A Suburban Wilderness

Watch Out! Praying Mantis Egg Cases!

2012-02-27T16:03:00.001-05:00

I've been doing a bit of Spring cleaning in the garden beds recently and have been trying very hard to keep my eyes open for overwintering insects or eggs, so as not to accidentally toss them into the compost pile. Once again, it's truly amazing to see what's up under our noses, unbeknownst to us all this time. So far I've found three praying mantis egg cases, and thanks to David at A Native Backyard for the ID tip. Apparently, right before she dies at the end of summer, a female praying mantis lays her eggs in these hard foam cases to overwinter and hatch the following spring.

Please! Be careful while tidying up this spring and don't unintentionally toss away one of these egg cases of this most beneficial insect!

I plan on checking them every day (if I can remember) in hopes that I'll get to see them hatching.

They're quite small, probably only 1-1.5 inches across...

First Insects of the Season

2012-02-22T16:01:00.002-05:00

Jeff wins the prize for spotting the first real insects of the season! These fellas wasted no time getting out as soon as the snow melted. (well, it is 60 degrees today)

Red Shouldered Bug (Jadera Haematoloma)
A scentless plant bug, similar to the Box Elder Bug. Supposedly they don't have stink glands like many other true bugs. Jeff neglected to squish one to find out if that's true.

Red Shouldered Bug (Jadera Haematoloma)
Probably mating, but he didn't interrupt them to ask.

Net Winged Beetle (Dictyopterus aurora, maybe)
They resemble fireflies, however they're active during daytime. Larvae feed on fungi.

Snow is Beautiful, Snow is Evil

2012-02-20T10:58:00.000-05:00

We finally had our first real snow of the season yesterday. When I woke up in the morning, the outdoor temperature was 45 degrees and the forecast of 6 inches of snow seemed quite ridiculous. By noon the temperature had dropped to 33 and it was beginning to snow. By 4pm we had around 6 inches and it was quite beautiful. By 8pm we had 8 inches and down on the golf course, limbs on the White Pines were snapping like toothpicks under the weight of the heavy, wet snow. It was heart-wrenching to hear, and suddenly what was so silent and lovely was now so devastating and cruel. Now as I'm typing this the temperatures are on their way to a forecasted 48 degrees and the snow is melting quickly. Not quickly enough, however, to have prevented all the tree carnage.

3pm...A winter wonderland

The birds were feeding like crazy which made for great counting #'s for the GBBC

Notice the big, wet flakes coming down

At this point the trees were still holding up well

8pm...I step out to take a picture because it's so beautiful. It should be completely dark now but it stayed this light almost all night. The glow on the left side of the horizon is from the lights of an office park, it looked quite ethereal. I was thinking this was pretty damn cool until I started hearing the snaps of these trees losing limbs, and my heart sank.

7:30am this morning, the damage isn't visible until you walk to the edge of the yard and look down the fairway.

It's a shame I can't enjoy it's beauty since I know how cruel a storm it was.

Happy Heart's Day

2012-02-14T10:31:00.000-05:00

"Hey! Look over here!"

"Thanks for taking care of us critters! We love you!"

You're Welcome-We love you too!

Winter Sowing Seed Project: Part 2

2012-02-11T10:32:00.000-05:00

In my ever-increasing quest for more native plants, and because as Oscar Wilde said, "More is never enough", earlier this winter I started a seed sowing project. Most native plant seeds need to experience a cold, moist period in order to trigger their DNA to germinate. This can either occur naturally out in a garden bed, outside in a container of soil, or inside in your refrigerator- then planted outside. Supposedly sowing seed directly in a bed produces the lowest germination rate because the seed is the most vulnerable to being washed away, eaten, covered up with debris, or otherwise re-located. I've read reports on the internet (and everything we read on the internet is true, right?) of higher success rates by sowing in containers left exposed to the elements or pre-treating in the fridge then sowing in containers. Theoretically we're controlling some of the variables which should lead to a higher success rate.

Back in December, I selected a few plants to experiment with and planted seeds both outdoors in the elements and indoors in baggies for the refrigerator method. This will be especially interesting this year since it has not exactly been a properly cold winter. Some seeds require as much as 60-90 days of cold, moist stratification, like Vernonia fasciculata (common ironweed) and I will be able to compare the results of the same seed with natural stratification and forced stratification. I won't be surprised at all if the Vernonia I planted outside doesn't germinate as well as the Vernonia seeds I stratified in the fridge thanks to not receiving adequate chilling time courtesy of our warm winter.

Seeds sown in outside in containers, rather than scattered on the ground

I'm also trying the "milk jug method" on a few seeds, but I'm finding they heat up quite a bit- not good if you need them to stay frozen or cold. Specifically I'm using the milk jugs for Columbine, which need to be surface sown and the jugs offer some additional protection.

By the way, the milk jug method is roughly as follows: take an empty, clean gallon milk jug and cut it in half almost all the way around, fold the top half back, fill with seed starting mix, seeds, water, tape shut, leave cap off to breathe, stick outside in the shade, then move into the sun in spring. You can also Google it and find lots more info and pictures.

Milk and Spring Water jugs, with Columbine seeds

Some seeds have already completed their 30 day treatment in my fridge and are ready to be planted outside. This afternoon I'll be potting up the Verbesina alternifolia (wingstem) and Verb. occidentalis (yellow crownbeard) and placing them outside to (hopefully) germinate when it warms up. These two are also seeds, like the Vernonia, that I also planted in flats outside and I'll be able to compare the germination rate between outdoor only stratification and refrigerator/outdoor stratification.

Pre-treated Verbesina seeds, ready to be planted

Even better are the plants that need no pre-treatment, like Monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot) and Echinacea purpurpea (purple coneflower). I decided to do another experiment to compare the germination rate, hardiness, and overall growth characteristics between starting some of these seeds early indoors under my grow lights, and outdoors in containers au naturale. The ones planted indoors, just last week, have already germinated. Woohoo! They're going to get a huge head-start before spring, this will be really interesting. Of course, the ones sown outside have not germinated yet.

Echinacea sprouts

Have you ever noticed how almost all seeds' first leaves look similar? Generic and round, perhaps to catch the most light. A seedlings second pair of leaves usually look most like the mature leaves of the plant it will become.

Monarda sprouts

Do you folks have any favorite plants or other native plant species you might recommend as easy and fun to start from seed?

Wordless Wednesday: Color and Texture on a February Morning

2012-02-08T11:11:00.000-05:00

Monarda fistulosa seedhead

Moss growing between bricks on our sidewalk

Rosa "Conrad Ferdinand Meyer", can you believe deer nibble on this?

Parsley that's surviving winter, waiting for early Swallowtails

Weeping Blue Spruce needles

Rhododendron bud

Instant Gratification

2012-02-06T16:08:00.002-05:00

I planted some Basil seeds last week to specifically grow indoors for winter harvesting and they've already sprouted! In just 4 days! I chose a compact variety that (I'm hoping) will do well in a pot on my growing stand, and as you can see, the seeds came from Renee's. This is my second year of ordering several types of seed from them, last year I didn't know what I was doing and I still had great success.

By the way, Basil comes in many shapes, sizes, and colors, and is a fantastic pollinator friendly plant. It was a pleasure to watch (and eat) as it bloomed all summer and was a favorite of the tiniest of bees and flies. Once the sun went down, the moths were drawn to the white flowers like magnets.

There's nothing quite like the excitement I get from seeing those little green specks pushing through the soil. I know it's just silly little Basil, but it's so much fun.

I can't quite find a word for it...but it just makes me happy.

Unusual Birds for This Time of Year

2012-02-04T15:47:00.000-05:00

The peculiar happenings of our peculiar winter continue.

*You fly back to school now little Grackle, fly fly fly...

Never have I tried so hard to get a picture of a Grackle, but I was determined. It's quite ridiculous really, in a few months we'll have no fewer than about a 100 and the last thing I will want is a picture of one. Aren't we birders supposed to love all birds? (House Sparrows and European Starlings excluded) Well, I admit I'm not fond of the Common Grackle. When they arrive in the Spring, to roost, feed, and multiply before returning to their wintering grounds, I have to remove most of my feeders because they can empty them en masse in about an hour. They're noisy, grack! grack! grack!ing away all day long. Because there's so many of them and they eat so much...well...certain things on the ground get lots of white polka dots. They're bullies, and I don't like bullies. They are listed as year round residents here, but we've never had them in our yard in winter before.

Please don't be calling for re-inforcements

The unusual thing is that they are flocking birds that tend to over-winter elsewhere, and I have one individual who's been showing up regularly for about a week. Not earth-shattering, I know, but interesting nonetheless to nerdy birders like me.

The birds are so confused, this little fella' was singing his heart out all morning what sounded like his mating song. We're about to get cold again, so hopefully that will set his mind right.

I don't have a picture, but another somewhat unusual visitor in the area is a Rufous Hummingbird just a few miles from my house. There's even reports of another on the other side of town. I don't recall ever hearing of a hummer staying all winter in our town, but December was the record warmest ever so I'm not surprised. The surrogate parents are going to great lengths to provide for the bird, and it even made a feature story in our local newspaper. It's a charming story (with pictures), check it out!

A bird I have not seen this winter, that I usually do see is the Red Breasted Nuthatch. We normally have a few hang around our feeder area during the winter months, but nary a "peep" or "hank".

Have you seen any unusual (for this time of year) birds in your area?

*Silence of the Lambs reference

Hexastylis: A welcome bit of green on a grey day

2012-01-31T11:19:00.000-05:00

Some leaves are variegated, some aren't

A vivid patch of green caught my eye the other day over at Dean. Even though this is a warmer than usual winter, it's still quite grey outside and anything this vibrant is bound to get noticed. I'd seen it before, I'm sure, but never payed much attention to it until now. When I saw it the other day and realized I didn't really know what it was, nor did I remember seeing it growing anywhere else, I began to wonder what it might be.

More heart-shaped than the larger patch

My first guess was Galax, Asarum, or Hepatica, but Galax typically grows near creek edges in bottomlands and this is a rocky dry hillside. Galax also has toothed leaf margins, and these are smooth. Hepatica leaves aren't as round as these, and Asarum isn't evergreen. It took me a while to figure out, but thanks to my books, I've settled on Hexastylis virginica, or Virginia Heartleaf. There seems to be quite a bit of variation amongst the leaves, which made me wonder if there are actually two different varieties here. They're related to Asarum (Wild Ginger) and Aristalochia (Dutchman's Pipe). I can't wait to see the flowers, which will be small, brown, and probably underwhelming if not bizarre. Supposedly they're pollinated by Carrion Flies and Fungus Gnats. I couldn't find much info on the internet about Virginia Heartleaf, which makes me wonder if this is a rare plant. Have you seen it where you live? Is it rare?

A mixture, even some Striped Wintergreen (Chimaphila maculata) in the bottom right corner

Three Alternatives to the NWF

2012-01-27T11:08:00.000-05:00

So here we are, feeling bitter, betrayed, and cheated on. The NWF has left us out in the cold and like anyone looking to rebound, we conservationists and gardeners are looking for someone or some organization to hang our hats on, so to speak. Someone to show us that there really are organizations out there who say they care about the environment and have the resume to back it up. I'd like to recommend 3 groups that I believe are worthy of our support, in no particular order:

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Why support them?: Research, education, conservation, and Citizen Science Projects- they do it all
What impresses me: A long history of real results, they share their financial reports, wonderful online bird guide

The Pollinator Partnership

Why support them?: Conservation, education, and research of pollinators, critical to the world food supply and ecosystem health
What impresses me: A wealth of user friendly information for the home or community gardener available to make their gardens more pollinator friendly

The Xerces Society

Why support them?: Representing all invertibrates (94% of all animal species on the planet) through advocacy, policy, education, and research- critical for ecosystem survival
What impresses me: They share their financial reports, informative and user friendly web-site with ID tools, very active in government policy

I am not an official spokesperson for nor am I recieving any payment from any of these organizations, I merely wish to share my positive experiences with them. Visit their websites, see for yourself!

