One of the things about the 'parks' in Phoenix is that they have no flowers. Pretty much standardized with regard to layout and landscaping, they seem to present the minimum of what's termed civitas, the dedication of space for the public good. I suppose anything so delicate as a flower would be destroyed and aesthetics are not exactly on the municipal agenda. I compare to those in Vancouver, Seattle, Portland and San Francisco. (LA parks are human habitats - and I don't mean visitors.) The terrain doesn't lend itself to any dimensional variation, they're flat and quadrilinear. In the cities mentioned, you'd see daily users. I'm ever amused by the older folk doing their Tai-chi... you don't see that here. During the day, they're not used at all. Over the weekend, there are parties and picnics for groups of people but surmise the malls are the premium destinations locally. Kids don't play baseball anymore. Not to be the curmudgeon! One just notices.
This an old shot from the little rose garden near Encanto Park. Not a city endeavor, but a private society of aficionados. I had a Biology professor who was one. After the publication of "Silent Spring" there came heightened awareness about pesticide use. I think Rachel Carson was, along with Barry Commoner, a seer with regard to the so-called environmental movement. Ecology and such. My professor responded to those concerns with regard to aphid infestations of roses. He bred wasps!
Dusting off the cobwebs, the wasps would, as I recall, inject their fertilized eggs into said aphids, the resulting larvae a parasite feasting on it's innards until but a deceased and dessicated ectoderm was all that remained, the wasp's next generation emerging. Biological control. That was 1970 and I see it's pretty much a standard method today.
This an old shot from the little rose garden near Encanto Park. Not a city endeavor, but a private society of aficionados. I had a Biology professor who was one. After the publication of "Silent Spring" there came heightened awareness about pesticide use. I think Rachel Carson was, along with Barry Commoner, a seer with regard to the so-called environmental movement. Ecology and such. My professor responded to those concerns with regard to aphid infestations of roses. He bred wasps!
Dusting off the cobwebs, the wasps would, as I recall, inject their fertilized eggs into said aphids, the resulting larvae a parasite feasting on it's innards until but a deceased and dessicated ectoderm was all that remained, the wasp's next generation emerging. Biological control. That was 1970 and I see it's pretty much a standard method today.
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