You're listening to Outside In, a show about the natural world and how we use it.

I'm Sam Evans Brown. Today, the story of a landscape.

Here's producer Justin Paradise. When you're just starting to get to know your plants and herbs, it can at first feel pretty bewildering.

How are you supposed to get to know all these different species

where they grow what they're good for? Personally I started small with the flowers

that grow in town maybe in the garden or along the side of the road, you know, garlic, lavender.

And sometimes as I got to know a specific plant, I'd try a little, learn some of its properties.

And gradually I started to level up, learning wilder plants like mountain

flowers, which are pretty widespread. Giant lichen, often found in marshes. And Nernroot, easiest to harvest at night since it glows and emits that loud

ringing sound.

We didn't used to be able to make plants glow, but we were very insistent that, you know, for specific plants, they had to glow. That was a thing we needed.

This is Megan Sawyer. She's an environment artist at Bethesda Game Studios, and the creator of the Nernroot.

And in case it's not yet clear, I'm talking about plants in a video game.

Megan's particular specialty is ingredient plants.

She designed the herbs that I spent so many hours learning about and collected

in the world of Skyrim.

We used to joke that we spend an inordinate amount of time making the most perfect tree

so that you will run by it in five seconds and not notice it.

And if you don't notice it it then our job is done.

I don't currently own a video game console

but I can't tell you how many times I've wished that I could

escape into Skyram right now. I really wouldn't call myself a

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