Thistles

Plants love growing, their seeds sneak in cracks, send down roots and push up paving, this thistle is an example of one. Looking round my area the streets are less littered with litter and more by plants. I’m not calling them weeds, they are wild vegetation. I don’t really mind them, except where they grow in front of and on doorsteps. I do think that the streets used to get maintained in a better way. I don’t think I’d like a lot of weed killer to be used, but I hope things can improve soon. Hopefully owners could do a little hand weeding.

Green street

A large spiky thistle growing outside a terraced house front door. Why? These are student lets’ and a lot of them are empty because the students have already left. I guess the landlords will come back and refurbish the houses or rooms. There was a lot of rubbish in the street, black plastic bags, litter and bits of old furniture. If they don’t clear away the plants their roots will take over and get into the foundations. I think its worse because everything has grown rampant because of all the rain we’ve been having.

Thistle do?

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Thistle, old flower,

Magenta and green,

Sharp and green,

Sparkling with spikes,

Shunning the soft,

Not needing likes,

But waiting to shed

Your seeds all around,

Soft thistledown

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Work in progress on a painting of a thistle against old brickwork. It’s good how life can spring from cracks in the pavement or up from old guttering. The world tries to take over for our concrete and brick….

Thistles do remind me of punk and spikey hairdos!