Hylotelephium erythrostictum (Garden stonecrop)

Adam Bonar

Initially, when I first attempted to begin this week’s project, I struggled. I am not one who finds must interest in nature or plants of that matter, but I tried to stay open-minded in my search of a meaningful piece of nature. I thought to myself however, why don’t I learn about what I pass every day? A plant that sits outside my front door that I walk by daily, and yet I never even thought about what it could be. So I researched, and eventually learned its non-scientific name to be “Garden stonecrop”. It’s a common garden plant, and learning about it was certainly interesting. However, this led to me pondering the life of plants and the life that they bring.

It’s this simple plant that exhales the necessary oxygen we need to sustain not only our lives, but almost all of terrestrial life. Yet, we tend to overlook these creatures and often do not take the time to appreciate what they do, and how our lives would be impacted without these photosynthetic organisms. We must not only appreciate their beauty and what they do, but we must take action to continue their sustainable nature. For too long we use these creatures as pretty pictures don’t do enough to protect and conserve them. Through conservative measures such as preventing deforestation and wildfires, this is not only one step towards saving trees and plants, but also a step towards saving the planet itself.