ISTANBUL SPECIAL

This is the city of 12 million inhabitants .Yet one can find the combination of elegence and solitude so ever easily. Blue and green , sunrise and sunset , full moon and soft night shape and reshape this city .. And Istanbul writes Her poetry everyday..So we live with each line , we search the past ..we find it in present..yet we live the present in past.

so take a look at the album and relax..

http://picasaweb.google.com/oncelaycy/ISTANBULSPECIAL

SORCHUS ARVENSIS ( a terrorist plant? )

Sorchus Arvensis is one of the wild plant grows and complete its life cycles on my terrace. Like all wild plants that we step on and never notice unless we lean down and look at its details. When examine closely one becomes aware of its beautiful features. Reading about Sorchus Arvensis , clearly shows that it represents the modesty in nature . Apperently it gets very little out of soil because it grows under any soil condition . Yet it offers some medical values. Its edibilty is further plus.
So here some of its contributions ;
-good as a livestock feed , new growth can be aeten by sheep and sometimes even the roots
-excellent forage for rabbits
-it has some minor elements for the diet of North American birds
-young leaves maybe cook or be eaten raw like spinach and salad respectively
-the leaves are rich in mineral salts and vitamin C , they contain about 45 to 50 mg of vitamin C per 100 gr and some protein
-stems can be cooked like asparagus
-roots can be used as coffee substitute like chicory roots
medically it is anti-inflammatory , its tea from roots can be used in treating asthma , coughs and other chest complaints
tea from leaves reported calm the nerves .

Amazing isnt it ?...small modest plant contributing that much to us yet big majority dont even know its name and step on it everyday .

Yet this plant is also considered as a TERRORIST PLANTand all the following defence mechanism have been developed to eradicate it. Surprise again ... right? continue to read then ...

-there are currenntly no labeled biocontrol agents for use on Sorchus (means they are in search)
-chemically , Auxin type herbicides such as 2,4-D ,dicamba ,MCPA and clopyralis have been effective with REPEATED applications when plants are in the seedling or late rosette to early bud stages. Glyphosate may be also effective for eradication.
-and further strategies as integrated management to eradicate this innocent plant is as follow ,
'' components of any integrated management program to control this plant are sustained effort ,constant evaluation ,and the adoption of improved further strategies . Factors to be addressed before a management decision is made include inventory and assestment to identify the target plant.................''
-defoliation was less effective then burial for reducing infestations of sowthistle (sonchus) .

SOUND LIKE A MAJOR WAR PLAN TO INTRODUCE DEMOCRACY TO CERTAIN REGION

It is not finish yet

A tephritid fly from Europe THAT TRANSFORMS THE SEEDHEAD of SOWTHISTLE INTO A GALL HAS BEEN RELEASED INTO CANADA BUT.......................bla bla

SOUNDS LIKE CONVERTING A PERSON FROM ONE RELIGION INTO ANOTHER

Fight against Sonchus have not been limitted as above precautions

they try to burn it to eradicate and result was as follow ;
the summer burn was conducted in August during peak growth the fall burn after dormancy had started in October and spring burn in May before growth began.

AND SOUND LIKE A FINAL STAGE OF THE MASSACRE

CAN ONE IMAGINE ALL THESE FOR AGAINST SONCHUS ...?

Comprehensive destruction plan for this EVIL PLANT. No wonder some nations are very aggressive and ready to destroy anything simply because its people are already conditioned while defending themselves against SONCHUS ARVENSIS.
Scarey isnt it?

Okey lets remember the guilt of Sonchus......use minimum space on mother earth ...and obtain minimum food from same place .
Ah we listen this story before and listening everyday in different form.

A TERRACE FACING THE BLUE MOSQUE AND SAINT SOPHIE

I live in Istanbul , and never regret that I live here. Noone ever regreted to live in here. One of the oldest city on earth..Proud of her history and her beauties . We not only live the present here but the past so vividly. Many things got buried in dusty pages of history books..But Istanbul keeps her history alive she walk with it side by side . I enter a mosque and think that time stoped and live the present as it is past.. Or in a church noone attends anymore but yet always crowded with people of 2000 years old..Right there in a quite garden one smells the past presentlike.
So I live right at the center of the city. Neigborhood called Besiktas and one of it dominating hill of Yıldız where I have been located exactly. House can be spotted clearly with the google map . My flat has big terrace of 100 square meters. Terrace faces south also has east and west wings. Sunrise is hard to see behind the building..but sunset is a true marvel. This is the place I experienced the tones of colours its shades light and dark . Sea , I face in south called Marmara Sea and it gives way to the Bosphorus , right in front of me.. At right of the picture , historic peninsula where two famous religious center of past are located. Namely Sultan Ahmet Mosque (Blue Mousque) and famous Basilique Saint Sophie of Byzantium Empire. Between them there is only 200 metre in real. Saint Sophie had been used as a mosque during Ottomane Empire so it has minarets. From my terrace minerets seen as a group..but can be distinguished by their architectural designs..close up of the picture can reveal that. So heart of history beats so close to me. and I add mine to it as many other İstanbulies.
I watch all these from a green heaven..my terrace garden..where I have 200 different plants which I will introduce to you one by one.

