Henbit (unedited)

24 MARCH, 2025

Welcome to the first entry for my newest photography project: The Authenticity Chapter. In this chapter, I will be sharing photos directly from the camera - unedited, with the exception of my watermark. This is going to be a great challenge for me, as I have relied greatly on edits in the past and rarely share photos without touching them up at least a little bit. But I gave up on face filters for social media years ago, so it's time that I feel comfortable & confident sharing my photos!

I have a habit of saying to Tricky, "I'm going to take some photos real quick", and then disappearing for at least 30 minutes or more. It's never "real quick", and we both know that, but I say it anyway. The other night, I was lost in capturing this lovely henbit as I laid in the grass admiring the way the setting sun highlighted their purple flowers. This plant is commonly confused with deadnettle, which is also growing in my yard. Did you know that henbit is edible, has medicinal properties, and can be used for tea? This is the first year I've actually identified it, dismissing it with other "weeds" in the past, and soon it will be mowed down to accommodate the requirements of our HOA so I'm appreciating it while I can. I collected some to dry for tea and will be trying that as soon as it's ready. When I attempted tea from foraged dandelions a couple of years ago I didn't love the taste, but I'm always willing to try a new tea or tisane so I'm optimistic about drinking this one. I might even gather up enough courage to take a bite of the plant, knowing it hasn't been touched by any pesticides.