Observe the southern magnolia, seen here in a ubiquitous piece by artist Martin Johnson Heade, one that appears over mantels and sofas and elsewise in places of import in more Mississippi homes than you can imagine — more than you might imagine, in this modern age, where we value irony so. Magnolia is the everlasting [...]

Cotton is a plant that, pardon the pun, had woven its way into the everyday fabric of my mom’s family so effectively as to be rote. Cotton-themed paraphernalia and cotton farming accoutrement played bit parts in the tableau of almost every room of my grandparents’ house. Tastefully; this is my grandmother we’re talking about here.

Since I was but a wee growing thing (see photo), I’ve been enamored of everything that grows. Fronded, furred, feathered, if it was alive, it had me at hello. As a child my affections skewed Animal –- their activeness, their personality, their easy anthropomorphism –- but as I grew, I couldn’t help but notice plants. [...]