

Using the dandelion greens tonight and making a pesto with some of them combined with the dead nettle and onions to use for a future pasta.

[faislittlewhiteraven]

Been having some ISaT tech level and timeline (as in 'when backstory things happened') thoughts and want to ramble a bit:

Tech

ISaT's setting is based on your classic sword and sorcery fantasy JRPG so its easy to assume that tech wise everything is 'fantasy medieval' and call it a day but consider:

Body Craft is at bare minimum is magic sex changing surgery (earliest known equivent in our world dating to 1930) that any old person can learn to do safely on themselves in only a few months, and more likely has many many broader applications like regular old surgery, the 'combat healing' Mira and Sif use, etc.

Cameras and photos are rare enough that Odile comments on it (namely she's happy the group get a photo in the House due to them being 'so rare') yet are also common enough that everyone in the party knows about them and doesn't question the existence of a camera beyond being surprised that the mirror was one. (In our world cameras date back to the 19th century, with the earliest manufacturing of them being in 1839). 

Printing presses and ways to make plenty of paper to feed those presses given absolutely everyone in this game can read, expects everyone else to know how to, and both mass produced book series and newspapers are a thing. (Note: Printing presses have existed since waaaay back but it's the mass paper manufacturing that makes newspapers and The Cursing of Chateu Castle possible that really has my eyebrows raised here, especially since neither Siffrin or Odile find either odd in any way, indicating such things are common everywhere, and while newspapers have been around since 1604 in our world, mass produced fantasy books didn't really take off until the start of the 20th century).

Food production and storage: despite being in the middle of a national disaster that almost certainly cut off trade networks and access to most suppliers for literal months now, Bonnie, a small child, is able to easily get their hands on fresh Pineapple, curry ingredients (for samosa), potatoes, plantains etc with no issues or anyone commenting on this being unusual or lucky. Oh and the only character who even brings up the concept of potential starvation is the Fishing One, and only in a sort of 'we're not at risk now but sooner or later...' kinda way due to noticing that the fish they fish up for fun are disappearing and likely being frozen. So yeah, that heavily implies Vaugarde has very good food storage tech/Craft (possibly better than ours), and likely also good food production and harvesting tech/skills also.

The Island's incredible knowledge of the stars: while the oldest known orrery in our world is dated from around 205 to 87 BC (ancient Greek, earth centric model), the fact Sif -who would've learnt this as a child/teen- is so very certain that stars are big balls of fire made up of gas is interesting as that's something our world couldn't prove the theory of until around the 1900s (note: it'd been theorized a LONG time but Sif talks like its complete facts to them . Additionally the earliest existing record of a telescope in our world dates to a 1608 patent and we see one of those in game.

Post posting EDIT: A wonderful user qds-place pointed out that Mirabelle has anti-anxiety medication in her room. This is in both ISaT and SAaP and though we're not sure what form the medication takes (pills? Valium? Megitech esc Craft boosters???) the fact they specifically have 'anti anxiety' medication at all (as opposed to idk dragging Mira off and drugging her through the gills) is kind of impressive and if it IS modern anti anxiety pills those could be as recent in creation as the 1950s! So um. Some high levels of tech implied in chemistry there <3

So... yeah. All this, plus the fact that the highest tech implied area, The Island, literally specialised in the study/Craft of turning wishes into reality (for a long enough time period that Wish Craft is culturally so ingrained in the King and Sif that they do it without thinking and it seems intertwined with their nation's religion) has been completely erased from memory to the point anything heavily associated with them has been forgotten, and also we only ever see Dormont aka a little village well away from the cities, it's not hard to conclude that you can basically justify giving the ISaT world any level of tech you want, so long as you lock any of the truly 'setting breaking' stuff like planes and rockets behind The Island's forgetting curse (I would've said trains too but thinking about it trains were invented in 1802 so it's honestly easy to imagine that they totally exist in the ISaT setting/Vaugarde but aren't ever on screen because rail is way too dangerous to consider using while the Curse is active and potentially time freezing things on the tracks).

Side note: We know absolutely nothing about Vaugarde's transport system but as a fan of fantasy RPGs it is honestly a travesty I have yet to see a fic that has flying dragons/wyverns or other fantasy mounts in setting. Like, ok yes, the party would probably have wanted to use those but maybe they don't like the Curse and fled? Maybe the King's Curse targeted them first? Maybe all their handlers dropped the heroes off in Dormont and said 'Well Saviors it's been fun, but well me and Scales here are off to Poteria until things wrap up so best of luck to you' before buggering off?

