Fresh, blue sky and almost no wind. It smells like autumn: Herbs, rotting leaves
and mushrooms. The weather is crisp (and crunchy too - like “Dennis the Menace”
once said).
After walking around a
bit I decide to go to the Arboretum in the Delftse Hout. It is a like a small
sheltered valley divided into differend habitats. (I just hear on a BBC
gardening program that an Arboretum is the place to go in autumn!!)
Orange and yellow leaves float on the water. Most leaves are still on the trees. The reeds are dying off.
On my way to the Botanical
Garden of the Technical University in Delft
it is obvious that winter is coming. Dead leaves gather in quiet corners against a wall.
The first thing that catches my eye in the Botanical garden is
a sign calling attention to the fact that Delft University
is working on alternative ways to get Taxol from the needles of the Taxus tree.
According to the text Taxol is the most expensive drug in the world in the
fight against cancer.
But the best part are
the mini quails. I was warned that I had to be carefull not to release them
from the greenhouse. At first I thought they were all gone. I didn’t notice
them. But then there was this soft squeaky sound in the “bush”. Surprise; they are
really mini. A few extremely well camouflaged chicks were walking almost under
my feet. Keeping in mind that they are completely deaf…….
No comments:
Post a Comment