Menagerie

A gathering of creatures, flora, devices, and general miscellany.

A collage of a male bird of paradise with partially puffed feathers
Stylized chocolate lily and fan-leaf cinquefoil flowers side-by-side.
The legs and heads of eight flamingos as seen from underwater. The water's surface has many wavy ripples.
Two California poppy blooms nestled between leaves.
Ten abstract herons made from paper collages in different poses on a white background.
A collaged french horn
A collage of a decaying log laying on its side. New tree saplings grow on top of it, ferns grow from crevices in the bark, and banana slug crawls along it.
Magnified bean-shaped sporophytes of moss of various dark greens. They have red stems and blue shadows.
Fireweed (Chamaenerion angustifolium) gets it's name from being one of the first and most voracious colonizer plants to establish after fire or other clearing event. It loves sun and grows about 5 feet high. Common throughout the northern US, Canada, and northern Europe (there known as rosebay willow herb), it has been used as medicine, food, tea, and cordage for centuries. Before the Russian Revolution, the fermented tea (Koporye) used to be Russia's second largest export. It was Europe's non alcoholic drink of choice before Chinese tea gained popularity. Across Canada, First Nations people drank a tea made from the plant to treat gastrointestinal issues and used topically to treat rashes, burns, and infections.