This isn't really a serious complaint just. Me reminding myself/potentially other fanwork writers out there that there's a lot about the setting we just don't know about and limiting all travel to walking, horse drawn carriage and boat is not actually required. (Also please mix up travelling to the Island. Boats are a wonderful classic and have great thematic vibes for Sif's original leaving of the Island but like. Imagine the sheer in-universe wtf of the memories of The Island suddenly coming back and people on the north coast suddenly realising there's a massive bridge, subway or underwater tunnel leading there that everyone just forgot about - potentially filled with all kinds of Sadnesses that need taking down. Or Warp Panels in a House of Change, idk XD).

Timeline

Canon notes first:

Bonnie is a preteen (8 to 12), Mira and Isa are in their early to mid 20s (with Isa slightly older), Sif is late 20s to 30, and Odile is 40+ Nille is stated to be around 18 to 20.

Siffrin ran away from home when they were a teenager (13 to 17? 18?) and this is heavily implied to be when the Island was Forgotten.

Bonnie (in ISaT specifically*) says that Nille told them that when it happened all the adults were talking about it, hence why they think The Island is close to their village. *In Start Again a Prologue, Bonnie says that they themself remember the adults talking about the Island disappearing, which er. Is a bit impossible given they likely weren't even born yet when that happened but that can be explained away by AU differences, InsertDisc5 still finalising details between SAaP and ISaT, and/or OG Siffrin having been in the loops so long they weren't actually listening when Bonnie was talking and just 'scripted' in their head something 'close enough' to what Bonnie was saying to get the idea (note: mentioned that idea before in my post here on the differences between the House and King in Start Again vs In Stars and Time for anyone curious so er please feel free to give that a read if you haven't already).

Odile mentions remembering 'when it happened' as well and has been 'travelling for years'.

The King 'appeared out of nowhere' sometime in his adulthood, and lived in the city of Corbeaux for a few years before he became the King.

The King became the King as was freezing people in time long enough before his attack on the House of Dormont that everyone inside knew he was coming, there were a wall's worth of newspaper articles about him, and everyone was expecting Euphrasie to defeat him.

Mirabelle's quest began 'almost a year ago' and Sif lost their eye 'recently'.

Thoughts on the above:

Calculating when The Island was forgotten:

Sif being mid 20s to 30 and having run away from home as a teen means that The Island has to have been forgotten somewhere between 9 to 17 years ago with nine only possible if he ran away at age 17 and is only age 26 now, and seventeen being the far opposite if he ran at age 13 and is currently 30.

To narrow down the timeline: Given Sif ran away from home because he 'didn't want to eat his veggies' and 'just wanted to scare [his] parents a little bit' it's probably safe to assume Siffrin was likely on the younger end of the teen spectrum (teens run off all the time sure but with loving parents and over veggies? That screams 'kid who has not yet learned that freaking out the parents will get their ass grounded and/or yelled at a LOT and is therefore best saved for doing fun forbidden stuff that ideally the parents will never find out about' XD) Additionally given Siffrin can't remember his age/birthday etc but Isabeau outright says near the beginning of the game "But you're older than most of the people here?" meaning Sif must be visibly older than Isa or Mira, so he's probably closer to 30 than not.

Those alone would imply the Island likely disappeared closer to the '17 years ago' side of things BUT Nille (tops 20 years old) told Bonnie that "[the Island's disappearance] was all the adults would talk about for ages" and kids usually can't remember anything prior to 4 years of age so with that in mind...

I'd say The Island most likely disappeared between 13 to 16 years ago.

Nille stuff:

This is more a general mention but. Nille is tops 20 years old. Bonnie is between 8 and 12 and doesn't remember their parents at all.

This means Nille ran away with Bonnie and gained emancipation and custody of Bonnie (if Vaugarde has formalised that kind of legal stuff) while she was at most 12 years old herself and could have in theory been as young as 6..!

Regardless, it's very likely the original home situation was that bad, Nille deserves a ton of credit for raising Bonnie as well as she has and I'd say it's very VERY likely she had a lot of help from villagers in Bambosche and/or the local House of Change in doing so. ...But also Bonnie is very adamantly 'my sister and village' and not 'my sister and [specific names who live with us]' so there's clearly by the time Bonnie was 4 or so they were living in their own place so... Yeah. Lotta drive for independence there too it seems (so the party might have more trouble adopting Nille into their group post ISaT than Bonnie might expect).

King stuff:

Already an adult 13 to 16 years ago so at bare minimum 33. Given his vibe probably much older though.

