Sign in

Stephen Spitewinter

@spitewinter.bsky.social
1.8K followers 4.4K following 1.4K posts

🌱 #History, #Botany, #Plants, #Gardening, #Art, #Allotment, Economic & Social History, Small-scale food production, Cricket. Mending old things and restoring old houses. Location 🇬🇧. Support 🇨🇦 🇺🇦 🇬🇱 🇪🇺 I reply to comments on my posts, but not often to DMs

PostsRepliesMedia
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🌹 Rose 'François Arago' Lovely old rose bred c.1857 by Victor Trouillard 🇫🇷. Named after scientist and politician François Arago 🇫🇷. Arago is one of many examples of The Renaissance rolled up into one person . Here's a brief bio - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fran%C3...
0112
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🎃 Cucurbita pepo - American Field Pumpkin Good morning all! #Autumn has arrived in the N Hemisphere and with it comes #Halloween. Please don't waste pumpkin flesh and seeds, they are a valuable foodstuff Some good recipes from BBC Food - www.bbc.co.uk/food/pumpkin
Cucurbita pepo L. [Cucurbitaceae] by Ferdinand Vietz, 1772 - 1815, c.1804.
071
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
#plants #botany #history #art 🎨 Friday Art 🙂 Gustav Bauernfeind 1848-1904 'Warden of the Mosque, Damascus' Oils on Panel c.1891 Have a good weekend- do something different!
0101
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🌱 Pleioblastus fortunei (Bambusa fortunei) A #Japanese compact bamboo with elegant variegation. A good filler for a patio or balcony but INVASIVE world-wide - grow in pots. Nat. Gardening Association TX 🇺🇸 advice. Good source with database. garden.org/plants/photo...
Illustration of Bamboo from Journal Général d'Horticulture c.1855.
1131
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
#plants #history #botany #art ☠️ Cerbera (genus) - Sea Mango, Pink-Eye, Suicide Tree, Ordeal Tree. 🧵1/2 A genus of trees described by Carl Linnaeus c.1753. Native to #India, SE #Asia, NW #Australia. All parts toxic including smoke from fires, contains the cardiac poison Cerberin. Don't risk it! 🙁☠
1141
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
#plants #history #botany #volcanoes #art 🌋 Friday Art 🎨 JOSEPH WRIGHT OF DERBY, 1734-1797 Vesuvius in eruption, viewed from Posillipo Oils on Canvas c.1789 (Probably observed during his visit to Naples October - November 1774) Current Exhibition until 1 November: derbymuseums.org/event/wright...
2160
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
#plants #botany #history #art 🍒 Cherry 'Monstrueux de Mézel' Does anyone know if examples of this #cherry survive? A very large sweet cherry known in the #Mézel district of #France 🇫🇷. It was listed in Rev. Hort., 1846, and Hedric's 'Cherries of New York' 1914 but seems to have vanished since. 🙁
1122
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
#trump #economy #USA #psychology Is this anything to do with the Dunning-Kruger Effect? thedecisionlab.com/biases/dunni...
040
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🌿 Araucaria araucana (A.imbricata) - Monkey Puzzle Tree It's current home range is temperate S America but escaped ornamental cultivation in Britain 🇬🇧. A Jurassic #livingfossil and source material for Jet Jewellery: www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/inspir...
2164
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
#history #botany #plants #art 🎨 Friday Art 🙂 Pierre-Auguste Renoir 1841-1919 Les oliviers de Cagnes Oils on Canvas c1909 Enjoy your weekend: the coming of Spring in the Southern Hemisphere, and the dwindling of the Summer sun in the North.
0133
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🌴 Hyophorbe verschaffeltii - Spindle Palm Native only to Rodrigues island in the Mauritius Archipelago, there are only a few left in the wild. Not likely to be lost thanks to planting in Trinidad & Tobago. Strictly tropical, it will die in temperatures below zero.
1122
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🌷 Phycella fulgens syn. Habranthus fulgens & others. A (to me) rather beautiful member of Amaryllidaceae. Native only to Central #Chile. Reported by Rev. Hort and Curtis in 1866. Royal Botanic Garden, #Edinburgh 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Refs: chileanendemics.rbge.org.uk/taxa/phycell...
1122
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Sorry, there's nothing else to say.
010
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
#history #botany #art #Canada #Quebec 🎨 Friday Art! William Armstrong (1822-1914) Crossing to Quebec Oils on Board, C19th Possibly Voyageurs and passengers crossing the St Lawrence to Québec City in the winter. Have a good weekend! Brief Bio & more works/links: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William...