Another alternative group you may support would be your local native plant society. There's nothing quite like the satisfaction you can get by doing hands-on work. I don't have a native plant society active in my area but Jeff and I fill our free time by attempting to manage 4 different properties through invasive species removal and re-establishing native plant and wildlife communities. So, you don't even need an official "group" to get started, all you need is a friend or relative with land, whether it be a 1/4 acre or 20 acres, and explain to them the benefits of creating wildlife habitats while twisting their arm to let you "garden" on their property. Every little bit counts.

The Other Reason I Bought that Growing Stand, and Shame on the NWF

2012-01-25T16:38:00.001-05:00

I'm not looking for pity, won't do me any good now

Beware of P90X. Yeah, go ahead and laugh. I'm sure you've seen the infomercials or heard about it on ESPN. It's an exercise program, like Crossfit, Insanity, and Zumba. Well, my exuberance in the plyometrics earned me a bone contusion in my foot and I should be in this boot for 4-6 weeks to let it heal. Luckily it didn't become a stress fracture. I've been hobbling around since last spring, not wanting to "take care" of it until winter, knowing I'd probably be incapacitated for a while. Since I'll be unable to get out in the yard to putter around, I'll be starting seeds and watching plants grow under the lights to pass the time.

This has also given me the opportunity to play with my new camera lenses so I can try to take better photos for this blog. The honeybees were back today and proved a worthy subject for my macro lens...

Not bad, could be better

I like that I can see the pollen grains

So did Sweet Pea's nose...

Now that's detail

I'm also using my newly found down time to catch up on reading everyone's blogs. Well, unless you've been on a bender or out of the country, I'm sure you all know about the Scott's Corp. and National Wildlife Federation unholy matrimony. If not, please look over to the right hand column and peruse my blog list to see an assortment of commentary. There's nothing I can add to the discussion which hasn't been already said more eloquently by the likes of those blog authors. I had already planned to not renew my membership or make any more donations to the NWF because it seems they do little to no actual work in the field and spend all their money on weekly junk mail and junkier free gifts. I plan on keeping my Certified Wildlife Habitat yard sign but I'll be putting a big sticker over the NWF logo.

*OK, before you bust me for bashing the Scott's/NWF union and having a picture in my last post with a bottle of Miracle Grow in the background, I'm not being a hypocrite. I don't use it anymore and it's there to remind me to throw it away, but first I have to figure out how to do so safely.

A Cure For What Ails Me...

2012-01-20T10:34:00.000-05:00

It's here! It's here!

It only took a couple of hours to assemble...thanks to Jeff for helping :)

OK, I splurged a bit. Considering last year's success with my make-shift grow stand from cobbled together parts, I was able to justify the expense to buy myself a proper one, with better quality adjustable lights and more space. What better way to cure a gardener's lust for growing green things than to start growing indoors! I'm going to use this stand to grow fresh herbs in the winter months, maybe even some salad greens, like arugula and mizuna, and catnip for Sweet Pea, Squeak, and Leo. (I learned not to grow catnip outdoors unless you want every neighborhood cat to relocate to your property) I'm also going to use it to get a head start on some flower and vegetable seeds. Just turning it on and seeing the glow warms my heart.

Empty, but not for long

I can't wait to get started growing! I have an addiction to seed starting, I just love seeing the green sprouts poke their way through the soil, and I love being able to grow obscure native plants that you can only get by growing them from seed.

Since Jeff's old photo developing room is now the growing room, we "re-purposed" his developing sink into a potting bench in the garage. This is long overdue and my poor back will very much appreciate being able to work standing up.

Now, where did I put those seed catalogs.....

Rant of the Month...

2012-01-14T11:21:00.001-05:00

Jeff and I went to go see "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy" last week. I was really in the mood for a good movie, and it's been a long time since I've seen anything that I would call "good". I needed a distraction. Well, I still haven't seen anything good as it was terribly disappointing. I love spy movies, I love "different" movies, you know, the artsy type, but Tinker, Tailor... was just plain annoying. Vague for the sake of being vague. What little dialogue there was was so mumble-y that I couldn't make heads or tails of it. It only served to continue to feed my frustration... (for bad movies and in general)

So, I've been frustrated lately. Uncomfortable. Maybe it's the winter blues. Mostly because I feel like something's missing, or wrong. I actually know what what it is, it's design. Harmony. Balance. Feng Shui even. I've come to realize that my yard is getting on my nerves, that something just doesn't feel right because it's not, it's just a hodgepodge of plants. I'm very left-brained and have very little knack for creativity.

I want my garden to be more than just a buffet for wildlife. I want it to be a provocative display that pleases humans as well. I want to "wow" people, is that asking too much? (Yes) I've been reading about the famous landscape architects Wolfgang Oehme and James van Sweden, and Piet Oudolf, and can see that it is possible. I can also see that my yard looks a bit shoddy. Well, of course it would compared to the works of those guys, but I tend to set high standards for myself.

So many things are stacked against me: the big trees and shrubs in the wrong places that were already here that I don't want to cut down because they hide our hideous neighbors, the winter winds, the summer droughts, the bedrock laying 18 inches beneath the soil surface, the deer, the rabbits...need I go on? When you limit yourself to natives on top of those, what's left? How can I create beauty in the holy names of Oehme and van Sweden with that?!

I know what I like when I see it, but I have a hard time actually coming up with ideas on my own. Basically, I think I know what my yard needs, it's just so hard trying to imagine and design when everything's asleep under the soil. Looking at pictures of the flower beds from last year only fuels my angst. I hate moving plants because it means losing a year, more or less, which is agony for the impatient gardener like myself. I will have to though, and I'm sure as soon as I start correcting some of my design errors, I'll feel better. I'm too embarrassed to post pictures here and ask for suggestions. Realistically I'm also too self-critical and self-conscious. (I'm sounding like a loonie aren't I) At least I can admit it.

Like I said, maybe it's the winter blues, maybe it's the moon, maybe everything will be fine once spring arrives and I can start moving forward...

OK, I feel a little better, I've purged...

*Google (or whatever) Oehme & van Sweden and Piet Oudolf and see what I'm talking about. I dare you to say their works aren't gorgeous.

Honeybees in January?

2012-01-08T16:48:00.000-05:00

Today wasn't the warmest day we've had lately, it was only in the upper 50's, but for some reason the local honeybees were out in droves. They were all congregated on my half dozen Leatherleaf Mahonia bushes. The Mahonias shouldn't even be blooming now, they're supposed to bloom in early Spring, usually March, but the unseasonably warm winter is causing them to prematurely open.
I know, I know, Leatherleaf Mahonias are non-natives, even invasive in some of the southern states, but our cold winters keep them in check here. I have several good reasons I can justify growing them: deer don't eat them, they tolerate deep shade or sun, they tolerate wet or dry soil, and most importantly they provide late winter and early spring nectar for the bees. If not for these early blooming aliens, I don't know what else the bees would have to feed on.
I'm sure you've heard by now that honeybees are really suffering these days. Yeah, they're non-natives too but without them the US agriculture industry would collapse. I've contemplated keeping bees, but so far I'm pretty intimidated, I need to find a workshop somewhere local to see how difficult it is. I've read that so many bees are dying that new beekeepers are desperately needed to help start new hives and stabilize the population. As if colony collapse disorder and mites weren't bad enough, now a parasitic fly is posing a threat to bee populations. If you're a bee fan like myself, you can listen to a story about the parasitic fly, along with several other bee stories here from the Science Friday program on NPR.

Pine Tree Mutation?

2012-01-03T15:27:00.000-05:00

OK, it's a slow day around here. We've got a zero degree wind chill whippin' outside, so it's been a perfect day to peruse my photo archives, deleting the junk and looking for some inspiration for something to post about.

I came across these photos Jeff took about a month ago and it's still bugging me, what is going on here? We like trees, we like to look at trees, we like to read about trees, but we've never come across something like this before. It looks like some sort of mutation, I've seen a similar thing happen to Roses, where it sends out grotesque steroid-induced-looking spots of overcrowded growths, but never on a pine tree. It looks like someone grafted a Mugo Pine shrub to the side of a Virginia Pine tree.

Any of you tree experts out there know what's going on here? I've Googled it but can't come up with any answers. Sorry the photos aren't great, I think they were taken with Jeff's iPhone. It does look like a great place to build a nest...

My Birthday Prize List

2011-12-30T10:03:00.000-05:00

I've decided to post a list of the plants I picked up at Nature By Design, since this blog is partly a garden memoir. When I was there trying to decide what to to get, I put an emphasis on shrubs because trees were too big to fit in our vehicle, and perennials are somewhat easy to obtain through my usual method of procurement, mail-order. Native shrubs, on the other hand, are expensive to mail-order, and the specimen size is typically very small. Since I'm an impatient gardener, here was my chance to get some decent sized individuals. I went heavy on Viburnums since they feed both pollinators and birds. The numbers of each were based on whether or not I already had any, and trying to get pollination partners for berry production. I also chose tall species for the perennials and vines because I'm working on a green/living fence project. I've only managed to get a few things planted so far, because planting our Christmas tree took priority, which was so difficult (heavy), we may not do that again...

Hereby known as The Beast

Here's the list, drumroll please...

Shrubs:
1 Viburnum dentatum (Arrowwood Viburnum)
2 Viburnum lentago (Nannyberry)
3 Viburnum trilobum (American Cranberry Bush)
3 Lindera benzoin (Spicebush)

Grasses:
5 Andropogon gerardii (Big Blue Stem)
3 Panicum Virgatum (Switchgrass)

Perennials:
6 Pycanthemum muticum (Short Toothed Mountain Mint)
6 Eupatorium perfoliatum (Common Boneset)
3 Eupatorium purpureum (Sweet Joe-Pye)
3 Rudbeckia laciniata (Cutleaf Coneflower)
1 Agastache foeniculatum ('cus that's all he could find) (Anise Hyssop)

Vines:
4 Clematis virginiana (Virgin's Bower)
2 Parthenocissus quenquefolia (Virginia Creeper)

Not bad, eh?

How I Spent My Birthday...

2011-12-27T11:10:00.000-05:00

About a week and a half ago, Jeff and I headed up the interstate to the D.C. area for a multipurpose trip, part Christmas shopping, part birthday getaway for me, and part exploration/investigation. I had recently discovered that Virginia has only one dedicated native plant nursery open to the public, and it ironically just happens to be in one of the largest metropolitan areas of the country (D.C.), Alexandria to be precise. Travelling up there can be dangerous for your well-being, especially at Christmas time, but we're veterans and I couldn't pass up the opportunity to visit my first native plant nursery, especially on my birthday, before winter set in too deep. Luckily for me, our winter has been quite mild and I got there just as the owner was getting ready to put things away for the season. I managed to fill up the back of our vehicle with and assortment of shrubs, flowers, vines and grasses. We seriously contemplated renting a Uhaul to fill up, but this being winter, I didn't want to commit to having to plant that many things before the ground freezes. I admit, it felt pretty strange buying pots of dirt with crunchy brown tops, but I easily could have bought twice as much if it had been spring, I felt like a kid in a candy store!

The name of the nursery is Nature By Design and it's conveniently located just off of route 1 in Alexandria, Virginia. Situated at the end of a cul-de-sac, the nursery is cozily laid out in the back yard of a house, complete with mature trees, a pond, a carriage house/office, and greenhouse/giant coldframe. I couldn't believe the selection that was available, I wanted everything! The owner, Randee Wilson greated us as we walked through the gate and couldn't have been a nicer fellow. Jeff and I probably spent about an hour and a half walking around, trying to narrow down our choices, and picking things out while Randee helped us find what we were looking for. I can easily justify the 8 hour round trip drive next spring to come back, and if you're in the vicinity you won't be disappointed. March is only a few months away!

