Snake Gourd

Image: douneika
Trichosanthes cucumerina

Who knew you could look even prettier after getting torn to shreds?

Pelican Flower

Image: dl7tny
Aristolochia grandiflora

It's a big flower that looks like a pelican and smells like a dead, rotting pelican!

Beard Heath

Image: Kevin Thiele

Hairy flowers!

Yew

Image: j4mie

The tree that ensures all else shall die!

Anthuriums of Anguish

Image: Reinaldo Aguilar

For many, the word Anthurium means just one plant: the Flamingo Flower. It's one of the most popular tropical plants in the world; add a Heliconia and a palm leaf and you're instantly teleported to the Caribbean. That's just science.

Hot Lips

Psychotria elata

It's Valentine's Day! Big, sloppy kisses for everyone!

Arums of Abhorrence

Image: sarah faulwetter

Good, ol' Arums! They're always there for you. What tropical bouquet would be complete without a few shiny Anthuriums bringing their deep red and pink colours to the mix? And if you want something more subdued and chaste then you need look no further than the beautiful arum lily. There's an arum for every occasion!

The Arum family is not famed for its Wolffia Duckweeds, the smallest flowering plants in the world, but they're exceedingly famous for containing the Titan Arum. That monstrosity can reach 3 metres (10 feet) tall but, as we have already learned, its close relatives are no less eye-catching for their smaller size!

Did you know that the arum lily is native to south Africa and is known as varkoor in Afrikaans? It translates to "pig's ear". So lets take a look at some more arums that make a pig's ear of it!

Giant, Misshapen Penises

Image: James Gaither
Titan Arum, Amorphophallus Titanum

That's what you need when life gets you down: huge, colourful, misshapen penises. If we're lucky, they might even smell of rotting flesh and be covered in flies and beetles! Yaaay!

Thrice-damned Hallowe'en Horrors

It's Hallowe'en! That time of year when we trip the light phantasmic with death, trip and fall with darkness and "accidentally" trip and fall while holding a knife inappropriately in a crowded area with evil. Woo!

Behold Death. He's trying out a clown costume this year. He's really enjoying the red wig. I've never seen anyone put so much hair gel on a wig before! He needed every drop to comb it into the shape of his own scythe. He says he might laminate it!

Here be Darkness. She's taken up baking cupcakes and brought some along for us to try. They're delicious! They practically stand up and walk right into my mouth of their own accord. In fact, the legs are my favourite bit!

Yonder is Evil. He's dressed up in a long, white robe with a little cardboard halo fixed onto his head with a piece of wire. He does that every year but it's hilarious every time!

Let's take a look at some of the ghosts and ghouls who haunt our world all year round:

Rainbow Eucalyptus

Image: Kristi
Eucalyptus deglupta

Who needs flowers when you have a trunk like this?

Moss Ball

Image: Nancy O

Some tribbles are no trouble at all!

Skunk Cabbage

Image: KitAy
Symplocarpus foetidus

Ahhhhh! The foul stench of Spring!

Elephant's Foot, Dioscorea elephantipes

Image: alijava
Dioscorea elephantipes

Yikes! If that's an elephant's foot, I have just one word to say: moisturise.

Hydnora africana

It's Hydnora africana! A kind of "living dead" plant. Because sometimes you just don't know what's under the earth until it breaks out and stinks the place up.

Return of the Hallowe'en Horrors

It's Hallowe'en! That time of year when we play snakes 'n' ladders with death, peek-a-boo with darkness and rock, paper, Armageddon with evil. Fun!

Behold Death. He's stripped to the waist to show off his brand new array of internal organs. He looks great! At least 3 or 4,000 years younger! The surgeon says he can choose some skin in a few weeks, maybe even an eyeball!

Here be Darkness. Her flower arranging has really come on leaps and bounds this year. She's taken a very important step and decided not to paint all the flowers entirely black. We now have one crimson petal peeking out from the shadows. She says it's a revelation!

Yonder is Evil. He's dressed up in a long, white robe with a little cardboard halo fixed onto his head by a piece of wire. He does that every year but it's hilarious every time!

But some creatures don't need to dress up in a long, white robe to be scary. They don't need clothes at all. They're entirely NAKED! All the time! Let's go see!

Elephant's Foot

Image: Martin_Heigan via Flickr
Pachypodium namaquanum

It's an Elephant's Foot! It's taller than an entire elephant! And... where's the rest of the elephant?

Dead Horse Arum

Image: emmapatsie via Flickr
Helicodiceros muscivorus

I love flesh-mimicking flowers! Things that blur boundaries are often interesting, but one would think that the plant/animal divide would be an extremely strong one. Not so much a picket fence as a 3 foot thick, lead wall.

Jabuticaba

Image: Wikipedia

I had no idea this was possible! There's fruit on them thar tree trunks!

Microscopic Worlds, a great video!

I saw this and just had to share, it's amazing!

Microscopic Worlds - Life that we don't see

by Daniel Stoupin.

In the original post you can find out all the labours that went into making it. There were many! Also, the galleries at Microworlds Photography have lots of incredible microscope images to gawp at.

The video features several familiar characters, like Copepods, Water Bears and the squishy, all-conquering tower of malice that is the Hydra. There are also a whole lot more we'll have to get round to!

Natural Born Hallowe'en Horrors

It's Hallowe'en! That time of year when we celebrate death, join hands with darkness and are thankful for all the wonderful things that evil brings to our lives. Woo!

Behold Death. He's out of his coffin, handing out drinks, telling jokes and being the ironic life of the party he always knew he could be.

Here be Darkness. She's put down the razor blades and is now coaching zombies and ghouls on how to lead a full and purposeful life.

Yonder is Evil. He's dressed up in a long, white robe with a little cardboard halo fixed onto his head with a piece of wire. He does that every year but it's hilarious every time!

But there are some creatures out there that are ever so slightly ghoulish all year round. They just can't help it! Let's take a look at a few of them: