Fireweed in pen and watercolour pencil

Illustration Friday's prompt is pioneer this week (bit odd for Christmas, I suppose, but it worked for me) and, being the nerd naturalist that I am, my brain immediately went to pioneer species. Fireweed (Epilobium angustifolium) is an early coloniser of cleared or burned areas (as its name suggests) and can often be found as a bright contrast to the charred tree remnants around it.

The flowers are also pretty good in salads.

As always, click on the thumbnail for a larger version.