Do you want to know something really bizarre? Well, on our way home, I called my mom and told her what we did, which was visit this nursery in Alexandria. She says, "Oh yeah, where in Alexandria?" (She grew up there, and I was born there). I say "Just off route 1, near Glebe, on Calvert Avenue". She says, "No way! I lived on Calvert Avenue!". You see, Calvert is just a short street, maybe 1/4 mile. The only house left is the one with the nursery. She described the area from memory perfectly so there's no chance it could be a different Calvert. The odds of that are extremely tiny. Alexandria is huge. Small world!

Thank you Nature By Design, for being there and for still being open in December!

Sweet little pond and beautiful crabapple tree, most of the forbs were stored under the tables

I...want...it..all!

Randee in the background adding up our bill

Trees and shrubs area

Very cool mantis sculpture

My birthday gifts to myself (notice Christmas shopping bags in background!)

Squeezed in wherever they would fit

Mystery Plant ID Help?

2011-12-23T17:04:00.000-05:00

I managed to escape for a quick stroll through Green Hill Park this morning and was shocked by all of the herbaceous plants putting out new growth, on December 23! This has to be the warmest December on record, yesterday was 68 degrees! Anyway, I recognized all but this one and wondered if any of you plant experts know what this might be. It's growing at the base of a young (oak?) along the river, kinda shady, and the leaves are somewhat thick and almost waxy like a succulent. I'm in zone 7a by the way. I realize I'm not giving you much, but it just looks so darn interesting, I love learning new plants, and I can't find anything like it in any of my books.

Does anyone recognize this plant?

Last Minute Christmas Ideas for the Wildlife Gardener

2011-12-20T16:28:00.001-05:00

Hurry, Hurry! Time is running out! Who doesn't need a last minute gift idea, right? Gardeners can be notoriously difficult people to shop for, especially since our passion is pretty much dormant right now. I came up with a few gifts that I would love to receive, except for the fact that I already have them!

Gift #1: The World's Best Leaf Rake Ever

Yes, I'm recommending buying a rake as a gift. I love my rake. I bought mine from Lowe's for about $14, the brand name is True Temper. It actually is clog free. Since we were committed to not using the gas powered leaf blower, we got a workout (in a good way) raking our yard to gather leaves to make mulch and compost with. Instead of being a chore, I really enjoyed the raking because I just kept thinking about the yummy leaf mulch my plants were sure to love.

Gift #2: Benjamin Vogt's book "Sleep, Creep, Leap"

I enjoyed reading this more than anything else in a long, long time. Especially since it's winter now, I enjoyed being transported into his backyard garden, laughing on one page and crying on the next. It's so cheap, only $5.99 at Amazon and they can deliver it in a jiffy. If not for someone else, buy it for yourself!

Image from Amazon.com

Gift Idea #3: For the big spenders out there...Pre-order a tray of plants from Prairie Moon Nursery.

What native plant enthusiast wouldn't appreciate more plants? Again, if not for someone else, at least treat yourself! You can now order a tray of 38 native plants to be delivered between May and July for only $98.00. You can mix or match up to four different kinds per tray of dozens of native wildflowers and grasses. I ordered one to try last spring and was very impressed with the quality, many of the plants bloomed the first year including Aster azureus and Solidago speciosa. I plan on ordering several trays this winter, Merry Christmas to me!

My tray of plants from this past Spring, aren't they awesome!

In case I don't get another post written before Christmas, Happy Holidays to you all and thank you for visiting my blog!

My Winter Sowing Project: Part 1

2011-12-13T16:55:00.001-05:00

Saturday morning was absolutely gorgeous, mid 30's, clear blue sky. I just had to be outside. I'd been thinking about the Chasmanthium latifolium (River Oats) that I'd seen along the river (of course) over at Green Hill Park a few months ago. If there were any seeds left on the plants, I really wanted to get some and give them a try. I love River Oats and know of several places in my gardens where they'd fit in nicely. Well, as luck would have it, I didn't just find the chasmanthium, but some goldenrod, frost aster, wingstem (Verbesina alternifolia), and Virginia Wild Rye (Elymus virginicus), too. I couldn't resist! These are hardy common staples here in the valley, and should do wonderfully in our gardens, in fact some already exist there, just in small quantities.

I didn't really need any more seeds, I'd already received my order from Prairie Moon for my must haves for next year, plants that I want alot of. It is, of course, cheaper to grow 50 Sweet Joe Pye plants from seed than to buy them already as mature plants. And there's no such thing as too much Joe Pye. I wanted to try my hand at winter sowing, but what started out as an experiment has quickly gotten out of control. I am a plant addict, after all. I ordered six kinds of seeds from Prairie Moon, then collected five more kinds in the wild. All those black plastic plant pots I saved from over the summer now isn't enough. I've run out and need to buy some, I haven't even planted my Green Hill Park seeds yet.

I've been dreaming of starting native plants from seed all summer long, planning what I wanted and what I thought would do well here. Before I was really into habitat gardening and I was just a casual gardener, winter was dull and boring, with nothing to do in or for the garden. When I started reading about winter sowing, I just knew I had to try. Worst case scenario = no plants, best case scenario = lots of plants!

The only problem is, I've never done this before. I have visions of either zero success, or so many plants that I have to start giving them away (to the native flower friends I don't have) just so they can get planted.

If any of you out there reading this have any tips for me, please share. I've only read what's available out there on the internet, which all seems to be anecdotal with no "After" shots of pots of plants in the spring to show how successful they were. No one I know has ever done this before. For example, I've read that since I don't have continuous snowpack, I should keep the pots covered, like with clear plastic sheeting. Why? To retain moisture? Won't that create heat build-up, negating the cold part of the cold stratification process? I do notice they tend do dry out a bit and I'm supposed to keep them moist. So I'm going to be watering pots all winter? I've also noticed some folks use empty milk jugs, but I don't have a few hundred lying around. I originally had my pots on the southeast side of my house, but they were drying out in a day. I have since moved them to the colder, north side and they are staying moister longer. Am I foolish, or what? Tell me the truth, I can take it...usually.

The green hill of Green Hill Park, a popular place to ride a horse, if you have one.

An old farm field full of goldenrod, aster, and birds...

Wingstem seeds, I think they're attractive still on the stem

Virginia Wild Rye

My haul from Green Hill Park

Moooo...

My first batch, likely soon to double...

And Here It Is...!

2011-12-10T08:27:00.001-05:00

The original...

Here it is!

Don't feel bad if you couldn't find it at first. Like I said earlier, when Jeff showed me the photo, I knew it was there but I couldn't find it either. We've been watching this owl for about a week, it's probably been there a bit longer, we're not sure. This is likely the source of the screech heard at daybreak a few times last month, not a barn owl as was originally suspected. We feel truly fortunate to have this owl here and be able to view it on occasion, I've only seen Screech Owls a few times. We're definitely trying to leave it alone so it doesn't get spooked and leave the area. Here's a couple of other pictures of the same owl from a different day and different angle.

I think it's smiling!

This is not the first time an Eastern Screech Owl has occupied this hole. Several years ago, likely a different owl was spotted here, but it didn't hang around as long.

Ever since, we've made certain that we take a look at the hole any time we're nearby, just to see if someone might be looking back at us.

Do You See What I See?

2011-12-09T09:16:00.001-05:00

...Way up in the sky, little lamb,

Do you see what I see,

A star, a star, dancing in the night...

These pictures were taken at Dean, just a couple of days ago. There's something very interesting "hiding" in this picture, even though I knew what I was looking for, I had a hard time finding it when Jeff showed it to me. Can you find "it"?

A close-up

From further away, for context

Our Tree Has Arrived!

2011-12-07T15:06:00.001-05:00

We decided to change things up a bit this year, and possibly future years, by getting a plantable Christmas tree. I just can't bear the thought of having a tree's life sacrificed for decoration. I would rather use this time to create a new tradition of adding a tree to the landscape. Just imagine...if we keep it up, in twenty years we'll have a virtual forest! We figure we'll get something different each year, for diversity. This year since it was short notice for the nursery, I could only choose between Blue Spruce or Norway Spruce. I chose the Norway Spruce. We have several 20+ year old specimens at our home and at Dean, they're gorgeous, they do great in our climate, and the birds love the shelter they provide. I wanted a native evergreen, of course, but they need advance notice to get one of those. Now I'm off to Tractor Supply Co. to find a galvanised bucket for the root ball. I'm not looking forward to dragging this puppy inside, but that's what strong husbands and dollies are for. Many thanks to Townside Nursery for fulfilling my crazy wishes, again!

Fresh off the truck

Untied and root ball covered to keep it dry and therefore lighter
(we're only getting about 8 inches of rain today)

Why Do Earthworms...

2011-11-30T08:28:00.001-05:00

...try to commit suicide?

Surely you've witnessed this too. Almost every time it rains, especially a warm rain, earthworms come streaming out of the ground and onto any paved surface they can find where they promptly dry up and die as soon as the rain stops. Are they leaving the soil because it's too saturated and they think they might drown? Well, that's dumb because they're gonna die anyway on my driveway, either by dehydration or getting snatched by a hungry bird. If any of you readers know why they do this, please enlighten me.

Yesterday I staged an intervention. Overnight we had several inches of rain, after which I woke up to find numerous worms in the garage (safe from birds but still a death sentence) and a driveway absolutely covered with them. Now that we have a compost pile (currently just shredded leaves and coffee grounds) it occurred to me to pick them all up and toss them in, saving their lives and improving the quality of my dark matter. Jeff and I easily picked up over 40 earthworms and carefully distributed them in the bin.

While investigating what to add to the compost pile, I read that earthworms absolutely love coffee grounds and I've been getting big bags from Starbucks of their used grounds (called Grounds For Your Garden) to add to my mix. If you have a compost bin, you may want to check your local Starbucks and see if they participate in this program.

I hope they find their new life in my bin worth living.

Late Season Ladybug Sightings

2011-11-21T16:30:00.001-05:00

It's been slim pickins' lately trying to come up with some content to entertain you folks , sorry about that. I've basically just been raking leaves, making mulch, smothering some grass, and helping my parents move. There's just not a lot happening outside right now, but I've got something exciting I'm working on, more details later.

The unseasonably warm weather has continued and we've been seeing a lot of insects that should be asleep by now. These two Ladybugs showed themselves over the weekend. I've also seen a few Leaf Footed Bugs, Wheelbugs, and Earwigs. Stink Bugs too, but they don't count, they're always around.

Somebody Found A Warm Spot

2011-11-18T08:42:00.001-05:00

Now that the cold weather has set in, animals really seem to be looking for warmth anywhere they can find it. While visiting a friend, we just happened to spot this fella' getting cozy outside her dining room. If we hadn't been watching her cat watch the squirrels, we would have missed his antlers waving at us from the other window. Smart guy, he found a spot both sheltered from the wind and warmed by the sun reflecting off the house. I have never been this close to a wild animal before, he was truly magnificent!

What Once Was Hidden...

2011-11-14T16:06:00.001-05:00

...Now is found.

Back in the late Spring, I just knew we had a Robin's nest somewhere in this area. They're so sneaky. I really thought it was in a Cedar, just to the left from where this picture was taken. They were constantly flying in and out of the Cedar, but apparently they were using a bit of deception. I looked but I could never find it. I didn't want to get too close because it was their second nest, the first was not hidden well enough and was robbed by Bluejays, and sadly I saw it happen. Now that the leaves have fallen, I'm starting to see a lot of nests that I didn't know about, this one included. The Robins did a much better job hiding it, no wonder I didn't find it, it's built in a very mature Poison Ivy vine! Note the white berries. This nest was successful, I remember distinctly seeing the newly fledged Robins in this area.

Don't forget to take an extra close look around your yard now that the leaves have fallen, you never know what you might find!

It's Project FeederWatch Time!

2011-11-13T16:18:00.001-05:00

Time to start counting birds y'all! This weekend begins the 25th edition of Project FeederWatch, running from November 12 to April 6. It's cold, it's windy, the flowers have faded and the insects have all gone to sleep. How would you like an excuse to curl up in a comfy chair with a cup or two of your favorite warm beverage and just chill?

"No dear, I can't (fill in honey-do list item here). I'm doing research. Real scientific data collection, don't disturb me."

