Category Archives: Hard Science

“When there’s no more room in Hell, Datura will walk the earth.”

Posted on May 15, 2012 by

Early last year, I wrote an article about the angel trumpet, Datura stramonium, and was inordinately proud of being probably the only garden writer alive who could name-drop “Papa Doc” Duvalier, Charles Manson, Hunter S. Thompson, and George Romero in … Continue reading →

Posted in Hard Science, Swimming in Strange Waters | Tagged , , , ,

“I Can’t Believe I Ate The Whole Thing.”

Posted on May 2, 2012 by

The weather has been strange in North Texas, but not as strange as it was last year. That said, we’ve had odd fluctuations in both temperature and humidity, with mixed results among the carnivores. The flytraps and butterworts love the … Continue reading →

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I get by with a little hemp from my friends

Posted on April 30, 2012 by

One of the greatest gifts I’ve yet received in the past ten years is the collection of friends, cohorts, and interested bystanders gathered together through a mutual love of plants. I get calls and E-mail at all hours, asking “Do … Continue reading →

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Introducing Hemidactylus turcicus

Posted on April 19, 2012 by

As mentioned for a while, we have a lot of Mediterranean geckos (Hemidactylus turcicus) in the Dallas area. As can be told by the name, they’re not native in the slightest: they apparently arrived in the US in Florida on … Continue reading →

Posted in Hard Science, Introductions, Uncategorized | Tagged ,

It’s amazing what you can get done on a three-day weekend

Posted on April 9, 2012 by

You know, most people spend a three-day holiday weekend lazing about, or puttering, or maybe getting a few things done that the normal schedule doesn’t allow. Oh, we did quite a bit of that. Date night on Saturday night was … Continue reading →

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Introducing Stylidium debile

Posted on April 4, 2012 by

When I started studying carnivorous plants nearly a decade ago, I had no idea as to the level of trouble I was going to get into by now. I could count the number of carnivorous genera on my hands, I … Continue reading →

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Introducing Cephalotus follicularis

Posted on March 29, 2012 by

At Triffid Ranch shows, the thirdmost common comment I get is “I used to have a Venus flytrap, but it died.” I usually try to help out as much as possible so as to prevent that in the future. The … Continue reading →

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More from our friend Echinocactus texensis

Posted on March 29, 2012 by

I thought that last year’s blooming season for the indigenous horsecrippler cactus was prodigious. I had literally no idea. The way they’re all going insane, I’ll be up to my armpits in ripe Echinocactus texensis fruit by the end of … Continue reading →

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Introducing Strategus aloeus

Posted on March 15, 2012 by

Most friends know that I’m a defender of the odd animals in the garden. Others celebrate the bluebirds and the box turtles, but I’m the one who encourages the paper wasps, the Mediterranean geckos, and the occasional armadillo out back. … Continue reading →

Posted in Hard Science, I'm living in my own private Tanelorn | Tagged , , ,

The reblooming of Antarctica

Posted on March 15, 2012 by

Discuss with friends or co-workers where they would go and what they would do if given access to cheap and effective time travel, and the answers are usually painfully expected. Well, they are if the idea is not to influence … Continue reading →

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