Newspapers get printed pretty quick though for there to be so much speculation and research done into his background so quick, either Vaugarde has some form of fast messaging system (something like a Chappe telegraph on top of the Houses of Change? Odile I think does mention that they'll have a message sent to let Nille know they'll be returning Bonnie...) or the King was freezing stuff for IDK around a month or two before reaching Dormont? Alas can't find out how long it takes to walk across all of France out very easily (I'm sure the numbers are out there but my brain is pudding rn) but if we had those numbers we could probably make some guesstimates based off the rough sketched map of Vaugarde InsertDisk5 did... Which I would link but apparently the tumblr post I had it linked on has been deleted???? 'wails at this very unhappy development'

Mira's journey and Sif's eye:

We really don't know a lot but almost a year ago gives us somewhere around 9 to 11 months to spread the journey out along and after eye removal surgery the patient can out and about as soon as 2 to 6 weeks after, maybe sooner with magic healing (though full recovery/growing used to the changed spacial awareness -which Sif clearly does not have- probably can't be sped up and takes around 3 to 6 months) so um. I'd guestimate Sif's eye injury is really recent; like two months ago tops recent. ...Which sorta explains a lot of why Bonnie is not dealing with it right now and also why the others might be trying to avoid bringing it up (since Sif clearly loves avoiding the issue but they haven't yet realised that maybe they really should bring it up even if it annoys them anyway?)

Odile with some Ka Bue speculation:

When it comes to The Island, how did Odile, presumably living in Ka Bue at the time, remember 'when it happened'? Was the Island well known enough even on the other side of the world that it's disappearance made waves? Or was Odile herself or someone she's close to paying attention to the region? (Like maybe her dad or a friend is/was into politics or trade, keeping up with overseas news and got concerned it could happen to Ka Bue? I'd say 'I remember when it happened' line implies it was more immediate knowledge than being informed by a messenger much later though...)

As for Odile's 'years of travel' I have to wonder, what's left behind for her in Ka Bue? She brings up going back there quite a bit, might just miss home and possibly her father if he's still alive, but given it took her years to get here for something so personal rather than idk 'materially rewarding' I think Odile might have some kinda family estate or something back in Ka Bue... Something she wasn't worried about potentially losing while far away, but solid enough to want to return to, beyond her father who she'd definitely want to see again if he's still around. (...But given how open she is to chilling about Vaugarde a few more months with the others, I really don't think he is alive, since well, given their respective ages and travel between Vaugarde and Ka Bue apparently taking years, there'd definitely an uncomfortably high chance of him passing away while she's gone and that seems like the thing that'd stress Odile out so... Yeah. Probably got an estate in Ka Bue she'd like to take the Family to visit/possibly sell off if she decides she'd like to live with them in Vaugarde so... Just my off the cuff headcanoning here and hoping that gives others ideas or something).

---

Anyway that's all the ramble I've got in me so... yeah! Hope this was interesting and useful for those needing a bit of a 'possible tech'/timeline calcs breakdown for the Island + a few more vague things and um. Probably will post a long winding ramble about my attempt at a ISaT Selkie AU fic I've been working on next <3 (Not to be confused with looped-140-and-counting's already existing and quite wonderful Selkie Siffrin AU which already has a completed oneshot fic, a snippet of sequel, two snippets of prequel/Sif flashbacking and I believe a comic too, all of which I highly recommend <3)

[sant-riley]

Okay yk what idc I got alot of thoughts of Puerto rican! Reader with the boys, I am not sorry, I need to get this out of my system. so I'm giving her the codename of Teddy :) sorry if that ruins the immersion!

General hcs/thoughts I have with the boys from mw2:

Ghost could destroy an entire pernil by himself. He actively looks forward to it every single Thanksgiving despite him literally not being American and thus doesn't celebrate it. "L.T, don't tell me you're going over to her house just for some pork." "Why yes Johnny, I am." He is not sharing with a single soul, he will break someone's fingers. (Teddy makes him his own at this point so the others can have a try)

Soap fucking chugs Coquito like it's nothing, bc technically it isn't compared to the stuff he has back home. At first he was apprehensive but now he usually goes home with a bottle. He will share but if he sees someone wasting it he will be pissed. It is hard as fuck to come by in Scotland if not the base.

Price very much enjoys the cleaning playist Teddy has, she told him how growing up that that was how her mom told her it was time to get her ass up and do chores. He finds himself playing it early in the morning while he does documents to wake himself up.

Everyone's favorite song round let's go

Soap's favorite - Suavemente

Ghost's favorite - Anhelo (totally not bc he danced with her to this one)

Price's favorite - Danza Kuduro

Gaz's favorite - La Vaca

Alejandro being surprised when he sees a short Hispanic woman with two big ass European men. "Tu con estos dos? de donde eres chiquita?"

Soap fucking pushes himself in and answers for her, a smug little smile from all the little Spanish he picked up. Ghost just rolls his eyes and tries to not groan. Soap being a showoff.

The solidarity between the Vaqueros and Teddy 🤝 different countries but there's alot to have in common.

