George Orwell must have had a shaky sense of humor, since he found amusement in the quaking of the planet. He explained, “A earthquake is such fun when it is over.”

Massachusetts native Joseph Breck got much right in his life.

Plants are making their last (seasonal) stand.

The poets never disappoint.

If Salvador Dali was ever looking for a model for a botanical self-portrait, he might have chosen teasel.

In my house, foraging is a favorite family pastime.

Willa Cather seemed to be of two minds when it came to ground cherries.

Ernest Hemingway knew how to make seaweed sexy.

The truth is, for garden snails, love hurts.

A walk along the beach last weekend seemed safer than a dip in the ocean, with the triple threat of sharks, siphonophores (man-of-wars), and cyanobacteria.