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hgpennington.bsky.social
@hgpennington
@hgpennington.bsky.social
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Plant pathogen paintings & photos
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hgpennington.bsky.social
In 2023 I painted American leaf spot of coffee, caused by the fungus Mycena citricolor.

www.hgpenningtonart....
The painting shows a coffee branch with 10 leaves. The leaves emerge in pairs, one on each side of the stem. Counting down from the terminal bud, the bases of the fourth and fifth leaf pairs have clusters of coffee berries. There are leaf spots on the leaves, with pale brown middles, a distinct margin and no halo. The centres of some older leaf spots have degraded, creating a ‘shot hole’ appearance. There are pale brown lesions on the berries, also with a distinct margin and no halo.
November 11, 2025 at 11:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
A coastal groyne and a calm sea

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A photograph of a sketchbook page, with a watercolour painting of a wooden beach groyne, beige sand and a calm grey-blue sea
November 10, 2025 at 11:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
I challenged myself to complete one drawing each day whilst on holiday in Japan in Nov/Dec 2024.

22/23 - a white egret

hgpenningtonart.com/...
A white egret standing amongst rocks, drawn in black biro on white watercolour paper
November 9, 2025 at 11:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
Stunning powdery mildew!
sycamore leaves covered in white colonies along the leaf veins, set against a background of mixed green leaves under trees
November 6, 2025 at 11:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
In 2022 I painted Ramularia leaf spot on sugar beet, caused by the fungus Ramularia beticola.

I really like this painting, especially the contrast between the green leaf and the flat grey-brown lesions.

www.hgpenningtonart....
The painting shows a single sugar beet leaf covered in round light grey-brown lesions. Each lesion has a dark brown ring at its outer border, and is surrounded by a pale yellow, chlorotic halo. In some areas the lesions have coalesced, but their darker margins can still be seen.
November 5, 2025 at 11:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
In 2023 I painted Cercospora leaf spot and berry blotch of coffee, caused by the fungus Cercospora coffeicola (binomial name Mycosphaerella coffeicola).

I tried a different brand of inks for this painting and didn't get on with them!

www.hgpenningtonart....
The painting shows a coffee branch with 16 leaves. The leaves emerge in pairs, one on each side of the stem. Counting down from the terminal bud, the bases of the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth leaf pairs have clusters of coffee berries. Where the ninth pair would have been, there are further berries.
November 4, 2025 at 11:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
The view over the beach huts

I like the grey sky and the colours on the beach huts

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A photograph of a sketchbook page, with a watercolour painting of a beach and brightly coloured beach huts, viewed from a higher elevation
November 3, 2025 at 11:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
I tested four sets of colouring pencils using three reference images:

Top left: Prisma & Karisma pencils
Top right: Faber-Castell Polychromos
Bottom left: Derwent Watercolour
Bottom right: Derwent Inktense

hgpenningtonart.com/...
Four panels of leaf drawings, showing yellow-green veins and rounded intervein sections Four panels of drawings showing the centre of a compound yellow-orange rose Four panels of drawings showing a closeup of a pine cone
November 2, 2025 at 11:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
In 2024 painted Phytophthora ramorum symptoms on rhododendron for the November illustration of the @BS_PP plant pathogens calendar.

www.bspp.org.uk/prod...

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The painting shows a rhododendron stem with three dead terminal buds, one rosette of leaves, and a pair of leaves. All the leaves exhibit lesions along the mid vein where the leaf meets the stem, and one leaf shows blackening at the tip.
November 1, 2025 at 11:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
I painted Witches’ Broom disease for Halloween, caused by the fungus Taphrina betulina infecting birch.

A tangle of dormant buds and twisted shoots, both eerie and beautiful.

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The illustration shows a compact cluster of short, closely packed shoots emerging from a swollen branch junction. The centre of the broom is enlarged and covered in buds breaking dormancy. The branch, buds, and twigs are all painted in shades of brown and outlined in black.
October 31, 2025 at 11:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
In 2022 I painted Fusarium fruit rot symptoms on a pumpkin, caused by the fungus F. solani f.sp. cucurbitae.

www.hgpenningtonart....
The painting shows a pumpkin infected by Fusarium, carved into a jack-o’lantern. The pumpkin has triangle eyes and a nose, and a zigzag mouth. The right-hand side of the pumpkin is covered in round sunken brown lesions, some of which have merged together, with infection decreasing towards the left-hand side of the face.
October 30, 2025 at 11:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
Sunflower!
A yellow sunflower with a brown middle, photographed on an allotment with water butts and vegetation visible in the background
October 29, 2025 at 11:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
In 2024, I shared 88 photographs of contaminated agar plates from the shared fridge at a previous workplace. I put this into my collaborations collection, as this was definitely a group effort.

hgpenningtonart.co.u...
A montage of 20 agar plates, with five columns and four rows. The plates are all contaminated, each containing smooth or fuzzy blobs of varying colours.
October 28, 2025 at 11:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
In 2023 I painted grey field slugs (Deroceras reticulatum) eating a swede (rutabaga).

www.hgpenningtonart....
The painting shows a swede being eaten by three pale brown slugs. The swede has been carved into a jack-o’lantern, with two oval eyes and an oval mouth with nine lower teeth. White patches on the surface of the swede indicate where the slugs have eaten holes in its surface.
October 27, 2025 at 11:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
I challenged myself to complete one drawing each day whilst on holiday in Japan in Nov/Dec 2024.

