4TH NATURE

Disturbed post-industrial landscapes intrigue me. Circling a condemned building, I gathered and pressed 37 different plants growing in the cracks between pavement and wall. I compared my inventory to Increase Lapham's Herbarium which he collected on this spot in Milwaukee 170 years ago. Seventeen species have persisted from that time. The vast majority of these urban weeds are invasive species both native and non-native, a telling product of the tension between nature and human habitation. Virtually all have proven uses and most are edible which I am continuing to explore.