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Book Release and Fun Facts About Cocklebur
My book is out! It showed up a week earlier than expected, a pleasant surprise for anyone who pre-ordered a copy. Common Backyard Weeds of the Pacific Northwest is available now from your favorite...
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Upcoming Book Release and Some Sowthistle Identification
If you’re reading this the day it’s posted, we are two weeks away from my book being released. Common Backyard Weeds of the Pacific Northwest will be available for purchase from your favorite...
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Garden Plants Gone Weedy: Lawn Violets
When garden plants go weedy, it doesn’t necessarily mean they’ve escaped the boundaries of our yards and invaded nearby natural areas or uncultivated spaces. While this is a concern for a significant...
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Tea Time: Self-heal
Prunella vulgaris can be found all over the place. It has also been used to treat just about everything. What else would you expect from a plant known commonly as self-heal, heal-all, all-heal, and...
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Horticulture’s Weedy Introductions in a Changing Climate
In case I need a reminder that the horticulture industry has a history of introducing weedy plants to natural areas, I get one each time I bike to work. Riding along the Boise River Greenbelt, a trail...
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2024: Year in Review
Happy 2025! Apparently it’s time for another year in review. As I said in last year’s review, 2024 was going to be another year of pollination, in which I would write monthly posts on the topic of...
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Weeds of Boise Takes a GIS Course
Why has this blog been so quiet lately? There are plenty of excuses for that. It doesn’t really matter either way, but since we’re on the subject, one thing that has kept me occupied recently is being...
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New Weeds Project, etc.
When you make yourself the weeds guy, and the word gets out that you’re the guy to go to when it comes to weeds, invitations and inquiries start coming your way. Usually it’s just someone asking you...
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Weeds of Boise: Neglected Parking Lot Islands at Post Office on 13th Street
Boise’s summers are decidedly hot and dry. Months can pass without any measurable precipitation, meanwhile temperatures regularly peak in the 90’s. In the heat of the summer, multiple days in a row...
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Weeds of Boise: Boise State University Campus, part two
In part one of this two part series, I introduced you to the Boise State University campus, located in the heart of Boise, Idaho. I’ve been spending the past year walking the campus and cataloging the...
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Weeds of Boise: Boise State University Campus, part one
If you live in a major city (or even a minor one), there is a good chance it is home to a college or university (perhaps several). Universities tend to take up a lot of space, which means there is...
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What Is Cheatgrass and Why Should I Care?
To understand the current state of rangeland wildfires in the Intermountain West, you must first familiarize yourself with a plant commonly referred to as cheatgrass. This annual grass moved into the...
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Highlights from the Western Society of Weed Science Annual Meeting 2023
As soon as I learned that the Western Society of Weed Science‘s annual meeting was going to be held in Boise in 2023, I began making plans to attend. I had attended the annual meeting in 2018 when it...
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2022: Year in Review
It’s time to look back on 2022. But before we do that, I have to acknowledge that January 2023 marks Awkward Botany’s 10 year anniversary. This time ten years ago, I was drafting the introductory post...
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Eating Weeds: Cleavers Coffee
One of the world’s most beloved beverages comes from a species of plant found in the fourth largest family of flowering plants. Rubiaceae, also known as the coffee or bedstraw family, consists of...
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Weeds of Boise: Hellstrip on Jefferson Street
Growing plants in urban areas comes with a variety of challenges. Soil conditions aren’t always ideal; shade thrown by buildings and other structures can be difficult to work around; paved surfaces...
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Awkward Botany on Outdoor Idaho (plus Send Us Your Questions)
I spend a lot time on this blog putting weeds in the spotlight, celebrating them for their successes and the unique and interesting plants they are. It’s rare that I get to share these sentiments...
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Weeds of Boise: Vacant Lot on West Kootenai Street
Every urban area is bound to have its share of vacant lots. These are sites that for whatever reason have been left undeveloped or were at one point developed but whose structures have since been...
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In Praise of Vagabond Plants – A Book Review
A weed is a highly successful plant that shares a close relationship with humans. In many instances, weeds are seen as nuisance plants, interfering with the goals and intentions we have for a piece of...
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Burr Tongue, or The Weed That Choked the Dog
It is said that the inspiration for Velcro came when Swiss inventor, George de Mestral, was removing the burrs of burdock from his dog’s coat, an experience we had with Kōura just days after adopting...
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