Crooked Crows

30/10/2026

A tall, pretty plant with deadly look-alikes. 🐦‍⬛
Garden angelica is a carrot-family giant with thick hollow stems and big green-white flower umbrellas, like the ones on this old plate.

The good side of angelica:
• Its stems have been candied for European cakes and sweets for centuries.
• The root traditionally flavors gin, Chartreuse and bitters.
• It's a striking plant for the back of a big garden bed.

Now the warning. Water hemlock and poison hemlock look a lot like angelica, and both are deadly. Never pick or taste a wild plant with white flower umbrellas unless an expert has confirmed what it is. Angelica itself can make skin more sensitive to the sun.
If someone eats a wild plant nobody has identified, call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222. Call 911 if they collapse, have a seizure, have trouble breathing or can't be woken. For a pet, call your vet right away.

Have you ever spotted angelica, or one of its look-alikes, on a walk?
More on my herb page: https://crookedcrows.com/angelica-herbal-monograph/
(Plate: Köhler's Medizinal-Pflanzen, 1890, public domain via Wikimedia Commons)
— Erin.

28/10/2026

Big, beautiful, and its seeds are deadly. 🐦‍⬛
Castor plants show up in gardens and parks for their huge star-shaped leaves, often reddish, and spiny seed pods like the ones drawn on this old plate. Inside each pod are shiny, mottled seeds. The name Ricinus is Latin for "tick," because the seeds look like one.
Those seeds are highly poisonous because they contain ricin. Never eat them. If castor grows in your yard or your neighborhood, keep little ones and pets away from the seed pods.
If someone swallows a seed, call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222. Call 911 if they collapse, have a seizure, have trouble breathing or can't be woken. For a pet, call your vet right away.
Have you ever seen a castor plant growing near you?
More on my herb page: https://crookedcrows.com/castor-herbal-monograph/
(Plate: Köhler's Medizinal-Pflanzen, 1890, public domain via Wikimedia Commons)
— Erin.

26/10/2026

Pretty, sweet-smelling, and poisonous from root to berry. 🐦‍⬛
Lily of the valley is the low woodland plant with two broad leaves and arching stems of little white bells. After the flowers fade, it sets round red berries like the one drawn at the bottom of this old plate, and those berries are just the size and color to tempt a child or a curious dog.
Every part of the plant contains cardiac glycosides, compounds that affect heart rhythm. It is not a plant for home use. If it grows in your yard, keep it away from little ones and pets.
If someone does eat any part of it, call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222. Call 911 if they collapse, have trouble breathing or can't be woken.
Did you know this garden favorite was poisonous? Does it grow near you?
(Plate: Flora Batava, vol. 1, Koninklijke Bibliotheek, public domain via Wikimedia Commons)
— Erin.
More on my monograph page: https://crookedcrows.com/lily-of-the-valley-herbal-monograph/

23/10/2026

Saved from the landfill. 🐦‍⬛
These two octagon glass doork**bs are architectural salvage, and my best guess is that they date to the early 1900s. The faceted clear glass has a starburst in the center, and the brass rosettes still carry their original patina, never polished. Each one is a full passage k**b with its spindle, ready for a new door or a project.
I like to think about all the hands that have turned them. What's the oldest piece of hardware still working in your house?
(The plates and feathers were only there for the photo.)
$39, only one: https://crookedcrows.com/product/antique-octagon-glass-door-k**b-pair-faceted-clear-glass-starburst-brass-rosettes-square-spindle-architectural-salvage-early-1900s/
— Erin

21/10/2026

October is root-digging time. 🐦‍⬛
Dandelion roots have traditionally been dug in fall, or very early in spring, when the plant has pulled its energy underground. Young spring leaves, picked before the flower stalk shows up, are the mildest for eating.
If you forage, pick from ground you trust: not a sprayed lawn, not a busy roadside, not a dog path. Leave most of the patch so it's able to flower again for the bees.
Do you have a dandelion patch you leave alone on purpose?
— Erin
My full dandelion monograph, look-alikes included: https://crookedcrows.com/dandelion-herbal-monograph-3/

20/10/2026

I raised my kids in the Rocky Mountains as a single mom. We didn't have any TV stations out there, just three tapes: Terminator, Blood In Blood Out and Lonesome Dove. What movie did you watch over and over growing up?
https://crookedcrows.com/blog/

20/10/2026

New on the blog: Gifts Under $15. 🐦‍⬛
For the hostess, the coworker or the friend who has everything. There's a black and gold "Smells Like Money" teacup and saucer ($14.50, only one), charm tea balls, a tiny tarot keychain, a Zombie Journal, a bath soak trial in a velvet bag and sample teas from $4.99. Every item has its price and a link.
https://crookedcrows.com/gifts-under-15/
— Erin

17/10/2026

If you've ever stopped to watch a crow watching you back, this one's for you. Rick de Yampert gathers crow and raven folklore, myth and history from cultures around the world in 336 pages, with a foreword by H. Byron Ballard. I believe corvids have more to say than most people give them credit for.
— Erin
$22.99
https://crookedcrows.com/product/crows-and-ravens-book/

13/07/2026

30/06/2026

we all should read this-

Stop letting your insecurities lie to you, girl! Discover the subtle psychological signs that prove you possess a deeply magnetic beauty