Teddy cursing in Spanish at the top of her lungs and Alejandra and Rudy snorting. "You kiss your grandmother with that mouth?"

The boys have in fact danced with her when she's feeling homesick, each one. Soap and Gaz don't mind doing it in public where as Ghost and Price rather do it in their rooms/her room. Ghost and Price will say its good exercise but we all know the truth.

When fresh food is available, they'll ask her to make the food she eats off duty. It's different combinations of rice and beans, along with meat always.

Everyone fucking devours tostones btw. Literally they have to buy so many plantains to make sure everyone has their fill or there will in fact be a fight.

SHE MAKES THEM HELP MAKE PASTELES!! It's a whole assembly line. Christmas is a war zone in of itself trying to make the shits.

Ghost drinks Cafe bustelo straight out the machine. No one else can stand the stuff bc it's too strong.

When sofrito has to be made, everyone makes Soap cut the onions lmfao, the worst part of the entire process.

Everyone starts to saying spanglish around base, Gaz switching from English to accented Spanish is a interesting sight 😭 Teddy mocks him as if she isn't to blame.

THE WAY GHOST SAYS NUEVO IN RESPONSE TO LEAVING ALEJANDRO AND HE GETS FLAMED FOR IT BC THATS NOT HOW YOU SAY OF COURSE.

"Really? Nuevo? Do you know what that means?" "Oh for fucks sakes."

Okay I'm tired and my fingers hurt from typing all of this lol I'll add more probably at some point!

If you'd like to be tagged in future works, please comment under my rules that are pinned to my blog!

[ayanos-pl]

ハルジオンにハムシ。よくこんな細い花弁にとまれるなあ（4月8日）

[cedar-glade]

More from the gravel bars and mudflats, a type of riparian ecosystem of the Little Miami pt 2

Mimulus ringens, previous post had the other common species in this, these pictures show just how much larger the peduncle is comparative.

In a patch of Korean hops lies an introduced naturalized species known as Galinsoga quadriradiata or the shaggy soldier. (on broken bar)

Phyla lanceolata, lance leaf fog fruit , If your from Ohio we call it Frog Fruit; a native species perfect for bioswale planting and riparian restoration. Great stabilizer.

^bottom pic from MN wildflower blog. via Peter M. Dziuk

in the mudflat, Plantago rugelii (fairly sure based off of red base) or the floppy red based broad leaf plantain. If you find a plantain in a mudflat, it usually is stick like or narrow leaved with really unique flower structure that is more bristly looking on average, these tend to be our natives, Heartleaf is more of a gravel scour and flat wet wood species. Much like heart leaf, rugel's also has a broadleaf compared to the rest of the wet loving species. The base of this plant were barely red and the flower morphology was very bristle like is why I think the ID is correct, plus the niche affiliation; with this said, the P. major is also a generalist and can have red when stressed by summer heat on it's petioles so it would of been better to go off of the bulb like base instead of the intuition while kabrewing on the Little Miami. The other way to tell is that the ovules stick more erect.

Alisma spp. or rather I think it's A. triviale is a common mudflat species that can take longer partial submersion but doesn't like extended turbulence. Heart leaved small flowered northern water plantain.

[headspace-hotel]

Chemically sterilized...or mechanically sterilized?

It is clear that applying chemicals to your yard and landscape, be it fertilizers, weed killers, or pesticides, has devastating effects to the community of life that is present in every place.

But is the terrifying decline in insects explainable by chemicals alone?

When i am in mowed environments, even those that I know have no lawn chemicals, they are almost entirely empty of life. There are a few bees and other insects on the dandelions, but not many, and the only birds I see are American robins, Grackles, and European starlings.

Even without any weed killers at all, regular mowing of a lawn type area eliminates all but a few specially adapted weeds.

The plants of a lawn where I live include: Mouse ear chickweed, Birds-eye Speedwell, Common blue violet, Dandelion, Wild Garlic, Creeping charlie, White Clover, Black Medick, Broad-leaved plantain, Mock Strawberry, Crabgrass, Small-flowered Buttercup, Ribwort Plantain, Daisy Fleabane, a few common sedges, Red Deadnettle...That sounds like a lot of plants, but the problem is, almost all of them are non-native species (Only Violets, Daisy Fleabane, and the sedges are native!) and it's. The Same. Species. Everywhere. In. Every. Place.

How come...? Because mowed turf is a really specific environment that is really specifically beneficial to a number of almost entirely European plants, and presents stressors that most plants (including almost all native north american plants) simply can't cope with.

The plants mentioned above are just the flowering weeds. The grasses themselves, the dominant component of the lawn, are essentially 100% invasive in North America, many of them virulently and destructively invasive.

