Florida Haiku and Short Verse

Florida Wildflower Haiku (Senryu), Marsh Rose Gentian, Sabatia dodecandra Florida Wildflower Haiku, Marsh Rose Gentian, Sabatia dodecandra by Kevin Songer …  limestone rock croppings bees butterflies skipper art rose gentian drawn … Tarkiln Bayou State Park, Marsh Rose Gentian, Sabatia dodecandra by Kevin Songer Rose gentian has about a dozen different species found throughout Florida (Sabatia spp.).  Tarkiln Bayou State Park, Marsh Rose Gentian, Sabatia dodecandra by Kevin Songer Rose gentian’s flowers are rich in purple and pink hues. When in full summer bloom, Sabatia can fill a roadside drainage swale with incredible swaths of pink and purple.  Tarkiln Bayou State Park, Marsh Rose Gentian, Sabatia dodecandra by Kevin Songer Some accounts may exist where early settlers dried Sabatia root and then brewed a chicory-like coffee with the plant parts. This may be a historical carry over from traditions in Europe where the same...

Florida Wildflower Haiku - Short Verse for Sunday, Wild petunia, Ruellia caroliniensis Florida Wildflower Haiku - Short Verse & Art, Wild Petunia, Ruellia caroliniensis by Kevin Songer …  purple bloom nectar attracts pollinators all, far into scrub woods … Wild petunia is always a surprise to discover growing in the woods as the plant and flower brings an aura of nice-neat cultivation to rough and ramble undergrowth. Wild petunia is a cousin of the more invasive Mexican petunia yet wild petunia is a prized Florida native wildflower and does not grow in an invasive manner. The common buckeye and white peacock butterflies seek out wild petunia as larval host plant.

Florida haiku - senryu for first fall Saturday morning; Seaside goldenrod and Mangrove buckeye. Florida Nature Poetry, Seaside Goldenrod, Mangrove Buckeye by Kevin Songer ... harvest goldenrod mangrove buckeye both bargain, anticipate first frost ...

Florida Nature Poetry - Senryu for Friday! Snowy Egrets & Sanibel Florida Poetry, Haiku - Senryu, Sanibel & Snowy Egrets by Kevin Songer  ... sanibel traffic hit the causeway early for best picnic table ...

Florida Nature Haiku for Friday morning, Shiny blueberry, Vaccinium myrsinites Florida Haiku, Shiny blueberry, Vaccinium myrsinites by Kevin Songer ... I always wondered bout shiny blueberry’s taste, rabbit got there first ... Shiny blueberry is a diminutive member of the blueberry family offering winter seasonal beauty with its namesake bright and shiny red and green leaves. During the growing season shiny blueberry is usually obscured by taller growing plants. Shiny blueberry produces large amounts of fruits sought after by small mammals, birds and other foragers. I see shiny blueberry growing along most trails hiked.

gulf seashore haiku Florida haiku, Gulf seashore by Kevin Songer... ... gulf's cool waters crash drowning out all other sounds but for seagull's cry ...

Florida nature poetry and art; Pond apple, Annona glabra. … alligator grunts gobbling down a couple meh tasting green fruits … Pond apple trees, like pop ash and black gum grow up out of the deep and dark swamp depths, producing apple-like fruits eaten by alligators and other wildlife. I would describe pond apple fruit’s taste as more ‘blah-bland’ than tasty, but some do make jellies and jams from the fruit. Pond apple provides habitat for wildlife, birds, orchids and bromeliads. Fort Myers' Six Mile Cypress boardwalk is a great place to experience pond apple up close.

Florida nature senryu - haiku for mid week, Candyroot, Polygala nana. Florida Wildflower Poetry, Haiku, Senryu, Candyroot, Polygala nana by Kevin Songer …  I know I shouldn’t pull plant and sniff candyroot, but no one’s looking … Candyroot calls to everyone who has ever pulled up the plant to experience the strong aromatic spicy scent of the roots. Interestingly, candyroot requires ants to collect the plant’s seeds for the  food value  of the seed's coating. Once underground, the seeds then germinate up through the ant's bed. Candyroot’s yellow flowers sit atop stalks rising from a basal rosette of succulent-like leaves.

