The Sentient Forest people have encouraged the cohort to read various texts on Goethe's approach to plants - Goethe's phenomenology. The book I previously mentioned, Thinking With Plants, is one of the texts. There's also one by Isis Brook and another by Tom van Gelder. I find them very interesting. The approach is something like this, though varies according to the practitioner (I have taken this precis from John Ryan's guidance notes in our forum):
Step 1: Perception (start with detailed observation of all the 'bare facts' available to our senses. What do we see, hear, smell, taste, and feel? Don't worry about the name of the tree. Draw the tree in the field. And also draw from memory after encountering the tree. Draw and write.)
Step 2: Imagination (try to see the plant as a phenomenon in time with a history. Try to see the plant's movements and changes. Draw a sequence of the plant's development. For example, one plant may have leaves of various ages, from brand new to old and even those left over from last season. Draw and write.)
Step 3: Inspiration (or 'seeing in beholding'. Remain open to the tree's articulation or voice. How does the tree express treeself? You may experience a moment of epiphany or "aha!" Your creative practice may use an emotional language to convey this inspiration.)
Step 4: Intuition (or 'being one with the tree'. Your appreciation of the meaning of the tree deepens. You begin to see connections between the tree and all other phenomena in tree's environment. You gain intuitive insights into these connections)
What this process stresses is developing an ethical approach to interactions with plants - or indeed animals. As well as knowledge and empathy, this aims to encourage an understanding of connections. The thinking is that if you do this, it would be clear that it is bad to kill insects with pesticides when that will impact the system that plays a supporting interconnected role. Instead, you'd want to encourage, say, birds.
As an example, I watch the tits meticulously nibbling aphids and what have you from the lilacs and the roses. In previous years, I have had bug infestations, but this year there are more birds - Adam my neighbour said the same, he believes there are more birds. Mind you, that didn't help my box. Maybe those box-tree moth caterpillars taste bad... though I think I saw Bobbit with one. Too big for the tits. No, apparently not!
Maybe I need to feed them less suet.
Beautiful photos. I love how you've contrasted light and dark. The plant (whatever it is) with red leaves emerging is very unusual and striking.... I have just started the Thinking With Plant book. Those 4 steps when approaching a plant feel useful and will be something I can try. ... I was wondering if those caterpillars taste bad, but then I looked at the video from Munich. Maybe UK birds are still figuring out the insects are good food! Great news that you have more birds in your area.