All you need is a few bird feeders located within viewing distance of a window. Since you're reading this I'm guessing you're into the nature thing already and I bet you already have that. All you need to do is count the total number of each species you see at one time, for anywhere between 30 minutes to 4 hours a day, for two consecutive days, once per week, then enter your data online. You can miss a week if you have to. I like to do my count roughly between 3:00 and 5:00 pm Saturday and Sunday which is usually when I know I have the time. Also, the birds feed quite heavily around that time to fill their bellies for the night.

If this sounds like a fun way to feel involved in Habitat and Wildlife Gardening even in the dead of winter, click on the Project FeederWatch icon over to the right in my sidebar, or visit their website to learn more.

I got addicted to Habitat/Wildlife Gardening because of Project FeederWatch. It was the first Citizen Science project I started participating in, and in the process of trying to provide more and better habitat for the birds I was watching and counting, I discovered that I could do the same thing for other creatures as well. And so began the transformation of us and our yard. Give it a try, you never know where it might take you.

Catching Up

2011-11-08T16:25:00.001-05:00

What a week it has been. I last posted here on Halloween morning which now feels like about a month ago. I've been helping my parents pack and move to town, only squeezing in a few hours here and there to be out in the yard for a nature fix. A little leaf raking can be very therapeutic, especially since the weather has been so nice lately. We used to be "those people", the ones that got rid of their leaves in the fall. Now I see them as pure gold, free mulch, and grass smothering-flower bed creating magic. Jeff even managed to crank up an old dusty leaf mulcher that hasn't turned over in the last decade. Now I just need to make a place to store all this leafy mulchy goodness. I never imagined I'd still be out working in the yard in November and I'm not complaining, it's been glorious.

Next on the agenda is to try to capture an image of a suspected Barn Owl living in a dilapidated playhouse up in the woods at Dean. We have reports of a screechy scream heard very early in the morning coming from the area, but of course we really want to be certain. If we can document it living on the property, well, that would just be freaking awesome! I've got the critter cam set up aimed at a hole in the roof, but there are two holes, and I haven't seen any evidence of owl pellets. Time will tell, we may just have to camp out there ourselves to try and hear the scream.

Boy, you have no idea what goes on 'round here after dark...it's wild!

Real Zombies in Nature, and a Movie Suggestion

2011-10-31T09:39:00.000-04:00

Happy Halloween Everyone! How can you not love a holiday that's all about fun, candy, pumpkins, bats, owls, black cats, etc, etc.
OK, before all you zombies experts get all riled up, I know the use of the term "zombie" is being stretched a little. Zombies are the undead, driven by an external force like witchcraft, who have no soul or mind, therefore they're not "mind controlled". I'm using the adjective form of zombie, not the noun.
Who even knew flies and Gypsy Moths had a mind that could be controlled? Well apparently they do. Here are two fascinating stories I've heard recently that fall into the category of "Strange but True", and they're quite disgusting, perfect for Halloween.
The first is about Gypsy Moths, no love lost here. Apparently they can become infected with a virus that turns off their appetite control, makes them eat until they're literally almost ready to pop, then climb to the highest point in their tree where they liquefy and rain down virus infected goo on the leaves below them, which the other caterpillars soon ingest and become infected too. Isn't that brilliant? You can listen to or read the story here about the Gypsy Moth zombie virus.
The second story I heard just last night. Similar to the Gypsy Moths, but this time involving mind controlling parasites and fungus, it tells of exploding flies spewing infectious spores into the wind and suicidal crickets drowning themselves before a worm exits their *ahem* body. We've actually seen a hair worm "exiting" a grasshopper. I'm still freaked out about it. Very gory, very true, very cool. You can listen to or read the story here about the mind controlling parasites.

Now, if you need to erase all that from your memory in order to sleep well tonight, or you're like me and like to celebrate Halloween with a good themed movie, here's a couple of my favorites:

1. Young Frankenstein (gotta love Frau Blucher) horse whinny
2. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (the 1931 version, you're not a film connoisseur if you haven't seen this)
3. The Shining (not gonna sleep after this either)

Squeak's ready for Halloween, Black Cat Zombie. (caught in the act of meowing)

One Last Look

2011-10-28T15:59:00.000-04:00

Well, as most of you know by now, the first winter storm of the season is on it's way to the Mid Atlantic and New England. It was 75 degrees and humid yesterday, now it's 41 and sleeting. Hopefully we won't get any of the snow, it would surely do damage to the still leafy trees. Here's one last look at the colors before they're gone...

A colorful greeting at the entrance to Dean

Colors always look best on an overcast day

Bedding down before the storm

Parting Shots

2011-10-25T16:16:00.003-04:00

Here's a few parting shots from what's sure to be one of our last warm days for a while. I've been quite surprised how many plants are still putting out blooms this late in the year, a month from now and we're likely to have already seen snow. Two of our trusty winter migrant birds, White Throated Sparrows and Dark Eyed Juncos, have already landed on the scene. I want to hold on for as long as possible, but I know winter is necessary...

Honey Bee on Basil

I planted the Basil for myself and didn't realize the bee's would enjoy it just as much, if not more

Cabbage White on Anise Hyssop

Crab Spider hiding inside a Japanese Anemone blossom

Paper Wasp on Tropical Milkweed

Carpenter Bee on Lavender

Recycling Nature, How We Spent Our Weekend

2011-10-23T16:58:00.000-04:00

It's that time of year, leaves are piling up everywhere, lawns, driveways, sidewalks. What's a gardener to do? They all won't fit in the compost tumbler, and you certainly don't want to bag them and toss them in the landfill. (Shame on you if you do!) Have you ever noticed the best soil is in a forest? Why? Because the leaves fall and that's where they stay until they decompose. I've been studying and thinking all summer long about what I can do with the leaves, and at the same time reading a lot (mostly on all of your blogs) about the benefits of reducing or eliminating lawns. And so it began.
This weekend Jeff and I took advantage of the idyllic weather and raked up all the leaves and pine needles that had fallen already and began distributing them. We have grandiose visions of planting up the entire back yard but there's way too much turf to dig up and we'd like it to evolve over time. Smothering the grass as we go seems like the best option, and that's where the leaves come in. We're starting under the oak tree along the fence, where the grass is sparse anyway. What better to mulch under an oak with than oak leaves!

We started with the leaves on the ground nearby...

Then added some we raked up from the lower end of the yard...

And this morning I covered the area with netting and added some logs to hold it down and define the area.

Project Grass-B-Gone has begun. There is/was grass growing right up to the base of the trunk, but I neglected to get a real "before" picture. As more leaves fall we will rake them into the pile and extend the logs out.
The logs themselves are another recycling item. Every time a limb falls from a tree or if a tree is blown over, we use the wood for something. The bigger pieces I use for edging the boundary between planting beds and lawn. The smaller pieces get tossed onto a brush pile out under our bird feeding area. Brush piles are much appreciated by small critters like birds and chipmunks as a safe scurry spot, and as a great place to hunt for insects.

The beginnings of my brush pile, I've already seen a chipmunk checking it out

An exquisite piece of yard art, it's hollow all the way through, a perfect scurry spot

One more thing you can recycle is bark, especially if you can get it in big chunks. What can you use it for, you ask? How about using it to hide ugly well heads. There's a dead tree over at dean whose bark is falling off in big strips, so Jeff brought some home and placed it around the well to disguise it. The well is right in the middle of our berry garden and we can't plant anything right up next to it in case it ever needs to be accessed. I think it looks better now, needs some more bark though, we want it to look like an old tree stump.

Before

After

Eventually we'd like to fill in this area with Winterberry Hollies, Viburnums, and maybe Virginia Creeper on the fence. All berry producers for our living birdfeeder section. Right now all we have is a Crabapple and a few Blueberry bushes, just enough to keep our resident Mockingbird occupied.

I'm Your Huckleberry...

2011-10-22T17:08:00.001-04:00

This little Merchant of Death (aka Horsefly) landed on Jeff's car following a trail run and waited for him to drop his guard for a second as he changed clothes. Attention was maintained, pain was avoided...this time. He even managed to get this swell photo without suffering its wrath.

I got's all my eyes on you

By the way if you've never been bitten by a horsefly, consider yourself lucky. It's a pain you will never forget.

Good Intentions

2011-10-20T16:14:00.005-04:00

Oh, Jeff. That crazy wonderful husband of mine. I love his enthusiasm.

He was out trail running yesterday morning on one of his favorite trails on Mill Mountain when he came across something he thought was special.

Oh, it's special alright.

So special that he pricked off a piece to bring home for me to identify, dutifully carrying it with him the remaining miles of his run.

"The birds are gonna love this! What is it?"

Well, sorry to burst your bubble, it's not a good thing, in fact it's one of the worst non-native invasives we have around here. It's Asian Bush Honeysuckle. We only ripped out about a hundred or so over at Dean this spring. But since they were in bloom then, and now they have berries on them, he didn't recognize it. Now he'll never forget. It can be tricky to identify since it looks similar to some native Honeysuckles when in flower. However, the give-away is if you break off a stem or branch of Asian Bush Honeysuckle you will notice it has a hollow center. The natives do not not.

You can read more about Asian Bush Honeysuckle here and here.

The offender

He felt so embarrassed, he volunteered to go stand in the corner as punishment, bowing his head in shame...

It's OK, you can come out of the corner now

Two years ago I was running on the same trail as Jeff when I came across the same plant. I thought it looked great, loaded with berries, just waiting for a flock of Cedar Waxwings. I tried so hard to identify it and never could, it made no sense. The problem was my ID books contained only native shrubs and trees and I didn't know the difference. I had no idea we could have non-natives growing "wild" in our woods. The only problem plant I knew about was Kudzu. Now, having learned about non-native invasives, I realize why I couldn't find that, and many other plants in my ID books.

Oh, how far we've come!

Everybody's Doin' It...

2011-10-16T08:31:00.000-04:00

*Yes, you're in the right place, I changed my background to match the season.

At Dean, there are oodles of Walnut trees. Nowadays, every time we drive on onto the property, there are squirrels everywhere, each loaded down with a walnut. The ones on the right side of the road race to cross over to the left to stash their prize. And, you guessed it, all the ones on the left are making a mad dash to the right side in search of the best possible hiding place.

Kinda like a dog or cat. If indoors, wants out. If outdoors, MUST get in!

Now you just look the other way so I can hide this thing!

The Bluebirds are Back!

2011-10-14T09:14:00.000-04:00

In the spring, Bluebirds were plentiful and fought for nestbox ownership with a group of Tree swallows. The Tree Swallows won round one, and the Bluebirds moved down to our other box in the lower portion of our yard. Apparently the top box, which gets the first sun of the day is considered the premium box. As soon as the Tree Swallow family fledged in June the Bluebirds swooped in and won round two, raising a second brood in our top box, and House Wrens (which don't show up until June anyway) took up residence in the lower box.

Ever since the Bluebirds fledged their second brood, they moved off down the golf course and we rarely ever saw them. Until now! The weather is starting to get cooler, especially at night, and as they do every winter, the Bluebirds are back looking for a nest box to claim as their roost box. It's amazing to see 6, 7, even 8 birds wiggle their way in to a box to keep warm for the night. Here at home, at Dean, and at my parents house, we all began noticing the return of the Bluebirds at the same time. We'll see them start to congregate, then climb in for the night around dusk. They'll usually spill out before sunrise, when it's just barely light enough to see the box across the yard. The only competition they have have now is from a Mockingbird who sometimes likes to use the box as a perch from which to guard the nearby Crabapple tree. Occasionally, a Phoebe will also use the box as a hunting perch. They're all using it at different times of day though, so they're coexisting quite well.

So, if you have nest boxes on your property, don't forget to clean them out. Get rid of the old nest and scrape out the poo, birds don't need a nest for roosting. Plus it just takes up space, removing it will allow more birds to squeeze in!

...At Dean

...A closer shot at Dean, "You know, real estate prices are down, it's a buyers market, I'll make you a good deal!"

