low on words, so I've brought pictures.

[asakiyume]

Some time ago I was saying that, due to the alchemical combination of southern exposure, a metal door, and a glass door over that, I have a tiny space that gets tremendously hot, even on the coldest of days. cecile_c suggested I try using it for drying herbs. I did, and it worked!

Unrelatedly, the semi-tattered morning glories of yesterday, rain spattered:



And here are some dandelions I drew for Little Springtime

Comments

[duccio.livejournal.com]

That's a very nice dandelion. Dried cranberries: mmmm!

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

I checked on the cranberries just now, and they haven't shriveled a bit--I guess this takes time :-P

[duccio.livejournal.com]

Maybe they should be suspended in a small bag that doesn't touch anything. When I used to make damar varnish for painting pictures, I had to suspend the chunks of damar resin in an organdy bag in turpentine - not touching the side or bottom of the container. They would dissolve and exit the bag into the turps. If I just dropped the chunks into the turp, they would fall to the bottom, but not dissolve. It's like not only the heat, but gravity helps with the change.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Yeah, if they were suspended, there'd be air circulation, as well. I've dried cranberry garlands that way.

[heliopausa.livejournal.com]

I like your dandelion very much! And yes, I saw the crow, and liked it too. (I think I find all the corvids an intriguing set. And they inspire an enormous amount of literature. :) )

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Corvids have worked their way into our collective, species heart, that's for sure.

[egg-shell.livejournal.com]

I think you have captured the soul of that dandelion.

Nice crow, Duccio!

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

I do love dandelions. Little Springtime's asking for a picture of one was a great excuse to spend some time on them. It got me to start reading a book i've been meaning to read for years: The Teeth of the Lion: The Story of the Beloved and Despised Dandelion

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

Those morning glories! And a message in a bottle--how cool is that!

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

And that was the last day for morning glories--the next night, a killing frost came. So I'm glad I noticed those patches of sky-as-flowers when I did.

[oiktirmos.livejournal.com]

Nicely drawn crow.
And here are some dandelions I drew for Little Springtime
Cool Mom of the Year award.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

I give her cool daughter of the year award for picking a project for me that I'd like so much. She's a sweetie.

[oiktirmos.livejournal.com]

It is a very beautiful drawing.

[cmcmck.livejournal.com]

That most underrated of plants, the dandelion. The leaves taste good in a salad too!

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Yes! Though apparently the Pilgrims brought over the seeds for its virtue as a medicinal plant, rather than as a salad green.

[yamamanama.livejournal.com]

At first, I thought the basil was insect husks.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Yeah, they kind of look like cicada husks.

[queenoftheskies.livejournal.com]

Do you grow the herbs yourself?

I've always loved morning glories. My grandfather used to plant them in his yard for me. Those are lovely with the water drops on them.

Your dandelions are amazing! So pretty!

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

I grow *some* herbs myself, and that basil did come from a pot on my porch, but I didn't grow them from seeds--I got them as seedlings in the spring.

And me too, with morning glories. When I was very little, my mom used to grow them.

[athenais.livejournal.com]

Dandelions are so cheerful! I like the crow icon very much.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Dandelions are gorgeous! Especially if you see a plant that's growing in a place where it's never been subjected to mowing--they can be like eighteen inches high and with *big* bold flowers.

[xjenavivex.livejournal.com]

thank you

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

T'warn't nothin', ma'am ^_^

[cecile-c.livejournal.com]

Dried cranberries, yum :) It's so cool it worked!

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

I'm so glad you prompted me to try! (So far the cranberries haven't shriveled much, but they're thicker, so it'll probably take longer.)

[c-maxx.livejournal.com]

That is a great dandelion! Perfectly life-like, and perfectly stylistic as well, like Vincent.

Maybe a little more life-like even, but I do like your style as well!

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Thank you--soaking up all your generous words like the world's happiest sponge.

[amaebi.livejournal.com]

That first photo reminds me, very tangentially, of the dancerly elegance of wasps.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

I can see it! That's a lovely comparison in both directions.

[seajules]

I had no idea morning glories came as anything other than grass-high inch-wide white flowers until I moved to San Diego for the first time as a teen. It took me a while to realize that yes, the climbing vines with the vaguely familiar five-inch trumpet blossoms of deepening purple around the flower's perimeter were, in fact, the same breed (genus? species? I forget my scientific classifications). Coastal SoCal and the Intermountain Corridor may both be high desert, but there are some notable differences impacting the growth of flora.

I like your dandelions very much.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Contrariwise, I marveled when I discovered the tiny white wildflowers that looked like mini versions of the big blue ones. I love those little wild ones!

Thanks, re: dandelions. What a great plant the dandelion is.

[seajules]

The blue ones were a pleasant discovery upon moving to the South. They're purple in SoCal and of course white in Utah and Eastern Oregon, and while both are very pretty, I prefer the color blue and the particular blue of morning glories is absolutely stunning.

As a very wee sprog, I apparently fed dandelions to the neighbor's dog. It was sheer luck that I didn't poison the poor boy that way, since dandelions are generally contra-indicated as part of a dog's diet.