The itch.

I love cataloging things. I love planting things. I love drawing things.

I've had the itch to start a record, both written and illustrated, of my favorite plants for quite some time. Like many of my normal (abnormal) compulsions, I don't have a clue why or from where it originated. I've started this blog to help document and organize my thoughts about plants. Initially I'm going to include photos of the plants I have at home. Hopefully I can expand upon this and eventually include some of my plant drawings and photos/drawings of other plants that I find interesting. If you haven't seen the Kunstformen der Natur by Ernst Haeckel, you should really check it out.

Before I begin, I think I should give you a little bit of my philosophy toward plants. I've been growing things since I was about 10 years old. My grandmother has quite a green thumb and used to maintain a small greenhouse in her backyard. As a kid I loved checking out her various bonsai, cacti, and succulents. From her I inherited a fondness of appropriating cuttings and seeds. Some people say that I steal, but I think that I liberate. I am mainly interested in trees and food-bearing woody plants, although due to the climate in San Francisco and the fact that I reside in an apartment all my plants live in pots.

I love growing things from seed. I love tropical plants. I love the fact that my wife lets me cover about 3% of our 450 sq. ft. apartment with pots.