Grevillea juniperina, the prickly spider-flower, is a plant of the family Proteaceae native to eastern New South Wales and south-eastern Queensland in Australia. It is a small prickly-leaved shrub from 0.2 to 3 m (8 in to 10 ft) high, generally growing on clay-based or alluvial soils in eucalypt woodland. Scottish botanist Robert Brown described G. juniperina in 1810, and seven subspecies are recognised. The flower heads (inflorescences) appear from winter to early summer and are red, orange or yellow. Birds visit and pollinate the flowers. G. juniperina plants are killed by bushfire, regenerating afterwards from seed. The species adapts readily to cultivation and has been important in horticulture as it is the parent of many popular garden hybrids. G. j. juniperina, a subspecies restricted to western Sydney and environs, has its habitat threatened by housing development and other factors.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grevillea_juniperina

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1678:

Venetian philosopher Elena Cornaro Piscopia became the first woman to receive a Doctor of Philosophy degree. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elena_Cornaro_Piscopia

1944:

World War II: U.S. Navy and Royal Navy ships bombarded Cherbourg, France, to support U.S. Army units engaged in the Battle of Cherbourg. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombardment_of_Cherbourg

1978:

The rainbow flag representing gay pride was first flown at the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day parade. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainbow_flag_%28LGBT%29

2013:

In response to a Freedom of Information Act request, the CIA acknowledged the existence of Area 51 (diagram pictured), a secretive U.S. Air Force facility in Nevada and a subject of various UFO and other conspiracy theories. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Area_51

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

a mite: (informal) To a small extent; in a small amount; rather. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/a_mite

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

The essence of being human is that one does not seek perfection, that one is sometimes willing to commit sins for the sake of loyalty, that one does not push asceticism to the point where it makes friendly intercourse impossible, and that one is prepared in the end to be defeated and broken up by life, which is the inevitable price of fastening one's love upon other human individuals.   --George Orwell https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/George_Orwell