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theidolhands
23 February 2013 @ 04:01 pm
“The earth laughs in flowers.”  
Did you know that due to how orchids store pollen, they are unlikely to trigger allergies?

Or that of the 22,000 species...only one is eaten regularly by humans?

And normally only a small kind of bee can pollinate it, an insect that cannot live beyond a small region of the world, and so, to satisfy foreign demand, vanilla must be pollinated entirely by hand.

Around us abound mysteries and oddities that even the best science fiction or sophisticated technology would struggle to compare to. It's no accident either. They've worked hard -- very quietly -- for millennia -- to achieve it. The amazing part...is that there is anyone to be amazed by it! For realize, that is not necessity; that is frivolity and beauty; a miracle, sewed so neatly into everyday life that we have the luxury to forget.

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Today's word @ 1word1day: Philistine
Lincoln quote @ daily_gems: Pluck A Thistle
One Man's Meat @ thequestionclub


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( 9 comments — Leave a comment )
Kitsune: fox steworiginalkitsune on February 24th, 2013 03:39 am (UTC)
beautiful flowers!

and yes vanilla smell is made up of many chemicals to give it that characteristic oomph. Vanillin is only a part of it which is why synthetic vanilla (made from lignin byproduct of the wood/paper pulp industry) doesn't smell or taste as good as the real thing.
Von Junzt: Lifelong Thingvonjunzt on February 24th, 2013 08:04 am (UTC)
Orchids rawk. We should eat more of them.
✄: Flowerv2_schneider on February 24th, 2013 08:32 pm (UTC)
Beautiful and colourful pictures mon ami. I'm loving the water droplets on this last one.

What is the flower that we consume most? Is it the little blue one that I can't remember the name of. :|

(I'm not back, not properly, and I'm sorry that I've been missing your posts. I am horrendously busy at the moment and it looks set to continue for at least the next few months. I'm on the last stretch of my degree and I have so much work to do. On the plus side I'm getting a lot of music listened to and I wholeheartedly recommend the new Nick Cave album. :)
☆: Hand - ☞theidolhands on February 25th, 2013 05:07 pm (UTC)
Since getting addicted to a Belgium detective...I keep hearing that phrase in said detective's voice.

If it's not blueberries...then I'm stumped! As it is, blue is one of the rarest colors in flowers, usually shades of blue-violet being given that title as a misnomer. But, mmmm....blueberries. There are a handful of very tasty blooms though and one can even eat the bulbs in others (such as lotus or taro). Then there are all those wonderful leaves (like spinach).

College work certainly is a time-sink, although I can't blame anyone for having their priorities there!
✄: Flowerv2_schneider on February 26th, 2013 04:07 pm (UTC)
That's exactly who I think of too. I quite like mon ami, there's something pleasant about it as a greeting.

I think it's violets, chefs use them in programs that I watch, they've put salt on them sometimes.

I would never have thought it would be this time consuming, it's because it's coming to the end. I've got work to hand in next month, a little bit more the following month and then a portfolio that will be handed in in September - that's the big one. I've already started it but as my tutor quite terrifyingly and correctly pointed out, it's also the sort of project I could spend the rest of my life on! Not content with writing a story, I've basically decided to create a kind of work of art, you know, just to make life simpler! O_o
Ulfhildr: woweeyuri_shoujo on February 24th, 2013 11:06 pm (UTC)
Huh, the vanilla thing is fascinating, thanks for sharing that. Explains why it's so expensive.
☆: IH - spacetheidolhands on February 25th, 2013 05:08 pm (UTC)
Good to know, I'm not the only person who gets geeky good-feels over stuff like this. It really is astounding how much we tend not to know about our daily loves and very survival in a modern world!
wild7orchid: pic#110634651wild7orchid on February 25th, 2013 06:52 pm (UTC)
Interesting facts and lovely set of photos! I become more and more proud of my nickname! :))
myrhiann: pic#57579695myrhiann on February 26th, 2013 09:39 pm (UTC)
Lovely photos. I know about vanilla as it is being cultivated in the tropics of Australia now. I am wondering if the blue flower is borage; I add it to salads to make them look more attractive.
( 9 comments — Leave a comment )