Each of the five tiny petals on the umbel of a wild carrot flower is larger (or smaller) than the one next to it. I never noticed, until Sam Thayer pointed out that remarkable detail.
If you look closely at the tiny white flower petals on the top right, you can see for yourself.
Even if I were the best forager in the world, I’d continue to attend classes taught by well-respected foragers. Luckily, Sam found his way to Hawk Circle, where he expanded my writerbynature abilities in more ways than one.
I aspire to Sam’s masterful attention to details that often escape my notice. Discovery enhances my sense of wonder at the infinite variety in nature. Any workshop where I get in touch with my “inner child” is a valuable investment. During the week, I pulled out my magnifying glass often to examine what Sam Thayer notices with his naked eye.
Back home, I can’t wait to get out and harvest wild leeks later today. I typically harvest them in spring. Now I know I can harvest them through the fall.
At Hawk Circle, we spent most of our time in the field, examining how the plant’s shape holds clues to its identity, like whether it is annual, biennial or perennial. Every foray was a reminder that each plant’s features represents its adaptability for survival.
“Plants want you to eat their fruit, but not their seeds,” Sam said, speaking with his whole body. He has the energy of a third-grader, the right brain of an artist and the left brain of a scientist. Add a bit of mellowing and 30 years, and he’d be another Gary Lincoff.
Sam made each field class seem spontaneous. But he is so intimately connected with each part of a plant in all seasons, I’m sure that by the time he completed his daily jog, he’d spotted the habitats and the plants he expected to teach.
Sam has boundless energy. Our days began at 9:00 AM. I got to bed well after midnight on all but the last of the evening fireside chats, where I had my botanical mind politically expanded. Who knew?
Sam has devoted a great deal of thought and research to our relationship to the plants we encourage and those we attempt to eliminate. His insights left me (a self-confessed chatterbox) speechless.
As I thumb through my field notes, I realize how many of the plant identification questions I had before attending the workshop were answered. I now have a new set of political questions, which is interesting, since I’d mostly given up on politics.