Biological Thinking

The plant below is called Veronica.  That's its scientific name and its common name.  In our outdoor classroom, it's located on the ...

Today felt like winter, but if you read nature instead of reading the thermometer, spring is already here.   Tree buds are among the first...

To any person who has spent enough time sitting on a patch of lawn to get a little bored, the leaf in the picture below will be instantly f...

Every year about now I put on a few extra sweaters, check the weather forecast for snow, and go outside to look for.....flowers??!  Yes, tha...

I met a fascinating plant on the farm this week - the black chickpea.  I'm accustomed to seeing tan chickpeas in the grocery store, but...

If you've been following along, you know that flowers are the sex organs of plants, specifically adapted to combine half of the DNA of a...

Brace yourself.  These pictures are of terrifying plant structures that cause much anguish to their human victims, and the overall post is f...

I have seen so many things in Chicago that I had only previously known from reading about them: Lake Michigan, excellent public transit, C...

Imagine you are an insect, and the nights are getting colder.  You don't really have a home to go to, but you need a place to snuggle in...

The Amaranthaceae, or Amaranth Family, is a somewhat obscure plant family, but you'd never know it on the farm right now.  There are ama...

Behold, a giant sunflower, the best-known and most beautiful member of the Asteraceae, or aster family.  The Asteraceae is a huge family wit...