Rotten Apples

March 30, 2009

033009_rotten_apples    

Photographer: Stu Witmer
Summary Author: Stu Witmer

You know the old saying: One bad apple spoils the lot. But what if the entire lot is bad? A few days prior to my arrival at this rural street corner amid the apple orchards of Central Washington state, someone's apple cart had obviously been upset. But is that necessarily a bad thing?

The process of life constantly replaces the cells and molecules that make up an organic being including both your mom and her apple pie. When life stops, cells begin to break down. A pie is one way those once living cells break down and are recombined, thus providing a tasty way to go on regenerating new cells. The left over apples may find their way to your backyard compost heap becoming the "black gold" that helps give life to the garden. Of course, too much of a good thing might be a problem.

Studies have shown that certain reservoirs release carbon dioxide from drowned decaying plant life in volumes as high as a small coal fired power plant. Photo taken November 15, 2008 at 10:46 a.m. (Pacific Standard Time).

Camera details: Nikon E5700; f/3.4; exposure 1/250; Software used Adobe Photoshop 7.0