
(NYC 01 20 2021)
The asters of autumn have long gone to seed. The parks sport the brown and tan tones of skeletal plant stems, dried leaves, and fallow edges now, within winter’s center, dressed also in white from a January snow.
— rPs 01 31 2021
Carpets of Color . . .
The grass, the uniform green lawn that provides the basic background for the rest of the vegetation both cultivated and wild, dresses up at the end of October in a multitude of autumnal tones.
The large brown fans of the oak and sycamore, the delicate gold leaf of the locust and elm, the hearty reds and oranges of the sweetgum, together combine into a blended harvest tapestry.
These carpets of color are another kind of blooming, a transient, lovely time for the simple green grass to costume up on Happy Halloween.
🎃
— rPs 10 31 2020
August Harvest . . .
Family and friends have begun to share photos, and salads, from their gardens as the month of August comes to a close. The wild patches of Manhattan’s west side have also reached their peak of productivity.
A morning walk, or a stroll to watch the evening sun set behind the Hudson, will also be accompanied by a diverse harvest of native and immigrant wildflowers in full bloom and fruit. This salad bar of sorts includes:
American Pokeweed, Phytolacca americana
Bittersweet Nightshade, Solanum dulcamara
Broadleaf Plantain, Plantago major
Butter and Eggs, Linaria vulgaris
Chicory, Cichorium intybus
Common Black Nightshade, Solanum nigrum
Common Mallow, Malva neglecta
Galinsoga, Galinsoga parviflora
Lady’s Thumb, Persicaria maculosa
Marestail, Conyza canadensis
There is quite a selection to see. August’s harvest is here.
— rPs 08 31 2020
July Sky Blues . . .
Summer treads light during the long days of July. The sun hangs overhead as a white hot ball set in a deep blue sky.
Thriving on that light and reflecting back up a similar pure blue hue, the blooming of chicory and dayflower make a match of the heavens and the earth.
Chicory, Cichorium intybus
Asiatic Dayflower, Commelina communis
— rPs 07 31 2020
May Flowers of Manhattan . . .
City wildflowers have never lifted my spirits more than during this month of May. Morning walks home from my essential worksite have cleansed my mind, filled my lungs with fresh air, and filled my eyes with life worth living. Views in bloom I hope will be the main lasting memory I keep of this chequered pandemic time.
Here are a few thousand words worth of photos to convey the magnificence of this May in Manhattan:
Wild Columbine
Shepherd’s Purse
English Plantain
And last, and perhaps most iconic: the always cheerful Common Dandelion
All the above and more can be seen now during a walk through the city’s many green spaces. Grab a mask, and go . . .
— rPs 05 31 2020