Can you believe that Kentucky bluegrass isn't even native to Kentucky? Nope, it's European! The rich pasture of the Bluegrass region of Kentucky was predominantly a mix of clover, other legumes, and bamboo. The clovers—Kentucky clover, Running buffalo clover, and buffalo clover—are highly endangered now (hell, kentucky clover wasn't even DISCOVERED until 2013) and the bamboo—Giant rivercane, Arundinaria gigantea—has declined in its extent by 98%. Do European white and red clovers fulfill the niches that native clovers once did? Dunno, probably not entirely.

One of the biggest troubles with "going native" is that North America legitimately does not have native grass species that really fill the niche of lawn. Most small, underfoot grassy plants are sedges and they are made for shady environments, and they form tufts and fancy sprays, not creeping turf. Then there's prairie grasses which are 10 feet tall.

What this means, though, is that lawns don't even remotely resemble environments that our insects and birds evolved for. Forget invasive species, lawns are an invasive BIOME.

It's a terrible thing, then, that this is just what we do to whatever random land we don't cover in concrete: back yards, road margins, land outside of churches and businesses, spaces at the edges of fields, verges at bypasses and gas stations...

Mowing, in the north american biomes, selects for invasive species and promotes them while eliminating native species. There's no nice way to put it. The species that thrive under this treatment are invasive.

And unfortunately mowing is basically the only well-known and popular tool even for managing meadow and prairie type "natural" environments. If you want to prevent it from succeeding to forest, just mow it every couple of years.

This has awful results, because invasive species like Festuca arundinacea (a plant invented by actual Satan) love it and are promoted, and the native species are harmed.

Festuca arundinacea, aka Tall Fescue, btw is the main grass that you'll find in cheap seed mixes in Kentucky, but it's a horrific invasive species that chokes everything and keeps killing my native meadow plants. It has leaves like razor blades (it's cut me so deeply that it scarred) and has an endosymbiont in it that makes horses that eat it miscarry their foals.

And this stuff is ALL OVER the "prairie" areas where I work, like it's the most dominant plant by far, because it thrives on being mowed while the poor milkweeds, Rattlesnake Master and big bluestems slowly decline and suffer.

It's wild how hard it is to explain that mowing is a very specific type of stressor that many plants will respond very very negatively to. North American plants did not evolve under pressures that involved being squished, crushed, snipped to 8 inches tall uniformly and covered in a suffocating blanket of shredded plant matter. That is actually extremely bad for many of the prairie plants that are vital keystone species. Furthermore it does not control invasive species but rather promotes them.

Native insects need native plant cover. Many of them co-evolved intimately with particular host plants. Many others evolved to eat those guys. And Lord don't get me started on leaf removal, AKA the greatest folly of all humankind.

So wherever there is a mowed environment, regardless of the use of chemicals or not, the bugs don't have the structural or physical habitat characteristics they evolved for and they don't have the plant species they evolved to be dependent on.

Now let's think about three-dimensional space.

This post was inspired when I saw several red winged blackbirds in the unmowed part of a field perching on old stems of Ironweed and goldenrod. The red-winged blackbirds congregated in the unmowed part of the field, but the mowed part was empty. The space in a habitat is not just the area of the land viewed from above as though on a map. Imagine a forest, think of all the squirrels and birds nesting and sitting on branches and mosses and lichens covering the trunks and logs. The trees extend the habitat space into 3 dimensions.

Any type of plant cover is the same. A meadow where the plants grow to 3 feet tall, compared with a lawn of 6 inches tall, not only increases the quality of the habitat, it really multiplies the total available space in the habitat, because there is such a great area of stems and leaves for bugs and birds to be on. A little dandelion might form a cute little corner store for bugs, A six foot tall goldenrod? That's a bug skyscraper! It fits way more bugs.

It's not just the plants themselves, it's the fallen leaves that get trapped underneath them—tall meadow plants seem to gather and hoard fallen leaves underneath. More tall plants is also more total biomass, which is the foundation of the whole food chain!

Now consider light and shade. Even a meadow of 3ft tall plants actually shades the ground. Mosses grow enthusiastically even forming thick mats where none at all could grow in the mowed portions. And consider also amphibians. They are very sensitive to UV light, so even a frog that lives in what you see as a more "open" environment, can be protected by some tall flowers and rushes but unable to survive in mowed back yard

[cloudcountry]

the harveston sledathon event: jade leech's "incantation"

i'm not sure if everyone has gotten to this part in the new english server event yet, but this part when they were at the market got me curious. so, in typical me fashion, i committed a day of research to figure out what the hell jade was talking about.