Florida nature haiku - short verse for Tuesday, another verse about 'paths'. Florida Nature Poetry, Haiku, Senryu, Lover's Key by Kevin Songer ... today's trail was full of ancient stardust turned to sand, leaves and me ... Lover's Key, Fort Myers, Florida

Florida nature senryu for Tuesday, Perdido Key Beach and Life Paths, Perdido Key, Kevin Songer ... sometimes backward path is our path forward, yet wind and waves erase both ...

Florida Nature Senryu for Monday, Sand Gnats and Bunche Beach, Bunche Beach Flats at Sunset, Kevin Songer ... gonna go fishing bunche beach mullet schools sand gnats chase us home ...

Florida Nature Poetry for Sunday, Sandhill Milkweed, Asclepias humistrata Florida Wildflower Haiku, Sandhill Milkweed, Asclepias humistrata by Kevin Songer ... dunes' brilliant hot white blooms adorn blinding sands pollinators feast ...

Perdido Key Nature Poetry, Haiku by Kevin Songer ... fresh new paths from billion year old sands changes permanence ... Perdido Key ku

Wildflower Haiku for Florida Saturday morn.  'Hummer Across Beach Dunes'. Florida Wildflower and Wildlife Haiku by Kevin Songer Gaillardia, Helianthus, Coral Bean & wayward Green Violetear on the dunes ... peaceful sand dunes bees buzz, gulls cry, waves crash and   hummer’s roar startles ...

Inspiration found is always welcomed, and today there are so many sources of insight and revelation. One though outshines all others for insight and illumination.  That source is Nature.  Florida Green Roof and Wildflower Haiku plant, Coral Bean, Erythrina herbacea Drought, salt and heat tolerant.  Hummingbird plant Hands down Nature teaches me more about color, texture, geometry, sustainability, art, music, light, green roofs, haiku, life and the cosmos than any YouTube video, internet site, book or podcast. Florida Green Roof and Wildflower Haiku plant, Prickly Pear Cactus, Opuntia humifusa Very drought tolerant, great coastal green roof plant for habitat and pollinators For millennia, haiku poets have used the term 'Ginkgo Walks' for inspiration found when walking with Nature. Florida Green Roof and Wildflower Haiku plant, Fleabane, Erigeron app. Tolerates wet and dry soils, wind and heat tolerant, excellent pollinator plant A Ginkgo Walk is ...

Florida Wildflower Poetry, False Foxglove Senryu, Agalinis purpurea Florida Wildflower Haiku - Senryu Short Verse Art, False Foxglove by Kevin Songer … false foxglove marsh ruby throated hummingbird charm break sonic sound barrier … False foxglove's mauve blooms in mass covering a wet field are truly a spectacular sight in color and texture.   False foxglove (Agalinis spp.) can be seen growing along roadsides, in cleared or disturbed lots and pastures or fields.  The plant prefers slightly damp, sandy soils.  As with other trumpet shaped flowers, False foxglove’s blooms are sought out by hummingbirds.  Did you know a group of hummingbirds is called a 'charm'.  Charming!

Wednesday Florida native plant & wildflower haiku (short verse), Smilax spp. Florida Haiku, Wildflowers & Native Plant Art, Smilax spp. by Kevin Songer … wily cat brier scampers up tall long leaf pine hold tight sharp tip thorns … Catbrier provides the hungry hiker a quick energizing snack with its tender, tasty vine tips. Some sauté the green vine ends in butter and say the flavor resembles asparagus. Catbrier’s vines are loaded with thorns, making the mature, thickly vining plant a veritable evergreen barrier and providing wildlife with protected communal habitat.

