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#Bloomscrolling

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Flowering spurge (Euphorbia corollata. Family Euphorbiaceae, the spurge family)

The white "petals" on this plant are actually modified leaves called bracts. The true flower is the tiny green and yellow bit in the center.

Most spurges produce an irritating latex containing phorbol esters that make this plant a Class 1b (very poisonous) cell toxin. Phorbols are also co-carcinogens; they don't cause cancer but increase the risk from other carcinogens.

Spurge gets it's name from the fact that it causes severe vomiting and diarrhea, so it was once used as a purgative. This use is no longer recommended as there are much safer alternatives.

This was one of the most difficult plants for me to identify because it's not listed in Weeds of the Great Plains and it doesn't have a photo in Van Wyk's Mind-Altering and Poisonous Plants of the World. The flower "petals" were also deceiving, leading me to think it was in a different family.

As I begin my fifty-fifth journey around the sun, I am grateful for all the beautiful things and people that have been a part of my life. And I am thankful for all of the people and things that may have seemed horrible or like an obstacle I could not overcome, for they have also made me who I am. 🙌🏼

More sunflowers are opening! Unless they bloom later, it looks like none of my fancy red sunflower seeds germinated, only the told fashioned flowers from seeds I harvested last year.
The second picture is the seeds I harvested from the hollyhocks. My favorite, the big showy double, doesn't put out as many seeds.
#gardening #bloomscrolling #sunflowers

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Monissa puutarhoissa oli käsitöitä ja koristeita, jotka kiinnittivät huomiota.
Lisäksi yhdestä puutarhasta löytyi niinkin eksoottisia kasveja kuin banaaneja, kuulemma lajiketta joka pärjää Keski-Euroopassa vuoden ympäri, mutta Suomessa talvehtii kellarissa.

Many gardens had interesting crafts and decorations on display. And one garden had pretty exotic plants, including bananas that are taken indoors for winter.