Years ago I wrote a poem called "Bir Baslangıc" , I imagined the days when noone was living on this land..All wild , green and blue..Then the first settlers arrived and they touch the land and never went out again..I imagine the tents in a row of two where settlers put up first..and how that alley became the first road of the city..If you can manage to read Turkish take a look at the poetry. It is click away in my links in "my turkish poetry" . So spirit of my terrace is coming from that unforgotten time...All green , diverse , certain corners where , when one sits, can see nothing but plants right at the middle of the city at seventh floor.. I live the seasons there..I follow the plants , and I take care of them year around. It is a unique place , not a single organic matter like leave or branches wasted here..always return back to soil. Kitchen leftovers , not the cooked one , also integrated into the soil..No water can be wasted in my house..It is saved and used for irrigation. Not a single drop of pesticide ever used here .Yet there is not a single diasease one may see on my plants. Nature balances itself in this micro fauna. Second rinsing water of laundry machine collected and applied as irrigation water..High phoshate in it stimulates flowering meanwhile detergent can be integrated and used in soil . Nature cannot absorb tons of them every day yet my garden plants use it for their own benefit. Bettles are on duty always..Biologically control certain pest or hold them at the level of natural balance rather then viping them out completely. By the way no pest can be viped out completely .They keep coming stronger and stronger after each pestiside application . Therefore we only poison ourself ever slowly..Then try to cure are defects or diseases..but noone care in the scale of world .They just search other planets . they are ready to leave when things are at the critical level..Head for another beautiful planet for spoiling senselessly. People have to work and earn money by producing and marketing all those poisons . Then whatever they earn they spend in another industry for their well being for their healt...Like designing a wars and find excuses to kill other people in order to keep level of employments of arm industry high.

Politic is not the main point of this article..Yet not to remember the people who suffers under ruthless assults with deadly weapons, could be most inhuman action of any concern person. And for their memory I write green here.. and I show plants..

This is how my garden looks in winter...At south face lots of snow accumulate...northern winds blows the snow as soon as reach the lower level of roof immidiately settles so snow is deep there . In this cold time first flower revolt from under the snow layer...Come up as white as snow. Its name is Galanthus Nivalis..Magical flower of midwinter...Challange the white of the snow and stands side by side.

As the winter progress Cyclamen Indicum shows herself up... I also keep Cyclamen Persicum outside... Burgandy colour flowers warm the air without any question. Following these two flowers one of my favorite Stellaria Holostea covers the bottom of the pots. Beautifully decorative white flower grow very fast.. At the same time Viola Canina blooms , first purple flower of the spring. Close look reveal its magnificent structure.

so this how my garden starts after a cold winter.

Light shades and sea changes in every minute in Istanbul . It is a never ending light and colour festivity..Yet 10 million inhabitants of Istanbul have no time to rise their head and watch these beauties..So I am a few fortunate one to enjoy this city 24 hours a day.

I will continues to introduced my plants to you...so come back again soon..you will see other marvels to env

GOOD MANAGEMENT OF ENVİRONMENT

Recently there has been a heated discussion in Turkey weather or not small bays of Aegean and Mediterranean seas open for tourism and use these areas more effectively and rationally as well as profitably. Enviroment sensitive groups argue that these areas must be kept as it is so possible pollution of sea and land as well as air can be prevented. If the past experiences is taken under consideration they may seem right with their drastic measures of protecting practices. Furthermore, example of Marmaris , Bodrum and other similar places' present situation can make them very right for their outrage in this case.

However there are some cases , these small bays have been developed in such a way that environment far from being spoiled in contrary considerable improvement took place .

Place where I visited and stayed 8 days last year in Fethiye is a perfect example for that. Complex was built in 1985, and at that time land was as below picture. Typical Anatolian hills with no green , and certain soil erosion . Its economic return was almost zero.



leaving ithe nature as it is cannot be considered as preservation . Humans and nature can live in cohabitaition and benefit from each other..rather than destroying each other. Garden of this club has amazing plant collection ,well taken care of and very healthy looking .

In 2004 place looks like as below.



All green , soil is preserved , with economic return and Turkey has been represented there in best way during past 20 years.
Surrounding area looks as below as today ,


whereas inside the club looks like as heaven


Overall CLUB LETOONIA is a very pleasant place to stay and observe this good environmental management on the spot.

This is to show that beautiful bays of Turkey can be protected and even improved with good managemnet practices combine with economic benefit . So lets use our collective mind to benefit from out assets meanwhile lets protect them better than any other time..
Please take a look at the web album for more pictures.


http://picasaweb.google.com/oncelaycy/GOODMANAGEMENTOFENVIROMENT

WOMAN WITH GIRAFFE

Colours...reflection of our mood and even in some cases our personality. So I absolutely pay attention for the colour of my mood..In Autumn of 2001 my mood had to be very very colourful.
While wandering and enjoying myself in Contemporary Painting Exhibition in Paris this beautiful painting of Senecal Guy touched my colourful mood in such a way that I immediately decided to purchase it..and I did and since that year hunging on the wall of my house..The painting offered me different feeling each time and always excited about its hidden charm and surprises..so here I am sharing this with you .
GUY SENECAL is soft speaking gentle person but when he is painting he becomes different person and goes beyond the reality .Enjoy his colours and hidden surprises here and there.. so lets look at the painting in detail now...





Love that man hunging in the air while the bird looks so strong and the woman is so determined. Yet hair of the woman is a duck unconcern about man and the bird





A man swinging on her heart and another one dancing in lower section. notice the man's long leg. He named this painting as "Woman with Giraffe" so giraffe is right there





yet another giraffe and a snail..and the relaxed man at left corner must be Seneca Guy.Signature is right there



Woman at the window suppose to be the main figure in the morning.. Hope Seneca Guy read this and write something about the movement in this painting