first i would like to say that this was put together with A DAYS WORTH OF RESEARCH so if you know more about these plants/mushrooms and would like to add information or correct me please do so in the replies!! i'm not an expert by any means LMAO

with that said, onto the first plant!! i will list the scientific name that jade uses first and then the common name in parentheses. each plant/mushroom will have a picture after the short description for reference!!

i got all these images from google obv

~~~~~

Urtica dioica (Stinging Nettle) - A perennial herb that grows best in moist areas. Grows in late fall to early spring. Fall sun, partial shade. Used as an herbal remedy for sore muscles and seasonal allergies.

Aegopodium podagraria (Ground Elder) - Marked as an invasive species in some of the eastern states of the US (Pennsylvania, Connecticut, New Jersey, Vermont, Michigan, and Wiscousin.) Thrives in moist soil and grows during the summer. It’s commonly used in soup and as a remedy for gouts.

Polypodiopsida (Ferns!!!) - Thrives in moist soil and grows near rivers and creeks. Grows in shady locations in early spring. They reproduce with spores. Fiddlehead ferns are the curled up fronds of a young fern that can be cooked and eaten in various ways (steamed, fried & stored, roasted, pickled, etc.) They can also be used as fertilizer and for landscaping.

Chamaenerion angustifolium (Fireweed) - A perennial herb that flowers in June to September. Grows in full sun to partial shade and moist, well drained soil. Its primary use is medicine but it’s also used in tea, which in turn can be used to treat migraines, infections, and colds. Young fireweed shoots can be cooked and eaten (apparently, they taste like asparagus and should be cooked like them, too.)

Allium ursinum (Wild Garlic or Cowleek) - Thrives in slightly acidic soil & moist conditions. Prefers shady conditions and grows around winter to spring, with a peak season of February to April. You can eat basically the whole plant, but if you eat the bulb the plant obviously won’t grow back. It’s been used as a medical plant and in cooking.

Sorbus (Mountain Ash or Rowan) - A bush that produces edible berries in late summer into early fall, and they stay on the tree into winter. The berries should not be eaten raw, but should be cooked because they contain parasorbic acid. The cooking process converts the parasorbic acid into a preservative sorbic acid. Their astringent taste is made sweeter by the frost. They grow best in full sun to partial shade and moist, well drained soil. They usually grow up to 15 meters tall.

Plantago major (Broadleaf Plantain) - A perennial herb that grows in late spring to summer (and sometimes in autumn.) They prefer moist soil but are very adaptable. Grows in moderate shade to full sun. The entire plant is edible, but apparently the flower shoots are especially delicious. They naturally grow in very dense populations and are easy to harvest. Works as a medicinal herb to treat inflammation and boost the immune system.

Equisetum arvense (Field horsetail) - Another perennial herb that grows from summer to the first frost. Grows in moist soil with full to partial sun. Can be used in tea and benefits the urinary system. Their root systems can grow as deep as six feet.

Craterellus tubaeformis (Winter mushroom, or funnel chanterelle) - Our first mushroom!! They are featured in a lot of recipes and are fairly common. They’re ready to harvest in mid-winter to mid-spring. They can be found in mossy areas with well decayed wood, and grow in loose clusters. They apparently have an earthy/fruity taste, and should be cooked so they don’t taste unbearably peppery.

Boletus edulis (Penny Bun) - Another mushroom with a dark brown cap. Spores grow more mushrooms in summer and autumn. Thrives in moist soil and can be harvested a few days after summer rain. They’re around 25cm tall on average and can weigh a kilo (which made me yell out loud, mind you. That's a big mushroom!!) They have a slightly nutty flavor.

Craterellus lutescens (Yellow Foot) - The last item on this list is another mushroom. It thrives in moist soil and they grow from 2-7 cm in length. They apparently have a peppery flavor when raw, but taste earthy when cooked. They typically grow around moss in loose clusters. They’re pretty similar to the craterellus tubaeformis, as one would expect from their shared genus, “craterellus.”

~~~~~

Overall Plant Conditions (AKA patterns I noticed while researching):

Practically all of these plants love moist & well drained soil. A lot of these plants grow in the summertime and like full/partial sun, but there’s a few exceptions of course. There’s a lot of herbs and perennial greenery that have medicinal properties. Many plants on this list grow well in disturbed soil or near water and roadways. All of them are edible (but beware of dangerous lookalikes!)

anyways < jade leech 3 i hope you found this somewhat interesting because i sure did!! (which is why i spent all my free time today researching it sigh the things i do for mermen)

[lingpaopao]

🫐🍍🥝 𝘍𝘳𝘶𝘪𝘵 𝘝𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘣𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘺 🍊🥭 🥥

Berries 🍓 Blackberry - 黑莓 (hēi méi)

Blackcurrant - 黑醋栗 (hēi cù lì) Note: literally translates to 'black vinegar chestnut'.

