This sketch was done in the few minutes while I waited my turn at the hairdresser’s.
at the hairdresser’s
Images
for pip
I’ve known Pip since she was knee-high to a grasshopper. Her family lived three doors down when I was a kid, and I used to babysit her and her siblings. She now has grown kids of her own, and we are still friends. Happy birthday, Pip!
Asclepias eriocarpa
Asclepias eriocarpa is native to California and adjacent parts of Nevada and Baja California. It grows in many habitat types such as rocky hillsides, woods, deserts, and especially dry areas. Along with other milkweeds, woollypod is vital to the survival of the monarch butterfly, as well as being a great nectar source for a range of beneficial insects.
Milkweeds contain cardiac glycosides, naturally occurring drugs that increase the force of heart contraction and have been used to treat heart conditions. The cardiac glycosides are potentially poisonous to humans, and are definitely toxic to dogs, cats, and grazing animals. So maybe don’t plant it in your horse paddock.
Coriandrum sativum
Fresh cilantro (coriander) is relished by some yet despised by others, and apparently it’s genetic. Chemists have found fat molecules called aldehydes present in the plant that are similar to those found in some lotions and soaps, giving credit to the claims (by some people) of the herb’s “soapy” character.
Are you a yay or nay on cilantro? I’m a yay, and I’m enjoying eating the pretty flowers lately.
for suzanne
Happy birthday to a dear friend.
crabby
I had fun drawing crabs with the Draw With Me gang. I ate a lot of mud crabs in my feral hippie days, living on tidal flats in the Australian tropics. We had very little money, but had a garden full of fruit trees, a canoe, and a bunch of crab pots, so we ate pretty well.
pocket park
Lauren and I had lunch in a little park in Beverly Hills; apparently we were in an historic cactus garden.
Physalis peruviana
Physalis peruviana is a species of plant in the nightshade family (Solanaceae) native to Chile and Peru. Widely introduced in the 20th century, it is now cultivated or grows wild across the world in temperate, subtropical and tropical regions. The plant has become invasive in some habitats, particularly in Hawaii and on other Pacific islands. It grows as an annual in temperate locations, but a perennial in the tropics.
The slightly tart fruit can be made into sauces, pies, puddings, chutneys, jams and ice cream, or eaten fresh in salads and fruit salads. Or you can just snack on them, which is what I’ve always done.
for dan
Birthday card for my “little” brother, painted from a photo on his IG.
Chrysocus cobaltinus
This iridescent little beetle (about 8mm long) was on a milkweed plant at the Park yesterday. So bright and metallic!
Both adult and larvae C. cobaltinus life stages eat dogbane and milkweed species. These plants contain toxic molecules known as cardenolides, which the beetle is resistant to. In fact, it stores the cardenolides in its glands, and uses them against predators.
Cobalt Mikweed Beetles are similar to click beetles in being able to launch themselves a couple of times the length of their body. Little but mighty!
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