191
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🌼 Anemone pulsatilla syn. Pulsatilla vulgaris - European Pasqueflower, Common Pasqueflower A member of the Buttercup family, common to open pasture in #Europe. A hardy perennial that forms clumps of bright purple-blue flowers. www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-exp...
0123
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
#plants #flowers #history #botany #art 🌷 Calceolaria - The Slipper Flower - a huge genus of over 250 plants in several forms. 1. 'Exemplar' 2. 'Madonna' This plate by Alfred Adlard c.1846. Horticulture UK - growing Calceolaria and useful background information. horticulture.co.uk/blogs/growin...
2182
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
#history #botany #trees #art 🌲 Friday Art! Aleksei Savrasov, 1830-1897 Summer Oils on Canvas, c.mid 1880s. I used to know a stand of pines like these when I was young. I would climb the long hill to them and enjoy the solitude. Happy days. Have a good weekend - and let's be careful out there...
1122
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
There are many things that he might be proud to put his name to..
010
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🫐 1. Prunus domestica var. Diamond (Recorded early C19th)) 2. P. domestica var. Belgian Purple (Bred c.1853-4) Two heritage plums for the harvest. Diamond was known for cooking, bred to a sweeter table fruit in C20th. Still available from nurseries. Plate c.1878
0142
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🌼 Gloriosa superba syn. Methonica plantii - Lame Lily, Climbing Lily, Creeping Lily, Gloriosa Lily, Tiger Claw Common to much of Sub #Saharan #Africa and #Asia, also introduced to E. #Australia & #Alabama. Toxic ☠️ How to grow from RHS - www.rhs.org.uk/plants/82032...
Gloriosa superba syn. Methonica plantii - a plate by  Louis Van Houtte (1810-1876) c.1853.
1104
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
This is how easily the dictators destroy our past. Collect books - preserve the truth of history.
000
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🎨 Friday Art! Paul Cézanne (1839-1906) 'L'Estaque aux toits rouges' Oils on Canvas c.1885 - During his time at The Artist's Village, L'Estaque. More of Cézanne's work at The National Gallery 🇬🇧 (scroll down in the web page). www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/pa...
2142
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Please collect books. I thank you.
010
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
#plants #orchids #history #botany #art Dendrobium speciosum var. hillii syn. D. hillii - Pale King Orchid Striking #Australian native. Trailing stems of up to 200 flowers. Grows over rocks & overhanging boughs near water along the 🇦🇺 E Coast and into the southern tropics. First recorded 1877.
0183
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🍈 1 & 2 Sicyos edulis - Chayote Christophine, Mirliton, Güisquil, an edible gourd. 3 Melo cantalupo - Cantaloupe, a true melon. 4 & 5 Cucurbita citrullus - Citrullus, from the gourd/cucumber family. From Jardin Potager et Jardin Fruitier, 1872, one of my favourites.
1105
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
Have you ever seen a Dryopteris in the habit of a tree fern? Or even an epiphyte? I'll send the source publication to you in a chat.
100
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
#plants #botany #history #art 🎨 Friday Art 🙂 Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890 Cabanes de bois parmi les oliviers et cyprès "Wooden cabins among the olive trees and cypresses" Oils on Canvas - Saint-Rémy, October 1889 Vincent in Saint Remy - www.alpillesenprovence.com/en/history-h...
Vincent van Gogh 1853-1890
Painting, 1889, oils on canvas "Cabanes de bois parmi les oliviers et cyprès"
0102
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
#plants #trees #history #botany #art 🌳 Carya illinoinensis - Pecan Hickory One of a large and varied genus of Hickory: this one cultivated for Pecan nuts. Others are cut for timber that is a gold standard for tool handles, like hammers and axes - a pioneer's friend. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pecan
1162
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🌼 Aquilegia chrysantha A Grey - Golden Columbine Good Morning everyone. It rained last night! 🙂 Here's a native A. chrysantha because it's one of my favourite native plants from hot, dry N #America. Have a good day and a good week. www.rhs.org.uk/plants/79886...
1130
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
#bluecrew #trueblue #USpolitics #Resisters #Trump I've just been sent this. I have no idea if it's genuine. I wonder. What would George Washington say if he could see this abysmal mess?
000
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
#book #books #history #resisters #bluecrew #AI I think we should buy books. I have thought about this and I think we need an insurance policy for our sanity. Thank You.
0111
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🎨 Friday Art... Winslow Homer (1836-1910) A Tropical Breeze, Nassau Watercolor and Pencil on Paper c.1890 Have a good weekend! (I learned my lesson yesterday - Mad Dogs & Englishmen Go Out In The Mid-Day Sun 🙁)
090
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🌳 Anacardium occidentale: Cultivated Cashew Anacardium is a large genus, A. occidentale is its most common cultivated member, enough so to be considered a World Food. This plate by Étienne Denisse c.1843. Kew Plants of the World powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:ls...