Tuesday morning Florida native plant and wildflower haiku, Purple Muhly Grass Florida Wildflower Poetry & Art, Purple Muhly grass, Mulenbergia spp. by Kevin Songer … sweetgrass baskets muhly and pine needles weave art of carrying rice … Purple muhly grass lines the median of many native plant landscaped downtown streets in Florida. During late summer the blooms form a cloud-like top to the grass in brilliant white, purple and pink shades. This grass gives important communal habitat to birds and small mammals and once established is extremely drought tolerant. Muhly grass has a long history of ethnobotanical uses by native Americans and early settlers.  Woven from plant leaf blades, early plantation workers carried rice and other goods up from the fields in muhly grass baskets and satchels. Green Gardening Matters' post on muhly grass offers helpful hints on growing the grass as well as more of the interesting history of the plant.

Gallberry-Inkberry, Ilex glabra Gallberry (aka Inkberry) Ilex glabra by Kevin Songer … munch inkberry drupes old turkey, possum and deer sport smeared purple lips … Gallberry is also known as inkberry, and its dark black juice filled berries have been used by peoples over generations as ink. Birds and wildlife relish the berries for forage. Early settlers and indigenous peoples have made a tea similar to yaupon tea from gallberry’s leaves (see Appalachian tea). Interestingly, gallbladder is a holly like yaupon however gallberry’s leaves do not contain the significant amount of caffeine that yaupon leaves possess. Gallberry’s flowers attract bees from afar. Gallberry honey is highly prized by many.

Wildflower Haiku, Rayless sunflower, Helianthus radula Floria Wildflower Haiku Art, Rayless Sunflower, Helianthus radula by Kevin Songer … wet ditch oddity deep maroon pyres reach high swallowtails alight ... Rayless sunflower is a bit of an oddity standing erect like black eyed Susans and echinacea but lacking petals. Rayless sunflower’s head is composed of a collection of small brown florets and the plant is a member of the Helianthus (sunflower) genus. I usually see rayless sunflower growing alongside of wet drainage ditches and along the margins of shallow sloping ponds. Despite a lack of petals, rayless sunflower attracts many different pollinators. I find the plant’s stark structural appearance to be an interesting addition to a wet area landscape and an inspiration for nature art.

Always too much of a hurry I'm in.  The rush towards finish line and next project contributed largely in part to my aortic dissection (along with genetic tendencies). Haiku and Wildflowers, both are forever evolving, Kevin Songer Being present in the moment and Zen are practices I am still learning of, wanting to tap into their health benefits.  Health practitioners speak of cardiovascular, mental and life quality gains to be had through focusing on breathing and the here and now. And so writing short verse opens doors leading to an understanding of life's meaning.  Being still and knowing the cosmos are magically penultimate.  I use the word 'magically' to mean 'ever changing, not-constant and unknowable. Life is refined daily through natural selection processes.  Nature does this.  Humans do this too with hybrid crops and domestic animals. Perfection doesn't exist.  There is always an unfolding. My haiku, or short verse also teaches me abo...

Florida wildflower haiku for Thursday; Butterflyweed, Asclepias tuberosa Florida wildflower haiku, Butterfly Weed, Asclepias tuberosa by Kevin Songer … milkweeds toxin sap eaten by Monarch larvae hungry birds disdain … Butterfly weed (also known as 'milkweed') provides nectar for many pollinators, including butterflies and hummingbirds. Butterfly weed likes to grow in sandy soils and is a larval host plant for the Queen and Monarch butterflies. Interestingly, milkweed contains sap substances that are sometimes toxic to birds. Some butterflies have taken advantage of this toxicity by laying eggs on milkweed in order for the hungry larvae to ingest leaves full of these toxins, which fill their body with a taste predator birds disdain ultimately providing the larvae and young butterflies with much needed protection.

