James Fraleigh's photostream  

When they began throwing out all the photo-studio props at my last job, I grabbed these 2000- and 500-mL Erlenmeyer flasks. I've been using them since as vases for flowers when I have guests over. The 2L one goes in the living room; its wee cousin is small enough to fit in the loo.

Their names, in size order, are Walter and Jesse.

After nearly the full stretch of spring, this stump hasn't been removed yet. As Nature will, it has begun to reclaim its dominion.

As the weeks went by after the storm, I wondered if my complex would bring the tree service back to remove and grind this stump. When nothing happened (for good reason; there were broader plans to redo the entire complex's landscaping), I considered buying a couple of packets of wildflower seeds to spruce up what was still a fairly dead spot. Then April came, and the wild, in small scale, began to return.

Compare with its immediate-post-storm version earlier in the set. Fairly heavy erosion on what had been a big, soil-filled root mass.

The only real exception to the heavy weed and grass growth on this patch is the area that used to lie beneath the tree. Far less foliage there. I did notice the soil seemed a bit more sandy than that around the tree and inside the actual root mass. Perhaps drained of nutrients?