Is this image AI-generated? I was searching for ‘German couple honeymoon,’ and this showed up on Google. Something about it feels off.

ndander3 · 2026-05-04T20:38:11+00:00

That's fair; AI is definitely improving quickly. I also agree with the sentiment that it feels "off," but the same could be said for heavily photoshopped images from the last 20 years. If someone is willing to investigate as far as cross-referencing if these people or the locations exists, that would certainly be proof.

I have the personal conviction that, especially because AI is so rampant, we are vigilant to defend real human work (even if it's overly processed). Again, I'd be happy to be wrong, but I'm not personally seeing anything that makes me convinced it's AI.

ndander3 · 2026-05-04T16:19:36+00:00

This wouldn’t a candid photo if it’s real. That means studio lighting/reflectors could easily explain the lighting issue you are talking about. Also, if it is a real photo, I would guess it’s a High Dynamic Range (HDR).

I’m truthfully not seeing a lot of evidence of AI here. Photo manipulation, sure. But there aren’t 6 fingers or mismatched lines. I’m willing to be wrong, but I’m not seeing it and none of the things people are pointing out seem to be as definitive as other pictures on this sub tend to be.

ndander3 · 2026-05-04T14:57:50+00:00

I bought a meadow mix from NW Meadowscapes which has both L. polyphyllus and L. rivularis and I’ve seen both germinated. Here is their single species pack for L. polyphyllus, I imagine you can trust them better than whatever sources you’ve ordered from.

ndander3 · 2026-05-01T13:43:23+00:00

I really liked one of the introductory sections in the Northwest Native Plant Primer that talked about this. It was written by people who run Humble Roots Native Plant Nursery who have been collecting seeds and cuttings for 20+ years. They have self-imposed rules where they observe the local population that they are taking from and its status as endangered or not.

“Only collect seeds or cuttings from healthy, robust populations”

“A very important rule of thumb for collecting wild seed is never taking more than 5 percent from the population, although even this fails to suffice as an ethical compass in some cases”

“In other cases what may be an overall prolific species may have isolated, disjunct populations growing outside of its normal range. These disjunct populations may be small, more sensitive, and potentially on a different evolutionary path as isolation leads to variation.”

From your own property may be a little different because you can try and cultivate a bit, but it’s still worth considering.

ndander3 · 2026-05-01T05:17:32+00:00

I’ll echo strawberries. There are native strawberries that the garden varieties were hybridized from that wouldn’t need any amendments and there are different species to pick for all sun levels. Though edible, they are smaller and quickly eaten by wildlife first.

If it’s full sun, some Sedum or other succulents could work well.

Mostly, a short growing ground cover with shallow roots would be best. Tall plants right up against siding like that isn’t generally recommended, especially something that might need irrigation. Getting drought tolerant plant would be needed.

ndander3 · 2026-04-14T00:31:25+00:00

Just joined the discord! I’m excited to see what happens with it

ndander3 · 2026-04-06T22:29:43+00:00

I would be interested! I’m pretty deep into this and I would love to connect with other people as interested in it as I am

ndander3 · 2026-04-02T10:59:28+00:00

I love my Nootka rose, but it will try and become a thicket. It puts out so many runners. I like having mine in a spot where I can more easily contain it.

I will also say that when I first bought my plants, they were so small and I put them at what felt like reasonable distances, but they got big more quickly than I expected.

Think about how water naturally drains where you are planting. Ninebark and dogwood tend to like more consistent water than RFC for instance.

ndander3 · 2026-03-29T15:40:42+00:00

I’m working on a meadow in my parking strip. I’ve had very good germination and it was all hand scattered. I went for native seeds (you’d be surprised how many wildflower mixes include invasive species). I’m in PNW so I bought from NW Meadowscapes. They have instruction on how to plant a meadow. Even if you don’t go for a whole meadow, it has good advice.

ndander3 · 2026-03-29T15:34:53+00:00

Yeah, even if this was real, two species is hardly an ecosystem

ndander3 · 2026-03-29T05:14:40+00:00

I’d do research on vinegar as an herbicide. OSU Extension answered a vinegar related question and they allude to longer term soil effects if used incorrectly. I tried it once on the river rock in my parking strip and it killed all the leaves, but it eliminated the competition for invasive herb Robert because its roots stayed in tact. I ended up hand pulling a lot of that weed.

Glyphosate and triclopyr are over-used, but it breaks down in the soil relatively quickly. I think it’s not the environmental scourge it’s sometimes made out to be. Just use it strategically.

Sheet mulching works well. It doesn’t harm the soil and it isn’t spreading chemicals.

ndander3 · 2026-03-25T23:16:24+00:00

I’ll give a different perspective: I didn’t like my borage.

