

Crime Pays But Botany Doesn't
Tony Santore
Why do some plants grow where they do? How can geology cause new plant species to evolve? Why are some plants pollinated by flies, some by bats, some by birds, and others by bees? How does a plant evolve to look like a rock? How can destroying lawns soothe the soul? This is a show about plants and plant habitat through the lens of natural selection and ecology, with a side of neurotic ranting, light humor, occasional profanity, & the perpetual search for the filthiest taqueria bathroom.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Nov 22, 2023 • 1h 38min
Dallas Plant Rescue & West Texas Dunes
In this episode we rant about :Rescuing and digging thin-soiled limestone prairie plants from a soon-to-be-destroyed site in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area weeks before the bulldozers come by to erect a data center or some other obscenity.Moth pollination in deserts, the chemistry and familiar smell of moth-pollinated flowers.West Texas sand dunesLimestome endemic plants like Encelia scaposa and Echinocactus horizonthaloniusLimestone cacti in Southern Arizona, which is a landscape composed almost entirely of volcanics or intrusive igneous rock

Nov 16, 2023 • 1h 10min
Nuevo León & Tamaulipas Cactus Blitz
Jeremy Spath (owner of Hidden Agave nursery @hiddenagave) and Kevin Krucher (@crazy4cactus) talk about a recent trip through the states of Nuevo León, Tamaulipas and Coahuila to document and explore desert plants and their ecology, including tons of rare species like Lophophora williamsii, Stenocactus phyllacanthus, Astrophytum asterias, Obregonia denigrii, Ariocarpus scaphirostris, Agave Montana, Agave albopilosa and more.

Nov 15, 2023 • 1h 28min
Poison Ivy Doesn't Wanna Hurt You
This entire podcast is about the Poison Ivy & Mango Family, Anacardiaceae. Susan Pell , Executive Director of the U.S. Botanic Garden & John Mitchell from the New York Botanic Garden both specialize in the systematics and phytochemistry of this incredible family of plants. In this episode we talk about the active compound in Poison Ivy, Urushiol, as well as some of the cool adaptations that dryland and desert-adapted members of the family have evolved to cope with their unique environments. We mention a ton of cool plants species you've never heard of before, some edible and some toxic, and spend 80 minutes discussing how cool this family of plants is.Plant in the thumbnail is Actinocheita potentillifolia from Puebla, Mexico.

Nov 13, 2023 • 1h 37min
The Conspiracy to Drain The Great Salt Lake
In this episode we talk with Zach Frankl from www Utahrivers.org about the (intentional ) crisis afflicting the Great Salt Lake and why one of the largest inland bodies of water in the world may soon cease to exist, all to enrich lobbyists and feed a sprawling mass of suburban lawns and Alfalfa.More info at : www.4200GSL.organd www.UtahRivers.org

Nov 6, 2023 • 1h 7min
A Conversation with Doug Tallamy
Doug Tallamy is an entomologist, professor, and the author of a number of books, including "Bringing Nature Home" & "The Nature of Oaks". He has been instrumental in educating people about Native Plants and why removing lawn to plant native plants and restore habitat is essential to mitigating ecological - and civilizational - collapse. Check out www.homegrownnationalpark.org to learn more.

Oct 30, 2023 • 1h 31min
Make Your Own Soil & KILL YOUR LAWN
Jeremy Tidd runs Bona Terra Nursery, a native plant nursery in the DC area that grows native plants and also does native landscape installations for people looking to kill their lawns. In this episode we talk about making your own potting soil and fertilizer, using local native ecotypes, regional ecology and the native plant movement in the DC area.

Oct 26, 2023 • 1h 54min
DC Botany, Ghost Plant Seeds, Invasion Bio, etc
In this episode we rant about DC / Baltimore area botany, filming kill your lawn season 2, the glory of Texas leaf cutter ants, the seeds of ghost plant and the whole friggin' phylogeny really, invasion biology and why it's stupid to say "humans are invasive" and more.

Oct 22, 2023 • 1h 6min
Kill Your Lawn Recap
Very little botany-related content in this session with Al Scorch during an interim during the shooting of Kill Your Lawn Season 2 in College Park, Maryland

Oct 18, 2023 • 2h
Native Bee Ecology with Sam Droege
Sam Droege is a scientist who studies bees and bee behavior based out of Maryland. In this episode we talk bee ecology, how to attract them to your yard, their nesting and habitat requirements, why the honey bees are the least of our concerns, what are the kinds of bees that pollinate Peyote, and why our solitary native bees deserve the most attention.Bee Inventory and Monitoring Labhttps://www.usgs.gov/centers/eesc/science/native-bee-inventory-and-monitoring-lab

Oct 16, 2023 • 1h 3min
KILL YOUR LAWN... & MAKE IT THE LAW.
This episode is an interview with Jeff & Janet Crouch, who sued their Maryland HOA in 2019 and ended up changing state law. Legislation that was enacted in 2021 now makes it illegal for HOAs in the state of Maryland to force people to have lawns or remove native plant and pollinator gardens in their front yard.


