Viola sororia Triform

Viola sororia in 3 forms: blue, white, and freckled Pittsburgh 2019

There is never a time that I can't remember picking violets.  First, for my mother, thrusting a grubby fistful of wilting indigo toward her.  Now I pick them for medicinal reasons, or just out of habit.  It was habit that had me crawling around a neighbor's yard in disbelief.  You see, I'd finally spied the freckled variety of the common blue violet.  How I'd managed to go over half a century and never encounter one is a testament to their rarity.  And for whatever reason, the neighbor's yard is richly peppered with them.  I asked if I could photograph them, pick a few, and he, not appreciating this 'weed' growing in his grass, first wanted me to photograph the flowers he had planted along his garage - which I did, what choice did I have?  That at least freed me to study the freckled violets with their white petals brilliantly splashed with purple.  There's always something new to discover, no matter how many times you've done the very same thing, there's always more.

Medicinal Value of Viola sororio

Common Violet, Viola sosorio, Pittsburgh 2019

Nothing says 'spring' like the emergence of violets in the yards, fields, and meadows.  That deep blue/purple head boldly rising on a fragile stem from its base of heart-shaped leaves, is the promise of the season to come that we all need after a long dreary winter.
The leaves and flowers of violets are what is both edible and medicinal.  The flowers and leaves are eaten raw, early in the season, either in a salad or as a garnish.  Medicinally, they can be made in to poultice, salve, or cold infusion to be applied topically for the treatment of eczema, rashes, insect bites, dry skin, and even varicose veins.  Taken internally it was traditionally used as a spring tonic to cleanse the system and act as an expectorant for phlegm lingering in the lungs, as a cholesterol lowering agent, and an anti-tumor folk remedy.
As with all herbal treatments, do your research, know your own potential allergic reactions, and possible drug interactions.  WebMD has a wealth of information on many herbal actions/interactions, and while they don't cover the common violet specifically, they do have a listing for the related variant, the sweet violet.

The Detritus Of Life Is Everywhere

Musk Mallow Leaf (Malva moschata) and Blue Jay Feather, Pittsburgh, 2018

The detritus of life is everywhere.  We cast bits of ourselves off without notice.
The flowers and leaves of the musk mallow are edible raw, or for the latter, cooked.  The leaves and roots are used both topically and internally.  Topically for sores on the skin, and internally for irritations of the digestive tract and throat and lung ailments.  Mucilage can be extracted easily from the roots by soaking.

Better Hurry Up, Glory of the Snow

Glory of the Snow, Chionodoxa forbesii 2019

Like so many things in my yard, glory of the snow is an afterthought, growing and blooming now as it does beneath a shrub off the one side of the front stoop.  It could have gone unnoticed by me again this year (as it has the previous 9 years) had I not been looking for flowers to cut and bring in to photograph.  Really, right now it's all that I can manage.  I got a sinus infection that led to a bronchial infection that led to pneumonia.  I was tired of resting and thought some simple flower still lifes would perk me up.  And they did because the very first thing the flowers posed, was a mystery.  What were they? I knew that they weren't blue-eyed star grass, but they were similar enough to that that maybe researching something close to it might lead me to my answer - and it did.  Eventually.  Glory of the snow is supposed to bloom early enough that it can pop up through the early spring snows, but we have none of that, and indeed the weather is so warm that the flowers bloom and wilt if they're in the sun.  But these are protected under the shrub, with the sun never striking their tender leaves and petals.

Filius Ante Patrem

Tussilago farfara, Colt's Foot, Filius Ante Patrem Pittsburgh, PA 2019

A very early wildflower, Tussilago farfara, aka colt's foot, aka filius ante patrem ('the son before the father' because the plant flowers and dies back long before leaves appear). Once a very prominent medicinal herb, it is now known to contain pyrrolizidine alkaloids that have a mutagenic effect on DNA. Because of it's continued popularity in Germany and Belgium in particular, colt's foot is available commercially with the alkaloids removed.  I've never used colt's foot, and probably will continue to avoid it.

Still? Life

Clementine Oranges in Glass Bowl, 2019


Every so often I come across what I consider to be the laziest genre of photography, the still life of a bowl of fruit.  A dead fly on the windowsill in the attic is a more engaging subject.  And yet, as we moved my mother-in-law out of her house and into assisted living recently, I snatched up this fruit bowl and came home and filled it with clementines and grabbed my camera.  My wife watched me bewildered, but saying nothing because she is wise.  She observed in silence until finally reaching a conclusion.
"You really like that bowl, don't you?"
"Yes, it's why I've shamed myself so."

Meadow Mushroom

Meadow Mushroom, Agaricus campestris, Pittsburgh, 2016


This morning I was out for a bit of a walk when I happened upon a clutch of meadow mushrooms.  For years I've spotted these pink-gilled beauties around the neighborhood, and even in my own yard.  I was able to identify them quite easily (the pink, unattached gills are a dead give away), but to make sure, I still did spore prints.  Today I decided to finally sautee some of them in butter and see how they tasted.  Quite delicious!  I wasn't surprised since by all accounts they are choice eating.  I don't know if I'll bother with picking them again because although I'm quite confident in my proper identification of mushrooms, it still caused a panic attack.