Blueberry - 蓝莓 (lán méi)

Cranberry - 蔓越莓 (màn yuè méi) Note: literally translates to 'creeping berry'.

Raspberry - 树莓 (shù méi) Note: literally translates to 'tree berry'.

Strawberry - 草莓 (cǎo méi) Note: literally translates to 'grass berry'.

Açaí - 巴西莓 (bā xī méi) Note: literally translates to 'Brazilian berry'.

Mulberry - 桑葚 (sāng shèn)

Elderberry - 接骨木莓 (jiē gǔ mù méi)

Goji berry - 枸杞 (gǒu qǐ) Citruses 🍎 Blood orange - 血橙 (xiě chéng)

Tangerine - 柑橘 (gān jú)

Grapefruit - 西柚 (xī yòu) Note: literally translates to 'Western pomelo'.

Kumquat - 金橘 (jīn jú) Note: literally translates to 'golden tangerine'.

Lemon - 柠檬 (níng méng)

Lime - 青柠 (qīng níng) Note: Chinese people have a name for a blue-green colour: 青色 which is 'cyan' in English. Technically, limes in Chinese literally translate to 'cyan lemons'. However, you may not recognize limes as particularly blue/cyan. Chinese people have a slightly different understanding of colour because historically, they didn't separate between green and blue, which is common amongst many East Asians in general. Nowadays they obviously do but may disagree with non-Chinese people on what constitutes 'green' or 'blue'.

Yuzu - 香橙 (xiāng chéng)

Orange - 橙子 (chéng zǐ)

Pomelo - 柚子 (yòu zǐ) Melons 🍉 Cantaloupe - 甜瓜 (tián guā) Note: it's hard to find a direct translation for the cantaloupe and honeydew as some translate 甜瓜 into muskmelon and 哈密瓜 into hami melon. Others translate cantaloupe or honeydew into 洋香瓜 (foreign fragrant melon).

Honeydew - 哈密瓜 (hā mì guā)

Watermelon - 西瓜 (xī guā) Misc. 🍒 Apricot - 杏 (xìng)

Cherry - 樱桃 (yīng táo)

Peach - 桃子 (táo zǐ)

Banana - 香蕉 (xiāng jiāo)

Durian - 榴莲 (liú lián)

Starfruit - 杨桃 (yáng táo)

Asian pear - 苹果梨 (píng guǒ lí) Note: literally translates to 'apple pear'.

Passionfruit - 百香果、热情果 (bǎi xiāng guǒ, rè qíng guǒ) Note: most people will use the first translation but the second is more fun.

Coconut - 椰子 (yē zi)

Dragonfruit - 火龙果 (huǒ lóng guǒ) Note: literally translates to 'fire dragon fruit'.

Grape - 葡萄 (pú táo)

Nectarine - 油桃 (yóu táo) Note: literally translates to 'oil peach'.

Pomegranate - 石榴 (shí liú) Note: people typically do not pronounce the last character with a tone so you probably don't have to bother either.

Kiwi - 猕猴桃 (mí hóu táo) The reason why kiwis have such a strange name is because of a story (unsure of veracity): mountain people in China originally thought the fruit was poisonous. Thus, they didn't eat it until they saw macaques (猕猴) eating them. That's why they're called 'macaque fruits' (猕猴桃). Uncommon Fruits 🍅 Cactus pear - 仙人掌梨 (xiān rén zhǎng lí)

Calabash - 葫芦 (hú lú)

Date - 枣 (zǎo)

Fig - 无花果 (wú huā guǒ) Note: literally translates to 'flowerless fruit'.

Jackfruit - 菠萝蜜 (bō luó mì) Note: literally translates to 'pineapple honey'.

Lychee - 荔枝 (lì zhī)

Mangosteen - 山竹 (shān zhú)

Plantain - 大蕉 (dà jiāo) Note: literally translates to 'big banana'.

Persimmon - 柿子 (shì zǐ) Fun fact: tomatoes were probably first brought to China in the 1600's and lots of people thought they were strange and foreign. Thus, tomatoes were called 'foreign persimmons' (洋柿子）or 'foreign eggplants' （番茄） depending on location. Eventually, the 'foreign persimmons' term changed to 西红柿, or Western red persimmons.

Guava - 番石榴 (fān shí liú) This is a similar story for guavas which are called 'foreign pomegranates' (番石榴).

