Banksia serrata, the old man banksia, is a species of woody shrub or
tree in the family Proteaceae. It is found from Queensland to Victoria,
commonly growing as a gnarled tree up to 16 m (50 ft) in height,
though it can be much smaller in more exposed areas. It has wrinkled
grey bark and shiny dark green serrated leaves. The large yellow or
greyish-yellow flower spikes turn grey as they age, and pollinated
flowers develop into large, grey, woody seed pods. This Banksia species
is one of four collected by Joseph Banks in 1770, and one of four
published in 1782 as part of Carl Linnaeus the Younger's original
description of the genus. Throughout its range, it grows exclusively in
sandy soils, and is usually the dominant plant where it grows in
scrubland or low woodland. B. serrata is pollinated by and provides
food for a wide array of vertebrate and invertebrate animals in the
autumn and winter months. It is a common plant of parks and gardens.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banksia_serrata>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1850:
Settlers of the Canterbury Association (poster pictured) aboard
Randolph and Charlotte Jane arrived to establish a colony at
Christchurch, New Zealand.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canterbury_Association>
1914:
First World War: The Imperial German Navy attacked ports in
northern England, resulting in hundreds of civilian casualties.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raid_on_Scarborough,_Hartlepool_and_Whitby>
1930:
German-American gangster Herman Lamm killed himself during a
botched robbery attempt in Clinton, Indiana, to avoid being captured by
police.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herman_Lamm>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
reconciliation:
1. The re-establishment of friendly relations; conciliation,
rapprochement.
2. (accounting) The process of comparing and resolving apparent
differences between accounting records, or between accounting records
and bank statements, receipts, etc.
3. Religious senses.
4. (Christianity) The end of estrangement between a human and God as a
result of atonement.
5. (Christianity) The reconsecration of a desecrated church or other
holy site.
6. (Christianity, chiefly Roman Catholicism) Admission of a person to
membership of the church, or readmission after the person has previously
left the church.
7. (Roman Catholicism) Short for sacrament of reconciliation (“a
sacrament (sacred ritual) formerly called confession, involving
contrition by a person, confessing sins to a priest, penance performed
by the person, and absolution granted by the priest”).
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/reconciliation>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
Do not merely practice your art, but force your way into its
secrets; it deserves that, for only art and science can exalt man to
divinity.
--Ludwig van Beethoven
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ludwig_van_Beethoven>
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