...At home, our "top" box, "what d'ya think Pa?"

..."I think it looks pretty swell, what d'ya think Ma?"

300 Robins Can't Be Wrong...

2011-10-12T10:33:00.001-04:00

Hurry up! They're almost gone!

Now add a hundred or so of his closest friends all calling and flashing from tree to tree...all day long for the past two days and you get an idea of the party that was going down in the woods at Dean. I'm pleased with the berry crop that the Dogwoods produced this year, I was concerned it may have been lackluster due to the drought of the summer. I wish some of these guys would fly over to our house, which is only about a mile away. Our Dogwoods seem to be getting ignored, the berries are starting to fall to the ground.

"What are you lookin' at?"

"Must...eat...more...berries"

Finally! Pictures of the Monarchs!

2011-10-09T16:37:00.000-04:00

The Monarch Parade continues...It's really quite wonderful to see so many of these butterflies doin' their thing. I've had the hardest time trying to photograph them, they are so jumpy. It's been about 4 weeks since I started seeing them consistently heading south, with just a short break in the middle when we had some chilly weather. I don't know if it's because we live along a mountain range, but this area seems to be on their flight path. Is anyone else out there seeing the Monarchs in large numbers? It blows my mind how far these tiny fragile creatures fly.
They're not stopping anywhere in my yard to feed, but they are feeding heavily from my neighbors yurt sized Buddleia. While I don't recommend anyone planting one because there are far better alternatives, I am happy to see it providing some much needed nectar for these hungry Monarchs.

*Click on the pictures for a larger, better view.

That Just Happened!

2011-10-08T08:15:00.000-04:00

I was just going about my day when I spotted the cats locked-in on something. Upon investigation, it turned-out to be a decent sized spider. It was still moving well and I didn't want the girls to eat it or get bitten. (Our youngest, Squeak, ate a tiny member of the wasp family and took a sting on her Mao Tse Tongue!)
I gathered the spider in a plastic cup and placed it lovingly in the camouflage mulched area just off the back deck. I felt a sense of kinship with Mother Nature herself as I had completed the Good Deed for the Day on her behalf. I walked about 3 paces back to the door and wooooooooosh! A Bluebird flew across the yard from the nestbox where it had been watching. She gave me a quick side-eyed glance, snatched-up recently rescued spider, ate it and flew away. I could only think of the words of Ricky Bobby in the movie Talladega Nights: THAT JUST HAPPENED!
No picture for obvious reasons. I still can't believe what happened. I promise this is a true story, that spider wasn't on the ground for five seconds before it was grabbed by the Bluebird. Not only did it see the spider, it trusted me enough to fly down and grab it within five feet of where I was standing!

Hummingbirds and Monarchs...

2011-10-05T08:31:00.000-04:00

This was one of the last Monarchs to pass through our yard, the migrating wave seems to have moved on south. I was lucky to see this particular one from my bathroom and still have it be there when I ran out with the camera. It really seemed to appreciate what was left of my sad, aphid infested Tropical Milkweed (asclepias curassavica, awesome plant by the way, easy to grow from seed, bloomed all summer!)
The Hummingbirds also seem to be mostly gone. I'm still seeing a straggler maybe every other day or so, fortunately I still have plenty of hummer plants blooming and fresh nectar in the feeder. Pretty soon the Juncos and Yellowrumps will arrive and officially signal the beginning of the winter birding season.
So, if you live south of Virginia, you still have a chance to see the Monarch wave pass through, for us it lasted about two weeks, peaking in numbers in the middle. Good Luck!

Another First for Me: Lobelia Siphilitica

2011-09-30T16:03:00.000-04:00

I was just out minding my own business, looking for some Jewelweed to collect some seeds from. Earlier in the day, during a bike ride, I saw some growing in a creek along the side of a quiet road. It's hard to find some that isn't surround by poison ivy. That afternoon, as I turned up the road in my car, I looked for a place to pull over, but I had some one behind me and the only place to park off the street was in front of a No Trespassing sign. So, I kept going, hoping the guy behind me would turn into a driveway. In the process, I went further up the street than I had planned, and stumbled upon a section of the creek even better than the first. I knew it as soon as I saw it, Great Blue Lobelia!

I have never seen any growing in the wild before, and there was a lot of it! The pollinators were all over it! It was such a magical little spot, growing amongst the Lobelia was Swamp Milkweed (also first time seen in the wild, not a garden), Jewelweed, Wingstem, several Asters, some unidentified sedges, Boneset, PawPaw trees and a couple non natives, Polygonum persicaria, and something that looks like a helenium, but I'm not sure. The color combinations were simply stunning. Roanoke is typically such a dry place, I'm not accustomed to seeing these moisture loving plants.

Spotted Jewelweed

Polygonum persicaria (I think)

Unknown?

Boneset

I found this spot totally by accident, and yes, I did manage to collect some Jewelweed seeds, despite half of them "popping" into the creek before I perfected my technique, hence the other name Touch-Me-Not. The source of this little creek full of magic is a spring at the base of a mountain. Here's a picture of what I assume is some kind of community springhouse, it was one of the few places not to have a No Trespassing sign. Water was coming out of a pipe and seeping out of the corner of the foundation.

The diversity and richness of this random spot along a nondescript country road will have me coming back to see what's blooming for a long time.

Found! Our first Wild Liatris

2011-09-28T08:17:00.001-04:00

Sorry for the less than stellar image quality, it's an iPhone

I shouldn't say "our" because I haven't seen it yet, in person. I should say "Jeff's", he found it, took its picture, and I identified it. He's been carrying his iPhone with him on his trail runs because he's been seeing what he believed to be some quality plants. It would take just about all day to hike up and back to the ridge with the good camera and tripod, but much less time if he's running.
I've never seen Liatris growing in the wild before, so this is exciting. I think it looks like a Liatris spicata. Based on the remoteness of the location, high on a ridgeline, deep in a Natural Preserve, miles from civilation, I don't think this is an escaped cultivated specimen. This particular mountain area is one of the few in this area where you won't see any introduced species, it seems quite pristine.
Thank you Jeff for this excellent find!

Monarchs are on the Move! Birds, too!

2011-09-26T09:07:00.002-04:00

We started seeing Monarchs heading south about a week ago, here and there, but over the weekend we started seeing them more consistently, even groups of three or more. Yesterday, where ever I was in town or at home, all I had to do was look up and I was guaranteed to see Monarchs heading south, just a constant stream of orange and black. My parents, who live north of us, also reported seeing them in a constant stream across the sky. Always about the same altitude, never coming down to feed, just floating away. That's why I don't have any photos, it would just be a black spot against a washed out sky, if that even. If I didn't look up, I'd probably miss them.

So if you're near Virginia or further south, start looking! They're coming your way!

A birding note...we've also had some nonstandard birds in the yard, a Pee-Wee spent the afternoon hunting from the tips of our hawthorn trees, some warblers (probably Pine) have been passing through the treetops, and a Red Shouldered Hawk has been heard calling (they're very vocal!) at the pond across the street several times. Another winter visitor, a Brown Headed Nuthatch, has been heard in the pines on the golf course. We hear it every year but rarely see it. One lucky winter we had a pair of Brown Headed Nuthatches come to our feeders regularly, but they seem to spend most their time in the pines.

Mysterious Eggs Update

2011-09-23T16:11:00.002-04:00

*This is not an eggs update that happens to be mysterious, it's an update on some mysterious eggs!

Well, I found the egg mass by chance, 12 hours later they'd hatched, 12 hours after that, you would never know they had been there! I haven't been able to ID them, but I have a few guesses. I was thinking maybe sawflies, now I'm thinking some kind of moth. When they were still on the plant, if I tapped the stem, the tiny 1 millimeter caterpillars would drop from a strand of silk, and the stem they were on was covered in silk by the time the left. It was hard to see, but they moved like an inchworm. That makes me think moth. Maybe a type of cutworm moth. That's the best I could do, unless I see something getting massively defoliated, I'll probably never know for sure.

Click on the picture to see a larger version, it's hard to get the camera to focus on 1 millimeter caterpillars.

A Plant that Found Me, Awl Aster

2011-09-21T16:02:00.000-04:00

I have this habit. If a plant sprouts up and I don't know what it is, I like to let it grow and flower so I can identify it and add it to my memory bank. If it turns our to be a desirable plant, I leave it. If it turns out to be an evil plant, I pull it up before it goes to seed. One particular new plant that sprouted up this year is pictured below...

It's the leaning one, growing out of a crack between the bricks in the sidewalk. I had no idea it would get so tall, right now it's about five feet, and it's a bit awkward to walk around. Hurricane Irene blew it over, and it never quite straightened up. Now that it finally has begun to bloom, I think I've Id'ed it: Awl Aster, or Frost Aster, or Old Field Aster. The latin name seems to be Aster pilosus, or Symphyotrichum pilosum.

Typical of asters, the flowers are small and white, and the stalks are quite rigid, almost woody at the base. Based on the size of this plant, there will be literally hundreds, if not thousands of flowers. It's hard to believe this huge plant grew from a tiny seed in just one season. It sure wasn't there last year, and I haven't seen any others around. I can only wonder how it got here. I think it's quite attractive, I just wish it was at the back of this border, not in the middle of the sidewalk. I would love to transplant it, but I don't think it will come out of the crack. Maybe I can collect some seeds and sow them elsewhere...

It's been quite popular with spiders, particularly Long Jawed Orb Weavers, who've built numerous webs on this plants all summer long.

Something has laid a mass of eggs on a stem, I have no idea what they are...And by the way, if you think I may have incorrectly identified this plant, please feel free to correct me.

So, you never what you might get, let that weed grow and it may just turn into a keeper!

A Few More September Blooming Natives...

2011-09-19T16:48:00.000-04:00

Crownbeard (Verbesina Occidentalis)

I've really enjoyed looking for and finding some new wildflowers lately. The rains we had a few weeks ago really set the stage for a spectacular show. One of the the most common, and therefore probably most overlooked native plants in this area is Crownbeard (Verbesina Occidentalis). To some people it's a weed, to me it's a glorious golden pollinator buffet.

Crownbeard and happy honeybee

The honeybees are really enjoying it right now, as are the many other insects. The flowers themselves have a rather disheveled look to them, maybe that's why gardeners don't care much for this plant, but the pollinators don't seem to mind. Crownbeard can easily reach six feet tall in dry, partly shaded soil, growing easily in difficult spots. It's even a host plant! (For the Silvery Checkerspot)

Blue Sky Aster (Aster azureus)

One of our many new plants for us this year is Blue Sky Aster. I ordered it from Prairie Moon Nursery back in the spring. It bloomed well for us in it's first year and is gorgeous! Typical of asters, the small 1 inch flowers appear on long airy stems, 2-3 feet tall. I must order more of these next year!

The latest new plant we've found over at Dean is Black Nightshade (Solanum nigrum). Jeff found it and suspected it might be a quality plant, so he snapped these shots with his iPhone.

The berries are more noticeable than the flowers on this shrubby little plant, and presumably have some medicinal value. However, I'm not going to be experimenting with eating anything with nightshade in the name!

TARDY TO TH' PARTY...

2011-09-18T21:12:00.000-04:00

Late Sunday greetings to all! Well, I intended to do a brilliant post today but things got out of control. A bit of exercise in the AM, a quick lunch with hubby, and afternoon house hunting with my parents (for them). As a result, my time in the garden was a blur.

Hopefully tomorrow will be a little slower and my next post a bit closer to brilliant.

I Found Some New Plants!

2011-09-15T17:14:00.000-04:00

They're not "new", as in, just created, discovered, or purchased. But they are "new" to me, as in, I've never identified them before and I didn't know we had them on our property. I love finding new plants and going home and playing detective, trying to identify them in our books, which is not always easy. Over the course of this growing season, I've been periodically going through the landscape, trying to identify everything and either keep it if it's native or yank it out if it's not. (One of those jobs that'll never be finished) I've been coddling this first plant all summer, waiting for it to bloom so I could make a positive ID on it, guessing all along that it was a worthwhile plant. I had a pretty good feeling about it, it looked familiar. Well, it payed off...

