DEMOLITION ZONE

As old buildings get demolished, it is has become important to be aware of potential hazards encountered in the process. Often, crews find caches of dangerous materials lying long forgotten in attics or basements; ricketty structures that could easily collapse and cause injury or damage to workers or adjacent buildings; rotting timbers and mouldy or vermin-infested interiors (rodents, spiders, snakes, termites, ants) pose a health risk to workers or even passers-by.

A special hazard that causes many problems is asbestos, which was widely used in the past as an insulating or building material. Asbestos is a risk in demolition work because disturbance of asbestos-containing material can release countless, deadly, microscopic asbestos fibres. During work, building materials are disturbed, cut, crushed, knocked down. This is the type of work that releases asbestos fibres. You might just see dust and particles, but that dust can kill you if it contains asbestos. Not right away. But years or decades later, causing deadly, highly malignant cancers in exposed people.

This post is part of the Wordless Wednesday meme,
and also part of the Nature Notes meme

DANDELION

Taraxacum officinale, the common dandelion, is a common flowering herbaceous perennial plant of the family Asteraceae. It can be found growing in temperate regions of the world, in lawns, on roadsides, on disturbed banks and shores of waterways, and other areas with moist soils. T. officinale is considered a weed, especially in lawns and along roadsides, but it is a useful plant, sometimes used as a medicinal herb to treat many ailments and in food preparation as a green vegetable.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

2020 IN REVIEW

2020 was a year full of unfortunate events, disasters and world-changing events that affected almost every person around the world. Here in Australia we were no exception. We suffered devastating bushfires that ravaged much of the east coast of our country in January. On the first of March, Australia recorded its first death due to COVID-19. As March progressed and COVID-19 cases increased, more and more restrictions were introduced nationwide and the financial and economic effects of these became more and more apparent.

As of 6 April 2020 at least 12 deaths and more than 700 cases of coronavirus in Australia occur and are linked to the cruise ship Ruby Princess, which disembarked passengers in Sydney despite several of them, and some crew, showing symptoms of coronavirus. Much of the country enters into lockdown measures in an attempt to stop the spread of COVID-19.

In early July, as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Melbourne and nearby Shire of Mitchell reintroduce stage three restrictions for at least six weeks after a surge in coronavirus case numbers with the majority of new cases stemming from community transmission. All other states and territories introduce strict quarantine measures or deny entry for any incoming travellers who have recently visited Victoria. The border between New South Wales and Victoria is closed for the first time since the 1918–19 Spanish flu pandemic, after an increase in COVID-19 cases in Melbourne.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and escalating numbers of infection rates, especially in the workplace, Victoria declares a state of disaster and stage four restrictions are put in place on 2 August . This included a police-enforced curfew in metro Melbourne and Mitchell Shire between 8 pm and 5 am, the shutdown of a number of non-essential businesses, exercise only allowed for one hour a day and only one person per household allowed to go shopping once a day and within a 5 km radius of home. As a consequence of rising infection numbers imported from metropolitan Melbourne all other areas of regional Victoria are to enter stage three restrictions previously placed on Melbourne and Mitchell Shire on 5 August.

On 2 September the Australian economy went into recession for the first time in nearly thirty years, as the country's GDP fell 7 per cent in the June quarter.

The Australian Defence Force released on 19 November the final report of the inquiry by Justice Paul Brereton into alleged war crimes during the War in Afghanistan. The inquiry found there was credible evidence of 23 incidents of unlawful killings and a further two instances of the war crime of "cruel treatment". The inquiry also found that Australian soldiers summarily executed non-combatants and prisoners.

On 18 December the 2020 Sydney to Hobart yacht race race was cancelled for the first time in its history due to an outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Sydney New South Wales. On 19 December, in response to a coronavirus outbreak in the Northern Beaches area of Sydney, all other states and territories close their borders to all residents of greater Sydney, throwing interstate travel plans into chaos for those intent on visiting or leaving greater Sydney.

