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Welcome to the Natural Coalescence Blog
Here you will find botanical tales and planty fun of all kinds with botany nerding and ecology through a entertaining lens.


New Zealand’s Strip Forest Tease: alpine edge tree line
Why does New Zealand seem to have a dense and stark forest strip, with the trees ending sharply compared to other global regions?
12 min read
1 view


Dying Season- make natural dye/ink
Making and testing natural inks & dyes from fruits and flowers in PNW.
12 min read
10 views


Yellow Wallflower Distinctions
Differences between WA Erysimum species- Erysimum capitatum vs arenicola.
2 min read
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Camas: common or death?
Edible or lethal plants. Comparing and admiring common camas with death-camas, and a few native plant relatives in the PNW.
5 min read
8 views
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Oaks Don’t Make Apples
Oak apples aren't a fruit, they're a gall from a wasp and they may not be edible but you can use them for home-made ink.
8 min read
460 views
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Spring Bulbs: Eat-Me-Nots
Buds buds everywhere and not a bulb to eat. Spring is popping up, literally, as represented by bulbs popping up their plump flower heads...
5 min read
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Blue bee-balls: Rare but totally natural from blue pollen
Ever seen blue balls on a bee? Possibly not what you think, but they do get them. Blue bee-balls, and a bee in a 'bad way'. Bee...
5 min read
86 views
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By the Warmth of Campfire- To burn or not to burn
The chill is in the air, the winds are kicking up, and sky has it's blanket of leaky grey all ready to tuck us in for the winter. Fall...
6 min read
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PNW Tree of Life: WRCedar
There are many cool trees all over the world and possibly more than our 'fair share' in the Pacific northwest due to the variety of...
5 min read
50 views
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Blue thou art… whence came thy dazzling hue?
Blue flowers are the RAREST color. I’ve noticed this for a long time. And it makes sense. But it is also confusing and weird and...
6 min read
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Wet* Hot Wild Berry Summer in the PNW:
*(sweaty, even while standing still because… heat domes & such) It’s a berry Pacific Northwest kind of life in summer time here. The sun...
13 min read
128 views
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Hydrangea Blues- don't be a basic pink
Hydrangea season approaches! Blue is coming. The special and huge draw of these shrubs for many gardeners is the unusual color of certain...
4 min read
37 views
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Oh-my-laria! The Equinox to Solstice plant- Oemleria cerasiformis
As the summer solstice passes, a very 'spring to summer' plant comes to mind- oso berry. They are pretty much the very first native plant...
4 min read
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The Dahlia Delight
Plant obsessions go through trends, just like the huge tulip obsession and flash trade market that was huge for a short time, then...
4 min read
84 views
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Iris Pride
The iris is more than a lovely (ok absolutely gorgeous) flower. Of ancient Greek mythology, she is the goddess who personified the...
6 min read
372 views
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Random Roots to Weed-Out & EAT
What's the best way to get rid of weeds? Eat them, of course! And we are hitting prime dandelion season, so it's time to get digging. ...
7 min read
8 views
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Rosy Twisted-Stalk- tasty mountain stream treat
I would bet this plant is among those that most people, even the botanically interested, would pass right by. Rosy twisted-stalks, and...
5 min read
59 views
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Begonia's Spirals
Begonia flowers are cooler than most people realize. I painted their corkscrew pistils as an oil painting, honoring them as I eat them.
4 min read
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Mystical Mistletoes
Mistletoes get an interesting and sort of bad rep. They are only really thought about during the holidays (unless by botanists) and many...
9 min read
26 views
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Ancients in Plain Sight
You may have heard the quick story about the oldest tree, or maybe the oldest organism. But the details and the bigger story is so much...
12 min read
96 views
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