#my other neighbor has a plant podcast and she uses chatgpt to get info on them which I find stupid at best but okay

[deepdrearn]

Eupatorium cannabinum, EN: Hemp-agrimony, NL: Leverkruid

May I present to you: the first plant I - sort of - identified with AI! I walked a swampy part of the IJmuiden dunes with J and wondering aloud what this purple flower everywhere was and he kind of amused told me: "as a computer scientist, you might be aware that you can identify plants with an app" which was actually something I'd done in the past with very unimpressive results. But it seemed like my best shot so I tried again and while it's still not very good, it's now a lot better. This app, which I will not be advertising, identified this cute, excellent smelling plant as Joe-pie, a related plant native from north America, a region to which the app seems clearly biased, but okay granted this is a very large family.

Anyway that did help me read up on this family of plants and I quickly found it's actually Hemp-agrimony! Hemp-agrimony is native here and actually a very important marker in specific nature reserves, of which we were indeed walking one. It loves a sunny spot in wet grounds, blooms for months and is a favorite of many butterflies. The plant has long been used in European folk medicine for it's laxative properties and anti-inflammatory effects.

Since the flowers are so beautiful, I took one home with me to dry. I also immediately identified that my neighbors have a big one in their front yard and I can't wait to tell them about it lol. Went for a run and was so proud that I could list many of the plants I saw, but also still a lot I don't have a clue about so stay tuned for more adventures in my local ecology.