I have a weed in my backyard. Every year, for the past 7 years, it has poked its head from the fertile soil in the border between the yard and the woods, looking oh-so cute and innocuous. Then I blink. Next thing I know, its nearly six feet tall with an equally wide canopy, covered … Continue reading
When I moved to North Carolina 7 years ago I didn’t think much about one of the bedrocks of the North Carolina economy: Tobacco. It’s a business dying a slow death, and one only has to look at the closed-up buildings that once housed powerful tobacco conglomerates, such as Liggett and Myers, in downtown Durham. … Continue reading
Plant poisonings are a funny thing. Most people aren’t actively seeking out poisonous plants in which to eat, that would be dumb. Rather they mistake them for something else through an honest mistake, willful ignorance, or just plain foraging hubris. I hate foraging hubris. But I digress. Take the “Death Camas.” I’d like to believe … Continue reading
Nature's Poisons 