I like how plants can tell us a lot about a landscape. The theme of this week's steemitphotochallenge is Natural Landscapes – preferably without man-made objects. But even though this landscape, near my home in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, looks natural, there is so much about it that was determined by man.
Here’s what this landscape says to me. The rusty- and purple-colored plants are Pennyroyal, Mentha pulegium. It likes living in wet areas -- even in areas that are wet marshes in our wet winters. So I can tell that the pennyroyal area is wet, but not completely flooded for any long time. But the land is wet enough, for long enough, that these trees died from drowned roots -- after the land use changed from drained agricultural land to a natural area that floods every winter. Every band of plants, with their different colors and textures, says something about the soil and water conditions. Pennyroyal is native to Europe, but it has spread all around the world and is considered an invasive species in many places.
I harvested a lot of pennyroyal from the ditches in this general area last year. I dried it and use it for tea - it has a more menthol taste than spearmint or peppermint. And it smells great! Do you like pennyroyal? What landscapes around you tell you their tales?
#steemitphotochallenge #photography #nature #wildfood #haphazardhomestead