0102
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Is a Cracker Barrel one of these? They look like they burn a lot of Wattage.
010
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🌼 Erythrina variegata - Tiger Claw, Indian Coral Painted by Ellis Rowan, 1848-1922 c1890 Native range is SE #Asia, but has established itself in the #Nile basin from fro #Uganda to #Egypt. Its seeds can be eaten after processing to remove toxins, otherwise edible.
1152
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
This one... Have a nice day.
000
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🎨 Friday Art... George Cole, R.A. 1810-1883 Harvesters Rest Oils on Canvas c.1865 Have a peaceful weekend 🙂
0123
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
#plants #botany #history #art 🌼🐝 Penstemon - Genus of over 300 flowering plants. Native to N.America from #Canada through the #USA plains to #Mexico. Good habitat for Bumble #Bees, Honey Bees & other pollinators. Bred for flower variety in #Europe, summer blooming. www.rhs.org.uk/plants/penst...
0131
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
#plants #botany #history #art Cyperus papyrus - papyrus sedge,papyrus,paper reed, Indian matting plant,Nile grass. 1/ Used from at least 3,400 BCE for paper making and domestic flooring. There are some interesting references to this and also notable Victorian artist Marianne North. See 2/ &3/
Marianne North, 1830 - 1890
Papyrus or Paper Reed growing in the Ciane Sicily
ArtUK.org
1284
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🎨 Friday Art 🙂 Gustave Cariot (1872-1950) La Ferme Oils on Canvas c. 1919
1141
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🌼 Clarkia tenella syn. Oenothera tenella - Evening Primrose Possibly over 300 varieties of C. tenella bred for colour. Origins south of #Chile & #Argentina. Copes with hard conditions but is a short lived annual. Good for pollinators, often escapes cultivation.
1172
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
#plants #history #botany #art Canna indica - achira, arrowroot, flowering shot, Indian reed, Indian shot, tous-les-mois Native to C.America, S.USA. Introduced to tropical belt world-wide. An attractive and long-lived perennial, invasive in S.Africa. Rhizomes are edible and a good famine food.
1163
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🎨 Friday Art! Summer - The Harvesters Workshop of Pieter Brueghel the Younger, Oil on panel c1623 One of many versions of 'Summer', from the Seasons quadriptych by the Brueghel father & son workshop. Very appropriate to our 🇬🇧 early harvest this year due to the heat.
1132
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
#oilprice #Trump #Affordability #Midterms #UK #USA Well, this is all going rather well, isn't it? 🙂
020
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
#plants #botany #history #art 🌱 Smilax - Genus - catbrier, greenbrier, prickly-ivy, smilaxes, Sarsaparilla About 350 members of this genus, largely edible and common to Tropical & Sub-Tropical bands. Commonly known as the ingredient of the soft drink Sarsaparilla. See any old western movie 🙂
2181
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
#plants #history #botany #art Cattleya dowiana
1171
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
#plants #botany #history #art 🌱 Angelica archangelica syn. A.officinalis Origins N #Europe, spread to #Iceland 🇮🇸, #Greenland 🇬🇱 and introduced to #Yukon 🇨🇦. First catalogued 1753 in Species Plantarum A French delicacy, here's a recipe - READ THE HEMLOCK WARNING ☠️ - foragerchef.com/candied-ange...
1182
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
#plants #history #botany #art 🌱 Tamarindus Indica - Tamarind Tree I've posted the Tamarind before but this is a far better plate, from Berg & Schmidt, Atlas der Officinellen Pflanzen of 1899. And here's a short, interesting article from Oxford Herbaria - herbaria.plants.ox.ac.uk/bol/plants40...
181
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
#Farage #UKpolitics #Clacton #Binface #History Unexplained money pouring into Reform UK and Farage before the 2024 election - surely not! Coincidentally I've been reading up on the fraudster Horatio Bottomley MP - a back-pocket patriot: 🙁 - www.westernfrontassociation.com/world-war-i-...
Fraudster Horatio Bottomley MP wrapping himself in the British flag - recruiting drive, 1914-1918 War.
030
Stephen Spitewinter @spitewinter.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
#Farage #Clacton #Binface #UKPolitics I was wondering - do any of our younger and fitter contributors - and that's not me, I assure you - fancy spending a couple of weeks leafleting and door-knocking for Binface? It is time that The Count took his seat, which he has very rightfully earned.
2166