#plant questions

[3beesinatrenchcoat]

um....

What is my fern doing?

(a fluffy ruffle fern)

[sunflour39]

Does anyone know if I can grow a loquat tree in New England?

[turtlesandfrogs]

Hi! I just realized you might be the perfect person to ask about this. A few years ago, I tried growing nasturtiums indoors as salad greens. They grew just fine, but they never got that peppery taste that I like nasturtiums for, so I gave up. I could never figure out what was going on with the lack of flavour besides 'probably something they're missing in the soil/can't synthesize Whatever That Compound Is' - do you have any insights into something I could change or add if I try again?

Well, speaking generally (and please, if someone knows more specifically, do chime in) plants usually taste spicy or bitter or peppery because of compounds they make to convince herbivores to not eat them. It's just that humans often find they like that taste (capsaicin is a famous example). Getting munched on can increase the amount of these compounds in plants.

Additionally, taking what I know of radishes and other veg, a plant will taste more strongly if it's stressed, for example, by not getting enough water or being too hot.

On top of that, plants often taste more strongly if they're more mature or flowering.

So, it could be that you gave your plants too gentle of a life, or maybe harvested too soon? If you want to try again, I'd suggest growing them out until they start flowering, then stress them a little by letting them dry out a bit more than they'd like, and maybe damage a couple leaves before your main harvest.

Or if you want baby greens, grow them nicely until they're about the size you want, and then withhold water a couple times until they almost wilt.

If it is a nutritional deficiency (which you'll know if the above doesn't work), then adding some top soil, compost, and an complete fertilizer would probably be the next step.

Of course, it could be much more simple, and you managed to a variety that happened to be very mild flavored!

Hope that helps!

[ibroughtlemonade]

ok so i have this pothos n joy, and i’m not sure if she needs a repotting? i got her about a year and a half ago, and i left her in the original pot. i know pothos like to be rootbound, and i’d rather be safe than sorry, plus she seems pretty happy right now. i have noticed that i need to water more often, which might be a sign that the roots aren’t absorbing the water as well.

[kirby-the-gorb]

[atlasbarelyanimates]

I have decided to start posting my plant/ sky pics here as well cause why not share a bit of what i like to do in my spare time <3

Perhaps it wasnt the best idea to plant tomatoes in a planter box since they are going everywhere now rip. we are looking for more trellis kinda pots if anyones got some recommendations 👀

they’re really tasty tho and found this clump of them hidden down below.

[yashley]

Then why are you here? What is it you want? I want to free you.

[pastelpuppet]

One more, for funsies

[incognitopolls]

We ask your questions so you don’t have to! Submit your questions to have them posted anonymously as polls.

[coral-canary]

Wh…. Why does An have what looks to be seven (and presumably more) mint plants in her room….???

Isn’t. Isn’t mint like. Infamous for growing like crazy. Like a single pot can last you for life type crazy. Why. Why does she have seven. An how much mint do you have. Are you ok An. There’s not even anything else on the balcony is she planning to turn it into a greenhouse. For mint.???? Has she been taken over by the mint??? Is the mint forcing her to do this???? Is the mint planning world domination???? Is An willingly helping the mint achieve world domination????? Did she sign a contract with the mint???? Does the mint pay her???? I need to know.

[aliettali]

skilltober day 8: inland empire

[reality-detective]

Source: 👇

I have been showing you it's coming, it's real and it's obvious. You can löök it up 👀 Löök what's happening in Idaho with the potato farms, the chicken and egg farms across the country and the bee keepers. 🤔

[justaz]

merlin as the village tease/flirt who only ever has little flings with people (much like gwaine) and never develops feelings beyond “oh they’re cute” or “wow they’re a good friend” falling for arthur and having no idea what it means until lancelot has to spell it out for him and then merlin is just a mess. he has to hype himself up before so much as talking to arthur. he feels every time arthur even glances his way and as a result grows clumsier and clumsier to the point where people genuinely believe he was cursed by a sorcerer on one of arthur’s quests that he tagged along on. he can’t look at arthur and listen to arthur simultaneously bc he gets blown away by arthur’s beauty that the rest of the world falls away. pacing for like a solid minute outside arthur’s chambers before he has to wake him up for breakfast, the guards stationed outside watching him go back and forth and back and forth and back and forth and back and forth before one of them just opens the door for him.