It's White Snakeroot! Or, Eupatorium rugosum, or Ageratina altissima. It looks quite a bit like a Boneset, another Eupatorium, but with broader leaves. The pollinators were loving it, so I love it too.

Over at Dean, it's mixed in with all the Crownbeard which is also blooming now. We also have a lot more of it than I realized, which became obvious once it started blooming.

It seems to tolerate dry shady sites well, growing approximately 2-3 feet high. I read that it's poisonous, causing "milk sickness" when eaten by cattle. Maybe that's why the deer don't touch it?

I also found this little gem, identified as Sweet Everlasting, or Pseudonaphalium obtusifolium. It's another plant growing randomly in a wild area that I weeded around earlier. I left it since I didn't know what it was, promising to keep my eyes on it in case it was a non-native. It really is sweet, evidenced by the teeny tiny little ants on it.

I'll have to get back out there and keep looking, there may be more!

A Sad Story, but with an Uplifting Twist

2011-09-13T17:11:00.000-04:00

I have no photographs to go with this story, it just didn't seem appropriate to take any.

I held a Broadwing Hawk in my hands on Sunday, it felt so rewarding to see such a beautiful creature up close, the talons, the beak, the eyes, but the eyes were cloudy, and I could not enjoy it. This poor creature was not alive, it had been hit by a car. It's remarkable how many raptors we find just around our neighborhood who've met an untimely end on the road. Mammals we expect, but raptors? Their habit of flying low as an element of surprise as they hunt road embankments probably accounts for this peculiar mortality.

I realize this may sound strange, and it's not for everyone, but Jeff and I try to retrieve some of the animals and birds we find that have been hit before they become, well, how do I put this...too gross. Even though the spirit has left we still respect the body and we try to give it a proper place of semi burial up in our woods, as if it died of natural causes and came to rest upon the forest floor. It will still be subject to scavengers, but that's natural, getting run over by automobiles is not.

Well, so there I was Sunday afternoon, I had just arrived at Dean to find a place up in the woods for the Broadwing I just picked up. I was standing in the driveway, holding the hawk, and looking up into the woods for a path without to much poison ivy. As soon as Jeff came around through the gate, two Broadwings swooped overhead and called out. My eyes instantly welled up and goosebumps ran up my arms. What a magical moment. Broadwings have been regular visitors, even residents with nests at Dean for many years, so seeing them alone wasn't special but the timing was. Were they thanking us, saying goodbye to a fallen comrade? It doesn't matter, maybe we're a little flaky. It felt special.

So that's it.

Well almost, we had another strange incident last night. We were sitting at the dinner table, we'd finished eating and were enjoying the perfect weather. I think we were talking about birds, what we'd seen and not seen, and Jeff mentioned how odd it was that we hadn't seen nearly as many Kestrels this year as in previous years. Not a minute later, through our screen door we heard and saw two Kestrels call out as they flew over our back yard. What's up with that!? Coincidence? It doesn't matter, it was cool anyway you look at it.

Thanks for reading.

Honeybees Return, and more...

2011-09-11T16:35:00.000-04:00

Honey Bee on Sedum "Matrona"

I have no idea where they live, but they stop in for a snack every now and then, particularly when they find something on my menu that suits them. The Honey Bees come and go over the course of the summer and I've taken a keen interest in seeing what their favorite plants are. This time, it's the Sedums that have brought them back.

Honey Bees on Sedum "Matrona"

Nothing relaxes me more than sitting on the front porch, watching the bees whirring back and forth. Their motion and faint buzzing can have quite the hypnotic effect on me.

Paper Wasp on Cimicifuga "Hillside Black Beauty"

For some reason, this hybrid Bugbane (Cimicifuga) blooms later than the true species. It also smells much sweeter. Not surprisingly, it's covered in tiny ants, and only the boldest wasps can squeeze in for a sip of the nectar.

Carpenter Bee taking the shortcut on Salvia

We still have an abundance of Carpenter Bees hanging around. I noticed they've developed a clever way to "steal" some nectar from long tubed flowers that they otherwise wouldn't be able to access with their shorter tongues...they land on the tube, climb up, and pierce the base of the flower where they can then reach the nectar! Quite clever indeed!

Milkweed Bugs on Swamp Milkweed

I've been dutifully checking all of my Milkweed plants for Monarch caterpillars, but unfortunately all I have are Milkweed Bugs and Milkweed aphids. And boy do I have a lot of them!

I'm wondering, would having these insects on the milkweed plants discourage Monarchs from laying their eggs here?

If that's the case, should I have tried to remove the Milkweed Bugs and aphids when I first noticed them?

Or, is it perfectly natural for them to be there, and I should just leave nature alone?

Any advice is greatly welcomed!

Orange Milkweed aphids on Swamp Milkweed

Feast or Famine

2011-09-06T16:13:00.000-04:00

This year, like many before it and surely those to follow, has been a textbook "feast or famine" year. Meaning we either have too little or too much of something. As gardeners, we've become more sensitive to what the weather is doing than the typical person. So many times we'll be out in a restaurant, for example, the weather will be sunny with a bluebird sky and a warm, gentle breeze and the waitress will say "Oh, isn't this weather just perfect!". They're always shocked to hear us exclaim that NO, it's not perfect, it's too dry and we need rain. Which is usually followed with "Oh no, rain is too depressing". I guess we just see the world a little differently.
Earlier this year we had record rainfalls, followed promptly by record drought, now record rainfalls again. Feast, famine, feast. Last Saturday the heat index was 103 degrees, now it's a wet, chilly 65 degrees. Typical Virginia.
The only thing preventing me from truly enjoying this rain we're having now is guilt. I feel so bad for everyone in Texas right now. I've officially revoked my priveledge to complain about anything, no matter how bad it gets here, Texas has it worse. All that rain falling in Louisiana, so close, yet all they get is wind which just starts more fires.

I wish I could send some of this down to Texas. I realize you guys don't have a reference point for this place, but I assure you, it's a lot higher than usual. This is a spot along the Roanoke river over in Salem that's popular with birders. Usually it's a shallow stony flats kinda area that's pretty good for spotting migrating waders and water fowl.
Need less to say after two days of thunderstorms followed by two days of nonstop rain from TS Lee, the Crownbeard and Wingstem that I posted a picture of last Friday has perked back up. Our water storage systems are full, the creeks and rivers are over their banks, and I've had a lot more free time since I'm not having to water everything. I haven't been out in the yard lately, there doesn't seem like there's much to see anyway. The birds, however, have been feeding quite heavily, especially the goldfinches and hummers.

Autumn is definitely right around the corner, our chipmunks have been more visible lately, busily collecting and storing nuts for winter. Every morning I throw out a handful of peanuts for the Bluejays, squirrels, chippies. Sometimes Cardinals and Thrashers show up. As you can see, my cats love the show. (They are indoor only cats, I would never feed the critters and then release a predator into the mix) The deer are also beginning to shed their velvet, or at least, Trusty Rusty has. Yes, some of the deer have names, but only because it helps us keep track of them as we study their behavior. ;)

Late August Happenings...

2011-09-02T19:01:00.000-04:00

When I complain about how dry it is here in our corner of the Roanoke Valley, I'm not exaggerating. On the rare occasion that a pop-up thunderstorm has passed though, it misses our property completely. Especially when it approaches from the west, the rain systems typically are diverted, courtesy of being in what's called a rain shadow. Thanks Poor Mountain! We haven't had any measureable rain since late June/early July. I know there are folks out there who have it worse, namely Texas, or the other end of the spectrum, Vermont. Still, it's pretty bad here. The photo above shows what should be a glorious, lush stand of Crownbeard and Wingstem about to bloom and put on a buffet for the late season pollinators. However, I doubt it will bloom at all as the plants seem to have put themselves into survival mode. You can probably also see the brown leaves at the bottom of the photo. The trees are also going into survival mode, cutting off the circulation and dropping their leaves much earlier than usual. Crownbeard and Wingstem are staples here in the Roanoke Valley, you can find them growing at just about every woodland edge or right-a-way all over town. I really worry about the pollinators not having valuable late season food sources available to them.

This is what the ground looks like, needless to say, no irrigation here!

Although we can't give enough supplemental water to keep everything alive, we are watering the most essential plants, especially those blooming now, to continue to feed whomever passes through. Here's a small sampling of this week's flowers and visitors...

This tiny but gorgeous Pearl Crescent stopped by for a sip of Gaillardia nectar...

and managed to share a little with the bumbles.

A Gray Hairstreak (also called Common Hairstreak) was nearby on some Sedum.

Some of the Joe-Pye Weed is still blooming, and our Skipper population explosion continues.

The wonderful Agastache "Blue Fortune" is still the favorite of all my pollinators, and pollinator hunters! Here a Wheel Bug is having a bumblebee for breakfast. Sorry Mr. Bumble but a Wheelbug's gotta eat too!

We've also had a population explosion of Carpenter Bees. This one is a male, as evidenced by the yellow patch on his face and greenish eyes. Females have a black face and black eyes. I thought I had found a new-to-me bee before I realized the two sexes looked different.

It's been fascinating to note over the course of the summer how different species of insects seem to have "their" time, when their population really takes off. Due to migration patterns and breeding behavior, I'm really starting to see how insects stagger their life cycles.

Hey! Stop the press! As I'm writing this RIGHT NOW it's starting to rain! It's been thundering for about 30 minutes, but I didn't think we'd actually get any water from those clouds.

I know it's hard to tell from this photo, but when I can't see Mason's Knob, I know it's raining hard! (There should be two mountains visible on the horizon) The rain barrels are overflowing! This is unreal! Wheee!

Caption Contest Winner!

2011-08-30T09:05:00.000-04:00

Well, it's official, we've selected a winner for the Caption Contest. Habitat gardening should be fun, and that's why we tried to encourage everyone to think silly, if only for a moment. In the end, the decision was easy.

Ellen Honeycutt, you're the winner! Congratulations and thank you for participating. We chose your entry because you're the only person to respond who wasn't related to me (or a local friend)! It's nice to know my family takes interest in my hobbies, but even nicer when someone I've never met does too! I know I'm usually full of sarcasm and silliness, but seriously, thank you! The prize was a subscription to this blog, but since you're already a follower, I guess that's a bit redundant.

Honorable mention goes to Clovis and Temperance B. Rennan for thinking outside the box, and to Man Behind the Curtain for being really esoteric.

This was so much fun, we might have to do it again, maybe we'll even have a real prize next time.

More proof that we're just a couple of goofballs that love what we do and see the silly in everything...

The Happiest Leaf in the Roanoke Valley

(This leaf was found this way, completely unaltered by human hands.)

Velvet Ants and Nighthawks

2011-08-28T09:07:00.003-04:00

Either you've never heard of Velvet Ants or Nighthawks, or you have heard of them, maybe even seen one or the other, and you're wondering what the heck they have in common with each other. Well, the link is we saw both this week. Two fairly uncommon creatures and we saw both!

Both are extremely difficult to photograph, constantly moving. One is tiny and close, the other large and far away.

The Velvet Ant isn't even an ant! It's a wasp! The males have wings, the females don't. Velvet Ants are famous for their horribly painful sting, for which one species is nicknamed the Cow Killer. Thankfully I have not experienced this firsthand. They also don't live in colonies like ants, they are solitary. That helped us in determining that this was not an ant. We only saw this one individual, and we saw her on the same plant, multiple days. There are dozens of species, some more hairy, some less. We identified this one as Dasymutilla bioculata.

Thanks goes out to Jeff and his dedication in trying to get a photo of this thing to document our sighting.

Which brings me to the Nighthawks...of which we don't have a photo of our own, but I thought you birders out there might be interested in our sighting. Autumn is officially on its way when the Nighthawks pass through. We saw a few hundred of them between 7:30 and 8:00pm Thursday evening dipping and diving over the parking lots of Lewis-Gale Hospital, Ridgewood Farms, and Hidden Valley golf course. Haven't seen any since.

