:: blog ::

100 Days of Avocado

Meet little pitt!

On 4/7, Jack Laws of the Nature Journal Club set a challenge: Find something small and “ordinary” and journal about it until it begins to reveal its secrets.

Bryan had avocado toast that day, so we dug the avocado pit out of the compost bin, put it in water, and thus was born the #100daysofavocado project. Each day for 100 days, I’m watching the growth of this avocado pit and documenting what I see.

Sketches include both close observation of the growth of little pitt, and companion sketches digging into biology, seed germination and avocado history and facts. From the very first day, I’ve felt much affection for this little pitt. Can’t wait to see how this all plays out.

I post daily on Twitter and post 10-day summaries here. There is also a Tumblr of all the cards: https://100daysofavocado.tumblr.com/

This just in: Little pitt was featured on the Nature Journal Show! You can watch the episode and learn all about the project (and meet little pitt! 🙂 Big thanks to NJS host Marley Peifer for inviting us to be on the show.


The first 10 days
~ April 7-16, 2020

Sketches of the growth of an avocado pit: first 10 days.

The second 10 days
~ April 17-26, 2020

Sketches of the growth of an avocado pit: days 11-20.

The third 10 days
~ April 27-May 6, 2020


The fourth 10 days
~ May 7-May 16, 2020


The fifth 10 days
~ May 17-May 26, 2020

The sixth 10 days
~ May 27-Jun 5, 2020


The seventh 10 days
~ Jun 6-15, 2020


The eighth 10 days
~ Jun 16-25, 2020


The ninth 10 days
~ Jun 26-Jul 05, 2020

Note: there are three cards that didn’t fit on the index sheet; you can see them on tumblr.

The last 10 days
~ Jul 06-Jul 15, 2020


The Earth Day challenge that inspired the project

From Jack Laws, on the Facebook Nature Journaling group.

Earth Day 2020 Nature Journal Project
Dear Nature Journaling Family: This Wednesday, April 22, is the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day. In honor of this day, I would like to invite you to create a special nature journal page.

  1. Find something wonderful in the natural world around you. Perhaps one thing that moves, inspires, or amazes you–some little moment of wonder or beauty. Remember, it is not where you look, but how you look. There is wonder everywhere.
  2. Next, celebrate this discovery in a journal page, using words, numbers, pictures, and your thoughts and emotions. Smile, laugh, cry. Make yourself vulnerable to the majesty of the world. Consider this page a prayer of gratitude for beauty and wonder.
  3. Finally, choose something you will do in the next year as an act of stewardship. This act could be personal, on a small scale, a connection with a larger community, or working toward a larger goal. Whichever you choose, pick something that requires extending yourself on behalf of nature and the Earth. Write your planned act down in your journal–this is a pact between you and the world.
  4. Lastly, if you feel comfortable doing so, share your page here with your community of friends and supporters.