On the Secret Path today:

When a climbing vine casts its tip out and out but finds nothing to grab, it will curve round and grab itself.

That’s what’s happened here. You can see the loop at the bottom of the photo, and how it continues as a younger, greener “switchback” still counter-clockwising up its earlier self.
The vine’s goal is to aim for sunlight by the most expedient means, which in this case is its own body. Continue reading “Sidewalk Nature: milkweed vine” →