*By the way, we haven't picked a winner yet in Fridays Caption Contest, entries are still coming in and there's some good ones, feel free to keep sending them in. Thanks to all who have participated!

*Also, this is still the same blog, as you can see I'm experimenting with the layout and appearance.

Guest Blogger: Caption Contest!

2011-08-26T16:18:00.001-04:00

*****GUEST BLOGGER*****

Hey Man, Looka Here...

I had just finished a quick 35 mile run and stopped to water the crabapple tree. Oh wait, I looked at my watch wrong...it was 3.5 miles. Anyhoo, as I passed the truck on the way to the water barrel, I saw this abomination taking place on the wheel/tire. Two Wheel bugs, sex, and a snack! Whereupon I channeled the immortal words of Cal Naughton Jr., "That just happened!".

I made the picture, now it's up to you casual and loyal readers to supply the caption or story to go with it. Be nice, keep it reasonably clean, and for heaven's sake get involved! We are asking for your participation (lurkers-you know I'm talking to you). The winner will receive a 1 year free subscription to A Suburban Wilderness blog! A virtual $49.95 value for free!

So good luck and get to it!

Love Yawl

Jeff

P.S. I'm guest blogging today because Julie is so terribly upset. She missed the earthquake and now it looks like Irene's much needed rain will pass us by.

Some of Our Mammal Friends

2011-08-21T16:40:00.000-04:00

Jeff and I have many mammal friends that call our two habitats home. Since our home only sits on a half of an acre, other than chipmunks and squirrels, they don't actually live here but do pass through on their regular milk runs. At Dean, a property consisting of approximately a hundred acres, they actually are residents. We have squirrels, chipmunks, deer, raccoons, grey foxes, and groundhogs all making regular appearances on the property, day and night. We began putting out supplemental food (deer corn) during times of environmental stress like heavy prolonged snow cover or extreme drought, but suckers like we are, we now put out food regularly. We realize some folks may disagree with this practice. Anyway, we couldn't resist putting out our new mobile critter cam to see who and how many come by for a snack. The camera has been helpful in assisting us to document the species we have, the family groups, the time of day they come by, and how many babies they have.
Here's an assortment of some of the best photos recently, as you can see, everybody seems to get along well:

A buck, a doe, a groundhog and a squirrel walk into a bar...

(the thing that looks like a rock in the foreground is actually an all natural mineral lick)

Is the groundhog smiling?

Four bucks, a groundhog, and a squirrel
"No elbows on the table!"

A Week in Review...

2011-08-20T15:56:00.000-04:00

It's been quite a while since I posted last, and I feel bad about it. Time has flown by so quick, I hate that. Wednesday we went to a concert (Gillian Welch, awesome!) and Thursday was a certain 12 year old's birthday. I don't even remember Monday and Tuesday. I've been so busy, I haven't even looked at any of the photos I've taken this week, which is unusual for me. When I sat down to start typing, I was unsure of what today's topic would be. I checked my photo card to remind myself what I had seen this week and decided to share some of my best finds.

I saw several Monarchs in our yard this week, the first ones since spring. I haven't found any eggs yet though.

This one was quite worn, I can only imagine how far it has travelled.

This is a video Jeff took with his iPhone, unfortunately the actual incident of note was not captured, he got there too late. The story goes like this...Jeff heard a couple of Tufted Titmice and a Nuthatch making a fuss, looked out the window, and saw them circling over something on the ground. Turns out it was a baby green snake, and one of the Titmice proceeded to GRAB IT AND LIFT IT OFF THE GROUND! I so wish I was there to see it, they eventually flew off and Jeff could only get video of the snake as it retreated.

Writing Spiders (Argiope sp.) are one of my favorite spiders. I hadn't seen any in our yard in several years, but this year we've found four already. Maybe we're doing something right! The center for most insect activity is a patch of Agastache along our front sidewalk, and these two smart spiders built their web right in the middle. Needless to say they are dining well and often. The large one is the female, the smaller one is the male.

I love Joe-Pye, and so do the insects...

Just down from the Agastache is a patch of Eupatorium "Little Joe" in full bloom that's literally covered in skippers of various types. We seem to have had a skipper explosion, I've never seen so many at once.

Six skippers plus half a dozen or so different bees.

That's all for now, don't forget to click on the pictures above to view larger.

Celebrating Insect Diversity Week: Dragonflies!

2011-08-14T09:12:00.000-04:00

Dragonflies are another one of those insects which virtually everyone has an affinity for. Have you ever heard of someone who didn't like dragonflies? They capture our imagination, like butterflies, with their bright colors and delicate, graceful flight. They don't bite or sting. They tease us, sitting still just long enough for us to get close, then they fly away at the last second. In various cultures around the world, the dragonfly is associated with magic, spirits, or fairies. Their metamorphosis is just as fascinating as the butterflies, beginning as swimmers and emerging to become fliers.

Dragonflies have been very difficult to photograph, our only opportunities seem to be immediately after they've emerged from the water and they're sitting on a perch to dry out before flying away. Here are our top shots...

Green Clearwing (Erythemis simplicicollis)

Blue Dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis) male

Blue Dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis) female

Familiar Bluet (Enallagma civile) male

Halloween Pennant (Celithemis eponina) likely a male

Closer shot of a Halloween Pennant, they love our faux prairie

A couple of Dragonfly "skins", shed after crawling out of the water

Celebrating Insect Diversity Week: True Bugs!

2011-08-13T10:03:00.000-04:00

When is an insect not a bug?

Well, that depends. Believe it or not, all bugs are insects but all insects are not bugs.

Huh?

We throw around the word "bug" too loosely, like kleenex or google. Bugs are actually a specific order in the class of insects: Hemiptera, meaning half wings. Most of them have what looks like a shield on their backs, that helps me to visually separate them from other insects like beetles. Sometimes, people or books will also include the order Homoptera in the True Bugs category, which includes cicadas, aphids, and others.

Although you probably won't go looking for it, they also have a rather sophisticated proboscis, which they use to suck plant juices. That's why the most infamous member, the Stink Bug, smells kinda cabbagey when it's squished. There are actually dozens of different kinds of Stink Bugs, not just the brown ones invading our homes lately.

Here's a collection of Bugs we've seen recently:

Wheel Bug nymph
(took us forever to identify, finally found it in the Kaufman guide)

Wheel Bug Adult, from my deceased found bugs collection

(yes, I collect bugs, only if they're already dead and in good condition)

unidentified Stink Bug

Leaf Footed Bug (Acanthocephala sp.)

Stink Bugs and nymphs

*As always, don't hesitate to correct me on something I may have misidentified, I'm at the mercy of my Id books, currently Kaufman's, Audobon's, and NWF.

*Also don't forget you can click on the above photos to enlarge, if your browser allows.

Celebrating Insect Diversity Week: Butterflies!

2011-08-12T09:16:00.002-04:00

Gentle and colorful, the butterfly is probably the first insect we fell in love with as a child. How can you not appreciate them for their metamorphosis, their beauty, and their migrations.

Here's a sampling of our most common visitors this summer, and the flowers they love. Note that two of the plants are non native invasives, Buddliea and an unidentified mint. While some of my best sightings lately have come from these plants, I do not recommend planting them in your yard, there are plenty of native alternatives that are just as desirable to the butterflies, any of the dozen or so Agastaches, native mints, Monarda, Echinachea, and Rudbeckia are just a few.

This Northern Cloudywing may look drab, but it's really kinda smokey and mysterious

(on Catnip) edit: or maybe it's a Duskywing!

Red Banded Hairstreak, has a jumpy flight pattern like a moth

(on Echinachea)

Spicebush Swallowtail on Agastache "Blue Blazes"

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, female black form on Agastache "Blue Blazes"

Tiny and beautiful Pearl Crescent on mint along the river

Zabulon Skipper on Agastache "Ava"

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail at the Mill Mountain Wildflower Garden

unidentified skipper on mint down by the river

hard to tell, but likely a Clouded Sulfur, on Ironweed

Buckeye on mint along the river

Not a butterfly yet, Black Swallowtail, munching on dill

Celebrating Insect Diversity Week: Wasps!

2011-08-11T09:50:00.001-04:00

Wasps are one of the most feared members of the insect world. They can sting us just like bees, but they're skinny and menacing, whereas bees are plump and slow and make honey. It's silly really, in fact many don't sting at all and they're no more of a threat to us humans than any of the other insects. What most people don't realize is many of them feed on nectar and are wonderful pollinators. Just like bees, many have incredibly sophisticated social skills, next time you find a paper wasp nest watch them for a little while and notice their subtle communication maneuvers.

Here's a sampling of wasps we've seen recently:

Digger Wasp (Scolia dubia)

Eremnophila aureonotata, the only species in its genus in North America, no common name known

Double Banded Scoliid (Scolia bicinta) needs a more creative name

Beewolf (Philanthus sp.) not Beowolf

Beewolf (Philanthus sp.)

No mention of wasps would be complete without the Ichneumon Wasp

This is a video taken with Jeff's iPhone of a bunch of wasps on some Rudbeckia over at Dean, they seem to really love this plant, along with the bees. Not the greatest video quality, but hopefully you get the idea.

Celebrating Insect Diversity Week: Flies!

2011-08-10T09:14:00.003-04:00

Oh boy! Flies!

Everybody has a favorite insect, but I doubt many people would admit they love flies. Mosquitos, gnats, and no-see-ums are all Dipterans (the fly order) and they're all fairly well disliked. However many fly species play important roles in our world. Some are decomposers who play an important role in forensic science. Some are important pollinators. Some play a role in genetic engineering. Unfortunately, what they're known for is spreading diseases like malaria, yellow fever, dengue, and encephalitis. Love 'em or hate' em, they are important participants in our ecosystem.

I don't have many pictures of flies, even though I see them all the time. Here's the best of what I have...

Green Bottle Fly (above and below)

Robber Fly

Green Bottle Fly on Redbud leaf

A fly next to one of its favorite foods, bird poop!

Celebrating Insect Diversity Week: Bees!

2011-08-09T08:41:00.001-04:00

Here's a collection of the 5 most common bees from our yard over the past month, and their favorite flowers for pollen and nectar. It's so important to provide a lot of different of plants to suit each bees needs. Some bees have short tongues and prefer the smaller flowers, like coreopsis and nepeta. Others like the Golden Northern Bumblebee have long tongues so they can feed from plants with longer flower tubes, like the monardas and some agastache. Don't forget to also provide plants with staggered bloom times, so you always have a few things blooming all season long.

Remember...No Bees = No Food

Want to learn more about why bees are so important and what you can do to help? Check out these websites: Pollinator Partnership & Xerces Society.

Agapostemon Sweat Bee on Sunflower

Golden Northern Bumblebee aka Yellow Bumblebee (Bombus fervidus) on Spotted Knapweed

Common Eastern Bumblebee (Bombus impatiens) on Gaillardia "Oranges & Lemons"

Eastern Carpenter Bee (Xylocopa virginica) on Monarda "Raspberry Wine"

Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) on Agastache "Blue Blazes"

*click on photos to enlarge

Celebrating Insect Diversity Week: Beetles!

2011-08-08T09:11:00.001-04:00

Pine Sawyer

I don't have many pictures of beetles simply because, for some reason, I just don't see them too often. Believe it or not, Jeff took this picture with his iphone. Not too bad eh? This very large beetle (between 2-3 inches) is a Pine Sawyer. There are several different species, they all look slightly different, and they can be found all over the United States. It's believed they're called sawyers because you can often hear the noise made by the larvae chewing wood inside the tree. Not to fear, they do not damage healthy trees, they prefer dead, stressed, diseased, or freshly cut trees or wood.

Two Kinds of Boneset!