On 21 December, the final report from the inquiry into Victoria's botched coronavirus hotel quarantine program which led to a second wave of coronavirus in Victoria and over 800 deaths was released. The report is unable to determine who commissioned the use of private security and criticises the Andrews Government for failing to do "proper analysis" of the plan.

On 21 December, Jupiter and Saturn, the two largest planets of the solar system, appeared in a rare "great conjunction". The two planets' proximity in the sky in 2020 hasn't happened in about 400 years, and it hasn't been visible in the evening sky (when the sunlight doesn't obstruct viewing) in about 800 years.

As the world begins to vaccinate widely against COVID-19 in December, there is mounting hope that 2021 will see the pandemic recede and the world may then begin to go back into some semblance of normality.

This post is part of the Mosaic Monday meme,

and also part of the Blue Monday meme,

and also part of the Seasons meme.

ESCAPING...

 ... the Pandemic!

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme,
and also part of the Photo Sunday meme.

LOCKDOWN ENDING SOON!

Melbourne will exit lockdown from Wednesday 28th October, after recording no new Covid-19 cases for the first time since June. The State of Victoria was the epicentre of Australia's second wave, accounting for more than 90% of its 905 deaths. Our state capital, Melbourne, went into lockdown 111 days ago - enforcing home confinement, travel restrictions and closing of most stores and all restaurants. However today, authorities said the city was ready to re-open! Here's to a much needed return to a more normal life from this Wednesday onwards...

This post is part of the Mosaic Monday meme,

and also part of the Blue Monday meme,

and also part of the Seasons meme.

SOCIAL DISTANCING

In these "interesting" times we are living through, it's important to stay safe, heed the advice of experts and your government. It's only then we can beat the virus that has so disrupted our daily life.

However, at the same time, you can do much to help others in your community who are less able to fend for themselves. Please do something to actively support those in greater need than you. Your local community group, council or local government representatives can give you many workable and safe plans of action!

This post is part of the Wordless Wednesday meme,
and also part of the My Corner of the World meme.

A TUSSIE-MUSSIE

A tussie-mussie (or nosegay) is a small flower bouquet, typically given as a gift. They have existed in some form since at least medieval times, when they were carried or worn around the head or bodice. During the reign of Queen Victoria (1837–1901), these small bouquets became a popular fashion accessory. Typically, tussie-mussies include floral symbolism from the language of flowers, and therefore may be used to send a message to the recipient.

Here is my tussie-mussie from our garden for you, a gift in these trying and sorrowful times, and I hope that it lifts your spirits somewhat. The plants it contains are:

Fennel for sorrow

Rue for suffering

Rose-scented geranium for preferred company

Lavender for grace and calmness

Diosma for breath of heaven

Mint  for protection from illness

Feverfew for safety and immunity

Peppermint for invigoration and inspiration

Ivy for friendship and affection

Immortelle for eternity

Laurel for triumph of humanity

Parsley for festivity

Sweet basil for my best wishes to you

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme,

MELBOURNE WEEDS 5 - CANOLA

Rapeseed (Brassica napus), also known as rape, oilseed rape, rapa, rappi, rapaseed (and, in the case of one particular group of cultivars, canola), is a bright-yellow flowering member of the family Brassicaceae (mustard or cabbage family), cultivated mainly for its oil-rich seed. It is the third-largest source of vegetable oil in the world.

It is also consumed in China (油菜: Mandarin Pinyin yóucài; Cantonese:jau⁴coi³) and Southern Africa as a vegetable. The name derives from the Latin for turnip, rāpa or rāpum, and is first recorded in English at the end of the 14th century. Older writers usually distinguished the turnip and rape by the adjectives 'round' and 'long' (-'rooted'), respectively. Rutabagas, Brassica napobrassica, are sometimes considered a variety of B. napus. Some botanists also include the closely related B. rapa within B. napus.

