An Illustrated Guide to Elanthian Flora - Naidem
Title: An Illustrated Guide to Elanthian Flora: Naidem
Author: Alisaire Frey
"Essay" is not in the list (essay, letter, periodical, poetry, short story, song, storyline, vignette) of allowed values for the "Creative-work-type" property.
An Illustrated Guide to Elanthian Flora: Naidem
The realm of Naidem, including the town of Evermore Hollow and its surrounding lands, has a variety of new and intriguing flora that grows only there and nowhere else in Elanthia. Below is a brief guide with initial research into the flora unique to Naidem - including where to find it.
Flowers
Alpsetris
The alpestris is a type of bromeliad. As it grows, it forms rosettes of densely clustered leaves which grow outward from the central stalk into a series of lengthy spikes. These stiff leaves are further reinforced with hooked spines along the ridges and paler scales along the bottom. Flowers bloom along the central stalk, clustered between the leafy spines in a dramatic display of color.
There are two notable varieties of alpestris that grow in Naidem, both of which bear clusters of vibrantly hued blossoms.
Amaranth
Typically an annual or short-lived perennial plant, amaranths are cultivated for their seeds, which are edible as pseudograins or used as fodder for livestock. While technically an herbaceous plant, amaranths are often classified as flowers due to their dense clusters of colorful blooms. They also share similarities with grasses and grains.
The variety of amaranth that grows in Naidem is an especially striking reddish black variant, its stalk and flowers significantly darker than the amaranth of Elanthia.
Dianthus
The dianthus is a perennial herbaceous flowering plant. Its leaves are slim and elongated, and the flower has five petals with a slight trailing frill along its outer edges. This outer frill can sometimes be extremely elongated, such as with both varieties found in Naidem.
There are two notable varieties of dianthus that grow in Naidem:
Direbloom
A truly unique plant, the direbloom is known only to grow in Naidem and not anywhere else on Elanthia.
There are two noteable varieties of direbloom that grow in Naidem:
Dreamphlox
Dreamphlox grows with multiple flowers clustered together, emerging from a single slender stem. Its blossoms have five bell-shaped petals extending outward from a darker core, and its leaves are narrow ellipticals with no serration along the edges. An upright variety of phlox, it can grow in clusters to a height comparable to wild grasses. Dreamphlox only flowers at night, where its delicate blossoms open for moths and other nighttime pollinators.
There are two noteable varieties of dreamphlox that grow in Naidem:
Lily
Both lilies and false lillies feature several blossom growing on long, slender stalks amid a cluster of dense, elliptical and spear-like leaves. They can vary widely in hue as well as leaf arrangement. While some lillies prefer the day, others flower only at night.
There are two noteable varities of lillies that grow in Naidem:
Mistbloom
Rising on a slender stalk, the mistbloom blossom appears much like a puffball of color, its many stamens overshadowing the form the petals beneath and radiating outward in a cluster of wisps.
There are two notable varities of mistbloom that grow in Naidem:
Rose
A common flowering plant, roses grow typically in the form of bushes or small shrubs, though they can be trained to grow in a specific shape with a trellis. A single plant will have multiple large, showy blossoms that start as tight buds, then open and expand, often atop tall stalks featuring sharp thorns interspersed between elliptical leaves. Highly fragrant, the distilled essence is often used in perfumes, baked goods, candy, and sachets.
There are two noteable varities of roses that grow in Naidem:
Starflower
A small flowering plant, the starflower's blossom is star-shaped, with five petals, and typically with several blossoms emerging from the same stem in a cluster of short stalks. Growing in groups of colorful sprigs that vary in color between core and petals, its flowers are sometimes too heavy for the stem, causing them to drape forward in pillowy waves of color. It prefers deep woods, where they can grow in abundance to form a vibrant carpet in the shadows beneath the trees. The starflower only blooms at night, except when cultivated under precise environmental controls.
There are four notable varities of starflowers that grow in Naidem:
- a sprig of tiny auroral starflowers
- a sprig of tiny cerulean starflowers
- a sprig of tiny gold-cored ruby starflowers
- a sprig of tiny violet-tipped starflowers
Lichens, Moss, and Mushrooms
Lichens
The old man's beard lichen is a type of bushy or shrubby lichen that grows on a host tree bark or branches, where it trails long tassels that give it a stringy, beard-like appearance. As a lichen, it actually not a single organism, but rather fungi and algae living together in symbiosis
The yellow scale lichen is a crust-like lichen that grows on another substrate, such as stone, bark, or soil. Its scale-like appearance is a result of the lichen partially separating from its substrate, leaving portions of it exposed in irregular cracks. As a lichen, it actually not a single organism, but rather fungi and algae living together in symbiosis.
Scorpidium Moss
Growing in dense tangles, scorpidium moss often makes its home on dead or dying trees, devouring the nutrients of its doomed host.
There are two noteable varities of scorpidium moss that grow in Naidem:
Pincushion Moss
Pincushion moss grows in dense pads ranging from several inches to several feet across, either on the ground, across boulders, or clinging to trees. Its pads are slightly domed, giving them the delightful appearance of pillows or cushions. Normally a deep green, pincushion moss in Naidem is vibrantly colored in unusual shades of red and blue.
There are two noteable varities of pincushion moss that grow in Naidem:
Colorful Mushrooms
Several varities of vibrantly colored mushrooms grow in clusters and rings on the forest floor, or along the bark of trees. Most of them bear phosphorescent spores, which can cause the area immediately around clusters to glow with eerie light or give the mushroom itself the appearance that it is illuminated from within.
There are four noteable varities of colorful mushrooms that grow in Naidem:
- a spore-filled tangerine mushroom
- a spiral-capped pink and violet mushroom
- a spiraled rainbow-striped mushroom
- a glowing amber-hued mushroom
Skirted Mushrooms
A pitted, bell-shape cap is held aloft on a pale slender stalk, from which drapes a lacy webwork of delicate strands that trails skirt-like all the way to the ground.
There are two noteable varities of skirted mushrooms that grow in Naidem:
Herbaceous Plants
The resurrection fern is an evergreen creeping fern with a rough texture to its leaves. It frequently grows attached to another host plant, such as a tree, either at its base or in its branches, although it can also be found growing on fallen logs or moss-covered boulders. It is capable of surviving long periods of drought.
Growing along riverbanks and shorelines, drake claw roots bear the shape of their namesake and are often bicolor, with vibrant veins winding across the root's surface in sharp contrast to the base hue.
Vines and Parasitics
Bearing thorns or nubby nodules along their length, the vines of Naidem grow in dense woods, frequently using dying or dead trees as a host from which they derive their nutrients. Some are capable of swift movement, snapping out toward unsuspecting passersby.