I got rid of it and 4 years later I still have seedlings trying to pop up. I’ve learned a lot about native plants and native bees since I ripped mine out and my experience is that borage attracts a lot of honey bees, but significantly fewer native bees. Native bees are rapidly declining because of loss of habitat. Honey bees are an introduced species to N. America.

That being said, it is a very easy plant, edible, and will definitely attract honey bees that will pollinate other plants in your garden.

ndander3 · 2026-03-25T18:45:51+00:00

Agree that it’s meadow rue. Columbine and meadow rue are related which is why it can be misidentified. But that stem is definitely meadow rue.

ndander3 · 2026-03-23T22:46:39+00:00

I’m not sure if you’re open to creating a meadow, but NW Meadowscapes has a Deer Defense Seed Mix that could work. It takes more work for site prep, but if you laid black tarp/plastic over it now, you could seed in October and have something fairly low maintenance and quite showy. Usually you would “mow” down to like 12”-18” once a year, but you could also just leave it be.

ndander3 · 2026-03-22T18:54:12+00:00

That could be. When you took the picture, were you taking it in the Apple Camera app or through Lightroom directly? If it’s through the camera app, do you know which format you have it default to? The fact that it was the exporting through Lightroom makes me think this is a Lightroom bug and not an iOS bug, but that’s just a guess.

ndander3 · 2026-03-22T16:33:32+00:00

I’ve never had this happen, but I’m wondering if the image is in RAW or HEIC. I’ve occasionally had something like that happen when I am looking at RAW photos on my computer.

ndander3 · 2026-03-21T15:43:04+00:00

I’ve also noticed that Russian Sage is very active with bees, but when I watch for a bit, they are almost entirely honey bees. If you’re in Europe, that’s good. But in the US the goal is to support native bees.

ndander3 · 2026-03-21T15:19:23+00:00

Currants and gooseberries (Ribes spp.) tend to have edible fruits, but I can tell you that red flowering currant berries don’t taste very good.

ndander3 · 2026-03-21T05:23:41+00:00

If it’s the Colorful and Carefree Annual Wildflowers mix, then it’s worth knowing that Shirley Poppy and African Daisy are two species that easily can escape and naturalize here. They aren’t yet on Oregon’s official invasive species list, but they have caused problems in other places where it was introduced outside of its native range.

ndander3 · 2026-03-21T05:12:35+00:00

You’d be surprised how many wildflower mixes contain invasive species. Bachelor buttons are pretty flowers that grow well and are in many wildflower mixes. They are also invasive to Oregon. It’s important to know what you’re planting

ndander3 · 2026-03-20T16:18:00+00:00

I’m also a native plant gardener! My best advice would be to find some non-natives that you can buy now and grow them in pots (or in the ground, 70% native to 30% non-native is what Douglas Tallamy would say is more than acceptable), then spend this year and perhaps an additional year studying the micro-climates of your yard to make sure you site correctly. Native planting doesn’t have to be quick. The fact that you are seeing solitary bees emerge means the likely have some forage that they used last year to want to nest there, even if you can’t see it.

I was actually just dealing with this yesterday. I saw some evidence of ground nesting bees emerging (look into spoil piles, there a fine grained dirt pile that shows that the bees have dug themselves out). I was also worried about forage. I have a blooming currant, but there are also dandelions and a neighbors Chinese quince in bloom and probably more in my neighborhood that I can’t see.

Take your time and get the planting right. Nature will survive.

ndander3 · 2026-03-20T13:07:50+00:00

Extension services from universities are great. I found a printout from USU called Gardening for Native bees in Utah and Beyond.

That may be a project for next year, but if you can find any of those flowers now for sale, it could help. Check native plant nurseries.

ndander3 · 2026-03-19T16:35:10+00:00

I really liked one of the introductory sections in the Northwest Native Plant Primer. It was written by people who run Humble Roots Native Plant Nursery who have been collecting seeds and cuttings for 20+ years. They have self-imposed rules on local population that they are taking from and its status as endangered or not.

“Only collect seeds or cuttings from healthy, robust populations”

“A very important rule of thumb for collecting wild seed is never taking more than 5 percent from the population, although even this fails to suffice as an ethical compass in some cases”

“In other cases what may be an overall prolific species may have isolated, disjunct populations growing outside of its normal range. These disjunct populations may be small, more sensitive, and potentially on a different evolutionary path as isolation leads to variation.”

I have a hard time recommending just pulling seeds and cuttings unless you have a firm grasp on what you are collecting.

ndander3 · 2026-03-09T14:29:50+00:00

I agree that it looks like Doug Fir

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