Canola was developed through conventional plant breeding from rapeseed, an oilseed plant already used in ancient civilisation as a fuel. The change in name serves to distinguish it from natural rapeseed oil, which has much higher erucic acid content. In the 1970s, the Rapeseed Association of Canada chose the name "canola" to represent "Can" for Canada, and "ola" for oil. One dictionary purports that it stands for Can(ada) + o(il) + l(ow) + a(cid).

Canola oil is made at a processing facility by slightly heating and then crushing the seed.[Almost all commercial canola oil is then extracted using hexane solvent which is recovered at the end of processing. Finally, the canola oil is refined using water precipitation and organic acid to remove gums and free fatty acids, filtering to remove colour, and deodorising using steam distillation.

Throughout Melbourne, canola plants can be found as escapers from cultivation. These are considered weeds, although the leaves, seeds, and stems of this mustard variety are edible. The plant appears in some form in African, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Italian, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and African-American (soul food) cuisines. In Greece the young flower-bud shoots are collected, boiled and served with an oil and lemon juice dressing as salad greens (one of the greens collectively known as "horta").

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme,
and also part of the Food Friday meme.

MELBOURNE WEEDS 4 - FUMITORY

Fumaria (fumitory or fumewort, from Latin fūmus terrae, "smoke of the earth") is a genus of about 60 species of annual flowering plants in the family Papaveraceae. Fumaria species are important plants used as a herbal medicine. The genus is native to Europe, Africa and Asia, most diverse in the Mediterranean region, and introduced to North and South America and Australia. Fumaria indica contains the alkaloids fuyuziphine and alpha-hydrastine. Fumaria indica may have anti-inflammatory and analgesic potential.

Fumaria officinalis (common fumitory, drug fumitory or earth smoke) is a herbaceous annual flowering plant and the most common species of the genus Fumaria in Western and Central Europe. It has been introduced into and grows successfully in the New World and Oceania, becoming in many cases a rampant weed.

It is a herbaceous annual plant, which grows weakly erect and scrambling, with stalks about 10 to 50 cm long. Its 7 to 9 mm flowers appear from April to October in the northern hemisphere adn may be coloured pink or white with dark burgundy lips. They are two lipped and spurred, with sepals running a quarter the length of the petals. The fruit is an achene. It contains alkaloids, potassium salts, and tannins. It is also a major source of fumaric acid.

The "smoky" or "fumy" origin of its name comes from the translucent colour of its flowers, giving them the appearance of smoke or of hanging in smoke, and the slightly gray-blue haze colour of its foliage, also resembling smoke coming from the ground, especially after morning dew. The plant was already called fūmus terrae (smoke of the earth) in the early 13th century.

Two thousand years ago, Dioscorides wrote in De Materia Medica (Περὶ ὕλης ἰατρικῆς) and Pliny the Elder in Naturalis Historia that rubbing the eyes with the sap or latex of the plant causes tears, like acrid smoke (fūmus) does to the eyes. Its Greek name is kapnos (καπνός, for smoke) and the name fumewort now applies mostly to the genus Corydalis, especially the similar looking Corydalis solida (formerly Fumaria bulbosa), which was thought to belong to the same genus as fumitory.

It was traditionally thought to be good for the eyes, and to remove skin blemishes. In modern times herbalists use it to treat skin diseases, and conjunctivitis; as well as to cleanse the kidneys. However, it should be remembered that fumitory is poisonous and should only be used under the direction of a medical herbalist.

The plant contains isoquinoline alkaloids protopine and allocryptopine. Both protopine and allocryptopine increased CYP1A1 and CYP1A2 mRNA levels in human hepatocyte cells. The use of products containing protopine and/or allocryptopine may be considered safe in terms of possible induction of CYP1A enzymes.