[serpentface]

how do you come up with the ways cultures in your setting stylize people/animals/the world in general in their artwork, i.e. jewlery, rock carvings, statues, etc? Each culture in your world seems to have a very unique "art style" and I love it a lot - makes them seem that much more 'real'. This is something I struggle with a lot in my own worldbuilding and I'd love to pick your brain if possible 😁

I think a starting point is to have a research process based in the material realities of the culture you're designing for. Ask yourself questions like:

Where do they live? What's the climate/ecosystem(s) they are based in? What geographic features are present/absent?

What is their main subsistence method? (hunter gatherer, seasonal pastoralist, nomadic pastoralist, settled agriculturalist, a mix, etc)

What access to broader trade networks do they have and to whom? Are there foreign materials that will be easily accessible in trade and common in use, or valuable trade materials used sparingly in limited capacities?

Etc

And then do some research based on the answers, in order to get a sense of what materials they would have routine access to (ie dyes, metal, textiles, etc) and other possible variables that would shape how the art is made and what it's used for. This is just a foundational step and won't likely play much into designing a Style.

If you narrow these questions down very specifically, (ie in the context of the Korya post- grassland based mounted nomads, pastoralist and hunter-gatherer subsistence, access to wider trade networks and metals), you can direct your research to specific real world instances that fit this general idea. This is not to lift culturally specific concepts from the real world and slap them into your own setting, but to notice commonalities this lifestyle enforces - (ie in the previous example- mounted nomadic peoples are highly mobile and need to easily carry their wealth (often on clothing and tack) therefore small, elaborate decorative artwork that can easily be carried from place to place is a very likely feature)

For the details of the art itself, I come up with loose 'style guides' (usually just in my head) and go from there.

Here's some example questions for forming a style (some are more baseline than others)

Are geometric patterns favored? Organic patterns? Representative patterns (flowers, animals, stars, etc)? Abstract patterns?

Is there favored material(s)? Beads, bone, clay, metals, stones, etc.

When depicting people/animals, is realism favored? Heavy stylization? The emotional impression of an animal? Are key features accentuated?

How perspective typically executed? Does art attempt to capture 3d depth? Does it favor showing the whole body in 2 dimensions (ie much of Ancient Egyptian art, with the body shown in a mix of profile and forward facing perspective so all key attributes are shown)? Will limbs overlap? Are bodies shown static? In motion?

Does artwork of people attempt to beautify them? Does it favor the culture's conception of the ideal body?

Are there common visual motifs? Important symbols? Key subject matters?

What is the art used for? Are its functions aesthetic, tutelary, spiritual, magical? (Will often exist in combination, or have different examples for each purpose)

Who is represented? Is there interest in everyday people? Does art focus on glorifying warriors, heroes, kings?

Are there conventions for representing important figures? (IE gods/kings/etc being depicted larger than culturally lesser subjects)

Is there visual shorthand to depict objects/concepts that are difficult to execute with clarity (the sun, moon, water), or are invisible (wind, the soul), or have no physical component (speech)?

Etc

Deciding on answers to any of these questions will at least give you a unique baseline, and you can fill in the rest of the gaps and specify a style further until it is distinct. Many of these questions are not mutually exclusive, both in the sense of elements being combined (patterns with both geometric and organic elements) or a culture having multiple visual styles (3d art objects having unique features, religious artwork having its own conventions, etc).

Also when you're getting in depth, you should have cultural syncretism in mind. Cultures that routinely interact (whether this interaction is exchange or exploitation) inevitably exchange ideas, which can be especially visible in art. Doing research on how this synthesizing of ideas works in practice is very helpful- what is adopted or left out from an external influence, what is retained from an internal influence, what is unique to this synthesis, AND WHY. (I find Greco-Buddhist art really interesting, that's one of many such examples)

Looking at real world examples that fit your parameters can be helpful (ie if I've decided on geometric patterns in my 'style guide', I'll look at actual geometric patterns). And I strongly encourage trying to actually LEARN about what you're seeing. All art exists in a context, and having an understanding of how the context shapes art, how art does and doesn't relate to broader aspects of a society, etc, can help you when synthesizing your own.

[king-of-moths-shoes]

something possessed me

Not something that understands fish eye perspective but it was certainly something (Timelapse below)

There is a bit of flashing cuz I suck ass at shading so tw for anyone who needs it :)

[deoidesign]

Thinking about vampires, death, life, and the space they occupy in between