Naranjilla Leaf

My camera’s lens has focused on the naranjilla before. It's an annual summer resident in the Smithsonian's Mary Livingston Ripley Garden. Native to Ecuador, Peru and Columbia, the big spiny leaves startle garden visitors, when they notice it growing happily among the more domesticated plants. I peeked underneath to see if there were any fruits setting and was met with an entirely different view. For a moment, I was under my own little green umbrella, with the last of the summer’s sun and heat filtered and dispersed all around me.