Flowers of the Atacama Desert, Chile

I expected the Atacama Desert in northern Chile to be totally desolate. It is the driest desert in the world. In some places no one has ever seen it rain. Other spots go four to five years without rainfall. I read that residents don't bother to repair their roofs since no rain is going to come in through the holes. There was virtually no humidity: my hand-washed hiking socks dried in about six hours (36 hours is normal).

Plant Story--Perplexing Pumpkins

We have no problem recognizing pumpkins

and yet, botanically they're difficult.

Four plant species are "pumpkins": Cucurbita moscata, Cucurbita argyrosperma, C. maxima and Cucurbita pepo.

That would not be particularly confusing, except that those same plant species also give us summer and winter squashes. Thus, different varieties of Cucurbita pepo, for example, are acorn squash, zucchini and sugar pumpkins.

Plant Story-- The Under-Appreciated Parsley

Parsley doesn't get much respect. Restaurants garnish plates with a sprig of parsley, but diners rarely eat it.

And yet, parsley has a long history as a breath-freshener. And will help settle your stomach.

A Glimpse of Northern Chile

Altiplano, Chile

Northern Chile can be "down" in the Atacama Desert at 7,900', or on the Altiplano, averaging 12,000' above sea level, or higher, in the surrounding mountains. This is the second part of my description of a trip to northwestern Argentina and northern Chile, begun in last week's post (link).