Young tubular flower of the spear thistle. The Walsingham Farm, Port Alfred, Eastern Cape, South Africa (2024). Also called Scottish thistle or bull thistle. A spiny, herbaceous, biennial plant, with a large basal rosette of leaves, a deep taproot, and a flowering stem growing from the center of the rosette up to 1.5 m high.… Continue reading Spear thistle (Cirsium vulgare)
Tag: gardening
Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui)
Painted Lady feeding on a nodding thistle on the farm. The Walsingham Farm, Port Alfred, Eastern Cape, South Africa (2024). Formerly known as Acraea acara subsp. acara but revised by Williams & Henning (2023). Male and female. Upperside. Ground-colour reddish-ochreous, basal areas olivescent-ochreous-brown. Cilia black, alternated with white. Forewing with an outwardly-oblique black irregular-shaped broken… Continue reading Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui)
Warrior Acraea (Tildia acara)
Male Warrior Acraea emerging from its chrysalis, on a potted plant in the front garden. Grahamstown, Eastern Cape (2018). Formerly known as Acraea acara subsp. acara but revised by Williams & Henning (2023). Upperside rufous, the base of both wings dark brown. Anterior wing with a spot in the cell, a transverse band of three… Continue reading Warrior Acraea (Tildia acara)
Nodding thistle (Carduus nutans)
Close-up on a budding flower. The Walsingham Farm, Port Alfred, Eastern Cape (2024). Also called musk thistle, or nodding plumeless thistle. A spiny, herbaceous, biennial plant, with sharp spines that densely covers the stems and leaf margin, giving the plant a spiny texture. Leaves dark green and bipinnately lobed.Flower heads are large, red, pink or… Continue reading Nodding thistle (Carduus nutans)
Silver-leaf bitter apple (Solanum elaeagnifolium)
Details of the satansbos flower, with its purple petals and its thick yellow pistils. The Walsingham Farm, Port Alfred, Eastern Cape (2024). Also called satansbos (in Afrikaans), silver-leaf nightshade or bitter apple. A herbaceous shrub, growing up to 60 cm high, with felty stems and deep, spreading roots. Stems and undersurfaces of the leaves covered… Continue reading Silver-leaf bitter apple (Solanum elaeagnifolium)
Spear thistle (Cirsium vulgare)
Young tubular flower of the spear thistle. The Walsingham Farm, Port Alfred, Eastern Cape (2024). Also called Scottish thistle or bull thistle. A spiny, herbaceous, biennial plant, with a large basal rosette of leaves, a deep taproot, and a flowering stem growing from the center of the rosette up to 1.5 m high. Stems have… Continue reading Spear thistle (Cirsium vulgare)
F*CK FISH 