Recently we bought a Venus Fly Trap.
And it’s safe to say, I’m transfixed.
These plants shouldn’t exist. They’re literally bonkers.
A plant that eats the living. EATS. THE. LIVING.
It’s the sort of thing you’d expect to come from the mind of a z-grade movie writer, not a bloody gardening shop.
But here it is, living in our house and trapping flies like a serial killer.
Which reveals a truth about nature we often forget.
You see when marketers talk about nature, they tend to position it as calm … fragile … innocent. A gentle place where humanity can be restored by its peaceful resonance.
But as the Venus Fly Trap shows, nature is actually the original hard bastard.
Of course it should be obvious …
She’s lived sustainably for billions of years.
Survived dinosaurs, meteors and nuclear bombs,
Found ways to evolve regardless of environment or climate.
Created an eco-system far more impressive than anything DHL or Amazon can muster.
Sustained life for longer than all mothers put together.
Kept the planet breathing despite our best attempts to choke and burn her.
Developed an operating system light years ahead of anything Apple could come up with.
Knows more about life than every scientist, doctor and self-help guru in history.
Nature isn’t gentle. She’s as fierce as a tiger with a set of nunchucks and a bazooka.
Which begs the question …
Why the hell do all these brands keep flogging ‘nature’ as passive when she created things like the Venus Fly Trap?
It just goes to show they don’t even understand their subject matter, let alone their audience.
Thanks VFT. You’re nails.
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youre weird campbell. youre fucking weird.
Comment by andy@cynic March 22, 2022 @ 8:19 amThank you.
Comment by Rob March 22, 2022 @ 8:59 amnature hasnt managed to fucking deal with you though has it.
Comment by andy@cynic March 22, 2022 @ 8:20 amGive her time. She’ll get there.
Comment by Rob March 22, 2022 @ 9:00 amI checked with Wikipedia and we’ve agreed that Venus Fly Traps come from evolution.
Comment by John March 22, 2022 @ 8:25 amNo wonder you like it Rob, you’re the human version of it.
Comment by Bazza March 22, 2022 @ 8:29 amnot any more. the fucker is more like japanese knotweed.
Comment by andy@cynic March 22, 2022 @ 8:43 amThis is what wikipedia says.
“It is listed by the World Conservation Union as one of the world’s worst invasive species.
It is a frequent colonizer of temperate riparian ecosystems, roadsides and waste places. It forms thick, dense colonies that completely crowd out any other herbaceous species and is now considered one of the worst invasive exotics in parts of the eastern United States.
The success of the species has been partially attributed to its tolerance of a very wide range of soil types, pH and salinity. Its rhizomes can survive temperatures of −35 °C (−31 °F) and can extend 7 metres (23 ft) horizontally and 3 metres (10 ft) deep, making removal by excavation extremely difficult.
The plant is also resilient to cutting, vigorously resprouting from the roots.
The invasive root system and strong growth can damage concrete foundations, buildings, flood defences, roads, paving, retaining walls and architectural sites. It can also reduce the capacity of channels in flood defences to carry water.
Japanese knotweed shades out other vegetation, overgrows buildings and other structures, encourages fire, and damages paved surfaces.”
In other words, you’re correct Andy.
Comment by Pete March 22, 2022 @ 8:50 amFTW
Comment by DH March 22, 2022 @ 8:57 amHahahahaha … this made me laugh out loud.
Comment by Rob March 22, 2022 @ 9:00 amNature. The original hard bastard.
Well you’ve certainly changed the way I look at it. I like that. Except the oil companies will use it to say they’re not killing the planet and it can take their abuse.
Comment by Pete March 22, 2022 @ 8:51 amFunny, I’m working with an amazing company that is tackling this issue. You can say a lot about the fossil fuel industry, but they’re very smart manipulators. Or were … as you’re going to hopefully hear some stuff very soon that [hopefully] starts properly changing the game.
Comment by Rob March 22, 2022 @ 9:13 amI hope you wear a bullet proof vest then.
Comment by Pete March 22, 2022 @ 9:23 amcampbell would end up being shot with a gold bullet and make a fucking fortune out of it. prick.
Comment by andy@cynic March 22, 2022 @ 9:28 amAre you ever worried it will try and kill you when you’re too close to it Rob?
Comment by DH March 22, 2022 @ 8:58 amThese comments are a throwback to 2009.
Comment by George March 22, 2022 @ 10:02 amThat explains why this seemed like an unusually topical post.
Comment by John March 22, 2022 @ 10:14 amSo you’re saying they make you feel alive.
Comment by DH March 22, 2022 @ 10:26 amI’m not sure that’s what George meant. Haha.
Comment by Rob March 22, 2022 @ 2:58 pmA mother prepares dishes to suit the stomachs of her children. Suppose a mother has five children and a fish is bought for the family. She doesn’t cook pilau or kalia for all of them. All have not the same power of digestion; so she prepares a simple stew for some. But she loves all her children
“Can We Feed Billions of Ourselves Without Wrecking the Planet?” Is an interesting article over at Columbia for anyone interested!
Comment by Martha March 22, 2022 @ 9:55 pmdoes mum like stew?
Comment by andy@cynic March 23, 2022 @ 4:13 am