Rambutan - 红毛丹 (hóng máo dān) Example Text

各种挑水果技巧 看完你也是专家了 -> the skill of picking various types of fruits, after reading, you will also become an expert Pomelos 看外形，水滴状的最好 -> look at its external appearance, teardrop-shaped is best. 摸果皮，挑表皮光滑的 -> touch the fruit peel, pick one that has a smooth peel. 掂一掂，重量大的口感好 -> weigh it, the heavier ones have the best taste. Grapes 3招教你挑对葡萄 -> three-pronged lesson on picking the right grapes. 一看果梗。新鲜的葡萄果梗为绿色 -> first, look at the fruit stem. Fresh grapes will have green stems. 二看果皮和种子色泽 -> Secondly, look at the colour of the fruit peel and seeds. 三尝风味。葡萄成熟时，应该呈现品种固有的风味 -> Thirdly, taste the flavour. When grapes are mature, they should show a variant-distinct flavour. Oranges 3招挑出最甜的橘子 -> a three-pronged approach to choosing the sweetest orange. 一看：大小和颜色。橘子个头以中等为最佳... 颜色越红，通常熟得越好，味道越甜 -> first, look: size and colour. Oranges that are medium-sized are the best-tasting... the redder the colour, typically the more mature the orange and the greater sweetness. 二摸：光滑程度. -> Secondly, touch: smoothness. 三捏：测试弹性... 用手捏下去，感觉果肉结实但不硬，一松手，就能立刻弹回原状 -> thirdly, pinch: test the elasticity. Use your hand to pinch it, feel the fruit flesh as firm but not hard, once you let go, it immediately bounces back. Apples 苹果听声 -> listen to the sound of the apple. 敲敲看，如声音不脆，表示不新鲜 -> knock on it, if the sound isn't crisp, it means it's not fresh. Pineapples 菠萝看叶片 -> look at the pineapples leaves. 若叶片呈深绿色，表示日照良好，甜度和汁液都很多 -> as leaves display a dark green colour, it shows that the fruit received a good amount of sun exposure, both its sweetness and juiciness will be great. Strawberries 草莓看果蒂... 新鲜的草莓果蒂鲜嫩，呈深绿色 -> Look at strawberry stems... fresh strawberries will have freshly tender stems, displaying a deep green colour.

Bananas 香蕉看表皮 -> look at the banana's peel. 表皮有许多黑色斑点，且色泽深黄的香蕉成熟，这样的才最可口 -> mature bananas have a peel with many black stripes/spots and a deep yellow colour, this way they will be tastiest.

一年四季水果自然成熟时间表 -> A list of natural fruit ripening times within a year's four seasons.

现在市场上一年四季基本上都能够买到新鲜的水果，大家对于水果正常的成熟季节并不太了解了，其实吃应季水果对身体更加健康，今天就给大家说说一年四季水果自然成熟时间表，大家可以照着时间表去购买应季水果。 In today's market, it's possible to buy fresh fruit practically all year round, people are no longer that familiar with the natural ripening seasons of fruits. In reality, eating season-appropriate fruits are healthier for your body, today I will share with everyone a list of year's worth of fruit ripening times, readers can consult this list to buy season-appropriate fruit. 1、春季(3~5月)

菠萝、芒果、樱桃、山竹、荔枝、桑葚、草莓、青枣、枇杷、油桃、李子、榴莲、香蕉等等。

[1] Spring (March ~ May) Pineapple, mango, cherries, mangosteen, lychee, mulberry, strawberry, fresh dates, loquat, nectarines, plums, durian, bananas etc.

2、夏季(6-8月)

芒果、樱桃番茄、荔枝、番石榴、牛奶蕉、西瓜、桃、香瓜、柠檬、莲雾、火龙果、油梨、芒果、龙眼 、百香果、 菠萝蜜、观赏南瓜 、日本甜柿、 西瓜、 黑提子、柠檬等。

[2] Summer (June ~ August)

Mangoes, cherries tomatoes, lychee, guava, finger bananas, watermelon, peaches, cantaloupe, lemon, wax apple, dragonfruit, avocado, mango (again...?), longan, passionfruit, jackfruit, ornamental pumpkins, Japanese sweet persimmons, watermelon (again o.O), black grapes, lemons (again...) etc.

3、秋季(9-11月)

山楂、柚子、猕猴桃、葡萄、梨子、柿子、大枣、苹果、石榴、秋桃、柿子、桔子、哈蜜爪、番茄、火龙果等。

[3] Fall (September ~ November)

Hawthorne, pomelo, kiwi, grape, pear, persimmons, big dates, apple, pomegranates, autumn pears, persimmons (2x), mandarins, honeydew, tomatoes, dragonfruit etc.

4、冬季(12-2月)

甘蔗、苹果、冬枣、梨子、柚子、橙子、柿子、猕猴桃、释迦果、山楂等。

[4] Winter (December ~ Feburary)

Sugarcane, apple, winter dates, pear, pomelo, oranges, persimmons, kiwi, sugar apple, hawthorne etc.