In the language of flowers, fumitory signifies anger and the message it gives a recipient is: ‘I have expelled you from my thoughts.’ Sending fumitory foliage to someone means: ‘I do not wish to talk with you further at this time’.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

MELBOURNE WEEDS 3 - BLACK NIGHTSHADE

European black nightshade (Solanum nigrum) or locally just 'black nightshade', duscle, garden nightshade, garden huckleberry, hound's berry, petty morel, wonder berry, small-fruited black nightshade, or popolo) is a species in the Solanum genus, native to Eurasia and introduced in the Americas, Australasia, and South Africa.

Parts of this plant can be toxic to livestock and humans. Nonetheless, ripe berries and cooked leaves of edible strains are used as food in some locales, and plant parts are used as a traditional medicine. A tendency exists in literature to incorrectly refer to many of the other "black nightshade" species as "Solanum nigrum".

Solanum nigrum has been recorded from deposits of the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic era of ancient Britain and it is suggested by the botanist and ecologist Edward Salisbury that it was part of the native flora there before Neolithic agriculture emerged. The species was mentioned by Pliny the Elder in the first century AD and by the great herbalists, including Dioscorides. In 1753, Carl Linnaeus described six varieties of Solanum nigrum in Species Plantarum.

Black nightshade is a common herb or short-lived perennial shrub, found in many wooded areas, as well as disturbed habitats. It reaches a height of 30 to 120 cm, leaves 4.0 to 7.5 cm long and 2 to 5 cm wide; ovate to heart-shaped, with wavy or large-toothed edges; both surfaces hairy or hairless; petiole 1 to 3 cm long with a winged upper portion. The flowers have petals greenish to whitish, recurved when aged and surround prominent bright yellow anthers. The berry is mostly 6 to 8 mm in diam., dull black or purple-black. In India, another strain is found with berries that turn red when ripe. Sometimes S. nigrum is confused for the more toxic deadly nightshade, Atropa belladonna, which is in a different Solanaceae genus altogether. A comparison of the fruit shows that the black nightshade berries grow in bunches, the deadly nightshade berries grow individually.

Solanine levels in S. nigrum can be toxic. Children have died from poisoning after eating unripe berries. However, the plant is rarely fatal, with ripe berries causing symptoms of mild abdominal pains, vomiting, and diarrhoea. Poisoning symptoms are typically delayed for 6 to 12 hours after ingestion. Initial symptoms of toxicity include fever, sweating, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhoea, confusion, and drowsiness. Death from ingesting large amounts of the plant results from cardiac arrhythmias and respiratory failure. Livestock have also been poisoned from nitrate toxicity by grazing the leaves of S. nigrum. All kinds of animals can be poisoned after ingesting nightshade, including cattle, sheep, poultry, and swine.

S. nigrum has been widely used as a food since early times, and the fruit was recorded as a famine food in 15th-century China. Despite toxicity issues with some forms, the ripe berries and boiled leaves of edible strains are eaten. The thoroughly boiled leaves (although strong and slightly bitter flavoured) are used like spinach as horta (see here) and in fataya pies and quiches. The ripe black berries are described as sweet and salty, with hints of liquorice and melon. In South India, the leaves and berries are routinely consumed as food after cooking with tamarind, onion, and cumin seeds. If you decide to pick and consume black nightshade, ensure you know that you are picking the right plant and also that you are preparing it correctly! 

The plant has a long history of medicinal usage, dating back to ancient Greece. In the fourteenth century, the plant under the name of Petty Morel was being used for "canker" and with Horehound and wine taken for "dropsy". It was a traditional European medicine used as a strong sudorific, analgesic and sedative with powerful narcotic properties, but was considered a "somewhat dangerous remedy". Internal use has fallen out of favour in Western herbalism due to its variable chemistry and toxicity, but it is used topically as a treatment for herpes zoster.

In the language of flowers, a sprig of flowering black nightshade signifies "truth".

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme,
and also part of the Weekend Green meme.