Florida native plant short verse for Wednesday. Sea oats, Uniola paniculata Florida Nature Haiku, Sea Oats, Kevin Songer … mice, birds and bunnies tasty seeds eat, summer grub when no chips are around … Sea oats are a protected grass found growing along the Gulf and Atlantic seashores, primarily across the sand dunes. Sea oats provide important forage for beach mice and shorebirds as well as shelter. Their roots help stabilize dunes, preventing erosion. As a child I always possessed a strong desire to grab a handful of seeds off the plant and I’m not sure if this was because I was always told not to pick them or because it looked like a fun thing to do. Sea oats are some of the only native plants to grow in the harsh salt laden environment, close to water's edge and as such provide important communal and foraging habitat to wildlife.

Winged sumac, Rhus copallinum …   pucker up those lips Florida lemonade stand sour cracker cool-aide   … Luna moth prefers winged sumac as a larval host plant, Kevin Songer, Florida Nature Art Winged sumac  is also known as Florida lemonade due to the sour berries found growing in clusters on the shrub.    Traditionally these berries, high in vitamin C, were used to make a tasty drink.    Late summer winged sumac turn a green roadside to flaming orange and red.    Luna moths use winged sumac as a larval host plant.    Winged sumac is a fast growing native shrub great for landscaping and wildlife habitat.

Weekend Catesby Lily Short Verse Pineland lily, Lilium catesbaei, Kevin Songer ... flames in the flatwoods fire in the wiregrass wet soil quenches not ... Damp soil pine flatwoods are such a special place and this is where I usually see Catesby lily growing en masse.  Catesby lily flower is one of the largest lily flowers native to North America.  Brilliant hues of orange, yellow and red attract a number of pollinators to the top of stems reaching up above wiregrass below.  Pineland lily is truly an amazing Florida native wildflower.

Florida Wildflower Poetry, Railroad Vine, Kevin Songer Railroad Vine … bright nectar filled cups moths, wasps, ants and bees seek oceanfront diner … Railroad vine, Ipomoea pes-caprae is also known as 'beach morning glory' and 'goat's foot', the latter name deriving from goat-foot shaped leaves on the vine. Salt tolerant railroad vine is an amazing native wildflower growing in primary dunes, often straight down the beach towards the surf.  Look closely and you may see thousands of pollinators buzzing about railroad vine's luminescent purple flowers.  This vine is an important beach-side insect, butterfly, small mammal and bird food source. Railroad vine's common name probably arose from the vine's long straight reaches, with leaves and flowers jutting out to each side much like a long straight run of railroad tracks, helping stabilize primary and beachfront sand dunes.  Drought and salt tolerant, this native wildflower makes a great se...

Sea beans ... prickly liana spiny pods nest lustrous beans, wait for sea pearls' fall ... Gray Nickerbean, Caesalpina bonduc, Kevin Songer Florida Nature Artist Rare Miami Blue and Nickerbean Blue butterfly larvae feed heavily of the foliage of Gray Nickerbean whose seed pods are as outrageously beautiful as the lustrous seeds nested inside.  The maritime loving Gray Nickerbean liana aggressively grows into a rambling, impenetrable hedge before flowering and dropping its gray beans onto the seashore.  With the seasons, tides and sargassum flotsam, Gray Nickerbeans travel around the world, carried hence by La Mar.  Sea Beans, also know as Sea Pearls have been used by peoples for jewelry, medicine and artisan wood inlays for millennia. 

Wednesday Night Florida short verse is a blanketflower fantasy. ... midnight beach party gaillardia spins moonbeams for dune critter disco ... Dune Critter Midnight Disco by Kevin Gaillardia pulchella & Anole by Kevin

Zamia ... cones and leaves nourish rare atala larvae host, butterfly bitters ... Coontie, Zamia spp.; Florida Native plant and Wildflower Haiku by Kevin So much to say about coontie, a marvelous Florida native cycad.  Look for more coontie short verse in my upcoming second volume of Florida Short Verse!

Florida Haiku, Short Verse and Wildflowers by Kevin ... if I were a gopher gaillardia would be my favorite home decor ... Gaillardia pulchella, limited signed prints by Kevin email fmi