20?/23 - Mount Fuji, seen from the shinkansen window

hgpenningtonart.com/...
A drawing done in black biro on white watercolour paper, showing rice fields, agricultural buildings, and Mt Fuji
October 26, 2025 at 11:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
I'm excited to share that I’ve been accepted onto the Society of Botanical Artists Distance Learning Diploma in Botanical Illustration! 🎨✨

Here’s the piece I submitted for my portfolio: Hippeastrum hybrid (seed-grown by me).

Check out the Society here: www.instagram.com/so...
I drew the flower on Strathmore 400 Toned 118gsm Gray paper, so that the white edged petals would stand out. The image depicts a mostly white Hippeastrum with fine red markings. The painting shows two flowers, one of which is fully open. The petals are green at the centre, with red lines and speckles that increase in density toward the outer edge.
October 23, 2025 at 10:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
In 2023 I painted chilli anthracnose, caused by fungi within the genus Colletotrichum.

I love the shape of this painting. I used a chilli plant on my windowsill as a reference.

www.hgpenningtonart....
The painting shows a chilli plant with 11 green leaves, three red fruits, two brown dying branch tips, an immature green fruit, a flower and a flower bud. The leaves, red fruit and stem have sunken brown circular lesions containing dark brown concentric rings.
October 22, 2025 at 10:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
The remains of a weathered coastal groyne on Mundesley beach.

I did this painting in watercolour, using reds and blues to highlight the texture and shape of the sea-weathered wood.

www.hgpenningtonart....
Three worn pieces of wood, with pronounced wood grain, painted in watercolour
October 21, 2025 at 10:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
I am delighted to share that my botanical artwork “Heirloom Hibiscus” has been selected for the Association of Botanical Artists’ Autumn Online Exhibition 'Inspiration'.

See my piece here hgpenningtonart.com/...

Explore the full exhibition www.assocbotanicalar...
The drawing shows a tropical hibiscus bloom in soft salmon-pink and peach shades, with a deep purple centre. Three leaves can be seen behind the flower, and a gnarled stem with a single miniature leaf.
October 20, 2025 at 10:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
I challenged myself to complete one drawing each day whilst on holiday in Japan in Nov/Dec 2024.

21/23 - A crane lantern at Sengan-en, Kagoshima

hgpenningtonart.com/...
An interesting arrangement/ statue of stones - a Crane Lantern in Kagoshima, composed of a flat rock at the top, a circular rock a bit like an ornamental rice millstone in the middle, and a large boulder for the base
October 19, 2025 at 10:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
Chicory flowers shining blue-purple in low sunlight
Close-up of a thin red stem with two small blue-purple flowers and several dried brown buds, against a blurred green leafy background in sunlight.
October 16, 2025 at 10:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
In 2022 I painted anthracnose lesions on an aubergine, peppers, tomatoes, peas and potatoes. The symptoms are caused by related fungi within the genus Colletotrichum.

www.hgpenningtonart....
The painting shows a side view of a pile of overlapping vegetables containing one aubergine/eggplant, three pea pods attached to a single stem, two sweet/bell peppers (red and yellow), three potatoes, and five tomatoes attached to a single stem. All of the fruiting bodies have brown sunken lesions, with target-like concentric rings on the aubergine and peppers. The potatoes have grey/brown lesions on the surface, with brown dots representing both the lesion and sclerotia.
October 15, 2025 at 10:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
In 2023 I painted cherry oak gall, also known as a nut gall, caused by the gall wasp Cynips quercusfolii.

www.hgpenningtonart....
The painting shows the abaxial (underside) of a single green pedunculate oak leaf with pale green veins. The galls are spherical and red, fading to yellow, with some raised bumps and yellow speckles.
October 14, 2025 at 10:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
In 2024 I painted a beach scene in watercolour.

In hindsight, I would have liked to have left the sand simpler, or to have painted it with a narrower range of shades of brown.

hgpenningtonart.com/...
A beach scene, painted in watercolour showing a rough sea with a low line of clouds across where the sea meets the sky. This was a quick painting, using clear brush strokes to try to show movement and texture.
October 13, 2025 at 10:59 AM
hgpennington.bsky.social
I illustrated Catharanthus roseus (Madagascar periwinkle) showing phytoplasma-induced phyllody, where flowers are transformed into green, leaf-like structures.

The original photographs, used as reference images, were provided by x.com/M_G_Tuffen

hgpenningtonart.com/...
Botanical illustration of four Catharanthus roseus flowers infected with phytoplasma, showing phyllody symptoms where petals turn green and leaf-like, with distorted flowers and abnormal floral structures.
October 12, 2025 at 10:59 AM