Things of beauty

This is the Romanescu cauliflower I was compelled to buy from the local Chinese grocers. Its beautiful heart of whorls of whorls demonstrate the Fibonacci series, a mathematical series in which the last two numbers in the series are added to make the next: (0,1,1,2,3,5,8,13...). It's a number set frequently expressed in growth and form in nature. Think of the spiral arrangements of seeds in a sunflower head, the onfolding of leaves on a stem or petals on a flowerbud, pinecones. Something complex and fractal like my Romanescu is expressing simple and pure rules.

Addendum
The outward breeding habits of Brassicas have been noted here before. Romanescu is B. oleracea, a single species (implying interbreeding capability) along with cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, Brussel sprouts, kohlrabi and kale. Just discovered a fascinating account of Brassica genetics and speciation here, again exhibiting (as in the Rubus genus) polyploidy and introgression.