2011-08-07T16:54:00.001-04:00

Some of the many wonderful things about Mill Mountain are the numerous wildflowers that grow in it's unique conditions and criss-crossing trails from which to see them. Jeff uses these trails frequently on his running routes and often comes home with stories of interesting flowers and plants that I should check out. Today at lunch he suggested an easy to get to patch of what might be boneset, I just happened to have the camera with me, so off we went up the mountian to see it. The only challenge would be trying not to drown in a pool of our own sweat thanks to the oppressive humidity. While we were there I thought it would be worthwhile to check out the "Wildflower Garden" outside of the visitor's center. We hit the jackpot! Here are the highlights of what we found...

This patch is located in the Wildflower Garden. There are no plant tags or markers but it looks like Common Boneset (eupatorium perfoliatum).

A close-up of the above

One of the many patches growing naturally in the woods, I believe this is Upland Boneset (eupatorium sessilifolium).

A close-up of the above

I don't know why there are Buddleias in the Wildflower Garden (they're non-native invasives!), but I have to say, they were covered in some amazing butterflies. The prize of the day goes to the one above, a Gulf Frittilary. It was gorgeous!

There were also several Hummingbird Hawk Moths, this one even fanned its faux tail like a hummingbird.

This Great Spangled Fritillary wore me out as I tried to get its picture, always just slightly too far away.

We had such a great time, yelling back and forth to each other "ooh, ooh, look at this one!", we'll have to come back on a regular basis to see if we can find any more treasures. We gave up before we even saw it all because the heat and humidity were so bad.

*Click on the photos above to enlarge

A Few more Butterflies and a Couple of Babies...

2011-08-04T10:09:00.000-04:00

It's been another hot, dry, depressing week here. Temperatures near 100 every day and we haven't had any rain for many weeks. Our days consist of trying to keep everything alive. We planted a lot of trees, shrubs, and perennials this year and we've had to water everything new on a daily rotation. We're still seeing quite a few butterflies passing through. Life seems to be concentrating along the river, although its level has dropped considerably. It's the only place where plants aren't brown and crunchy. I've seen several cool birds: lots of hummers, a Green Heron, a little Blue Heron, a Kingfisher, and some Tree Swallows which I didn't know were still hanging around. I also found two new-to-me butterflies...

Juvenal's Duskywing

Pearl Crescent

The critter cam has been very active lately, perhaps animals are on the move looking for water and food since we're in a drought and many have babies with them. Some of the highlights include our first red fox and the emergence of a few junior critters. We have a momma deer and a momma raccoon that are regulars, they just hadn't brought their little ones to the yard until now.

The long legs and black markings confirm this is a Red Fox

I finally bought a second critter cam, I wondered who was eating the plants out of our water pots, now I know! Sorry the flash is too bright. It's so important to provide water for everybody right now.

Momma (zombiecoon) and baby

The Bumblebee Returns

2011-07-30T16:28:00.000-04:00

Finally! The mystery bumblebee was finally spotted in the yard. I had previously only seen it on vegetation along the golf course fairway, just a mere 50 yards from the majority of our flower beds. Fifty yards doesn't seem far for a bee to fly, but for some reason it was really preferring the spotted knapweed in the golf course rough. I still am not certain what kind it is. I previously thought it might be a Golden Northern Bumblebee, but I'm not so sure now. The bees we saw in Blacksburg seemed larger and yellower. I found it on the Agastache "Blue Blazes" in our front yard, then I found another on some Gaillardia. Jeff saw one just today on the Nepeta. I love bees, they always keep me company when I'm out in the yard, and I'm happy to share my flowers with this new visitor, I just wish I knew its name!

Can anyone out there help with the identification?

Mystery bumblebee

Our resident Common Eastern Bumblebee

I planted my first plants today...all by myself!

2011-07-27T21:47:00.001-04:00

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                                                      GUEST BLOGGER
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Greetings from today's guest blogger: Jeff Stone, AKA Old Stone, or simply Julie's Husband.

            As the title says, I did my first ever solo planting project today! Normally planting is not my arena. As I'm sure you have guessed, I am really more the super-hero type. Tough as a two dollar steak, 5'10" and 145pounds (soaking wet) of twisted steel. Kind of a Daniel Craig-young Brad Pitt sort of thing. My days are usually filled doing battle against non-native invasives, tree pruning, log splitting, cursing poison ivy and digging holes in our nearly solid slate yard for Julie to plant trees. Like I said, He-Man super-hero stuff.
          Well, Julie had recently found a great healthy batch of Common Milkweed (commonus milkweedus) at a local plant purveyor but was hesitant to buy any due to the recent heatwave. Super-hero that I am, I purchased said butterfly attractants and decided to plant them quickly and easily as a surprise!
         This morning I finished my watering and looked nervously at the 6 quart-pots. Confidence began to wane quickly. Sure, men women and children the world over do this, so could I...right? I had planned my work, established practical planting vorticies, solved for X. I put trowel to soil. Three inches in and I hit an electrical cable. Should I have called Miss Utility??? I backed-off and started again. Soil flew, sweat poured, nerves frayed. One down. More soil airborne more sweat and there were 2. Ditto ditto and 50 minutes had passed but there were three plants in the soil. Felt like I could use a shower but I pressed-on.
        As I stood to inspect my work the horror set-in. They were not even close to where I had intended to plant them! Too close to the edge, crooked and planted so deep I could hardly see the tops of the greenery!! I was crestfallen but with the underground wire I didn't know how to solve the situation. Clock ticking must keep going. The remaining three were to go in a bed approximately 8"x30". Dig dig, root, rock, Gatorade, plant plant plant. Not quite as deep as the first three but I had now displaced enough soil to bury a '56 Buick. A bit of mulch and a touch of water. Ok, a lot of water. These were my babies! I finally stopped watering them when the the folks at Spring Hollow Reservoir called and asked me to "STOP".
      When all was said and done, I was covered dirt, mulch and sweat. A pair of Carhartt pants trashed, knees and low back ached and I had consumed enough Gatorade to float a small water craft...and I had a new respect for those of you who do the hard work of planning, planting and curating gardens and habitats.
      To recover from the morning's debacle, I spent the afternoon with my old friends Mower, Blower, Felco pruners and Silky hand-saw. Ahhhhh, back to super-hero work!

P.S. I also knew that I would be guest blogger today so my head nearly spun itself free of my person as thoughts and ideas raced inside. A new level of respect and appreciation was achieved for the bloggers who teach, entertain and share with the rest of us and ask nothing in return.
                                                                                Sincerely,
                                                                                           Julie's Husband

A New Bumblebee

2011-07-26T17:18:00.000-04:00

I love bees. I'm sure few people get as excited as I do when I find and identify a new-to-me species. First, I have to rewind a few weeks, when Jeff and I went up Blacksburg to the Friendly Garden Tour. At the first garden we visited, there were huge mass plantings of hostas in full bloom with purple flowers. They were covered in bees, most notably bumblebees. I wish I'd taken my camera! The wacky thing was, the bumblebees on those hostas were not the same species of bumblebee that I have in my yard, which is the Common Eastern Bumblebee (Bombus impatiens), of which I didn't see any in Blacksburg. They were much larger and had a yellow abdomen, the Common Eastern has a black abdomen. Roanoke and Blacksburg are only a 45 minute drive apart from each other, but somehow we have different bumblebee species?
Fast forward to Sunday night, I go out after dinner to look around the yard, to see what there is to see, and...holy cow! There's a yellow butt bumblebee! (I didn't know what else to call it, since ours have black butts, and Carpenter Bees are shiny butts) Luckily I had the camera since the evening has proven to be a great time to look for things and the light is great for photographs. I managed to get just this one photo in focus before it flew away. The plant it's sitting on is spotted knapweed, a non-native invasive growing along the golf course. I'm pretty sure it's the same kind of bumblebee that we saw up in Blacksburg, and it appears to be a Golden Northern Bumblebee (Bombus fervidus). Maybe we do have them after all and I've just never seen them, or maybe they prefer a habitat different than what our property provides. I have since seen one again in the same area, also on spotted knapweed.
I'm obviously not a biologist or an entomologist so maybe this isn't unusual. What is unusual and frustrating is we have two properties full of native flowers and native-cultivars, and I had to find that bee on a non-native invasive plant. Drives me nuts. (short drive, you're probably thinking) Do they not co-exist well with other species when that other species is much more dominant in number? All of our other bees seem to get along well, and we have a lot of bees. In any case, I hope it stays and lays eggs. And makes it way up the hill to our very bee friendly garden.

A blurry photo of one of our regular resident bumbles, Common Eastern, note the black abdomen

*As always, if you think I've made an error in identification, feel free to correct me, I'm not a professional.

Down by the River

2011-07-24T08:12:00.001-04:00

We live about a half mile up from the Roanoke River and Greenway. The Greenway is a paved recreation path that follows the river as it bisects town, and when complete, will be approximately 35 miles long. From my house, I can walk down to the river, walk a few miles out and back, and see a very diverse ecosystem much different than the one at my house or at Dean. It's great exercise and a great nature fix all in one.
On my last walk, I discovered quite a few swell things, one being a plant I'd never seen before other than in books or online...

Ironweed, not Boneset, Eagle Scout

This is Ironweed, aka Vernonia. It's a native that favors moist areas. Hence, here it is along the river and not in my dry yard.

Since I'm just learning to identify trees, I was excited to find so many Paw Paws growing along the river as well. Now I know why I saw dozens and dozens of Zebra Swallowtail butterflies along the river back in the spring, the Paw Paw is their host plant! Sadly it also favors moist areas and is not likely to find it's way onto our property. Judging by how many I see along the river, I don't think it's necessary anyway.

Paw Paw leaves

Paw Paw fruit

This butterfly landed on my shoulder, then flew up onto this tree, it looks to be an American Lady. I can add it to the ever increasing list of butterflies that we've spotted lately.

When I go for a walk I'm always interested to see what plant is most attractive to the pollinators, as a possible consideration to add to my landscape. The hands-down winner was this mint...

I'm pretty sure it's one the "bad" mints, non-native and escaped from captivity. I couldn't locate it in any of my wildflower books. However, it was literally covered in every kind of pollinator you could imagine, especially honey bees.

Honey Bee and Mint

Just 10 feet away from the huge mint there's a patch of native Joe Pye (Eupatorium). Not a single pollinator on any of it. What does that tell us?

I think the Joe Pye is leaning over because it's sad...

Well, my walk was short and that's about all. Plus, my camera battery died.

*Click the photos above to enlarge them, if your browser allows.

More Butterflies This Week

2011-07-20T09:00:00.001-04:00

Eastern Tailed Blue

Monday evening Jeff and I wandered out into the back yard, there was a break in the heat and the grass felt cool under my bare feet. It was actually pleasant for a change, the heat and humidity has been oppressive lately. Our faux prairie really comes to life in the evening, grasshoppers, dragonflies, butterflies, moths, and probably mice too, hidden under the layers of grass. Our recent butterfly population explosion seems to be continuing as Jeff found this little fella in the grass, then about a dozen or so more. The picture doesn't do it justice, it's so tiny, but so beautiful. It's wingspan is about an inch and it's flight pattern is very spastic, like a moth. I've never seen so many of the same species of butterfly in one place.

We also spotted several Halloween Pennants. They were all sitting on top of seed heads, like the one above, facing the setting sun.

Tuesday afternoon I spotted this butterfly on the hyssop. I could easily see it from inside the house, it was huge, approximately 4 1/2 inches across. It lingered for about an hour, feeding heavily from every blossom on my hyssop plants.

I'm guessing it's a Spicebush Swallowtail, but I'm not certain. The size is right, the colors on it's back are right, but it's lacking the second row of orange spots underneath. I just don't know what else it could be, if any of you out there have an idea, let me know! We have several Sassafras trees on our property, which is a secondary host plant for the Spicebush Swallowtail, so I've been hoping to see some.

*You can click on the pictures above to enlarge them, if your browser allows.

Butterflies from this Week

2011-07-18T16:48:00.000-04:00

With summer beginning to heat up, we've been seeing many more butterflies lately. Skippers are by far the most numerous, but photographing them has proved to be more challenging than even the larger butterflies. Here's a few of the highlights...

This is a Northern Cloudywing, the first one I've seen and identified. It spent all day going back and forth between my catnip plants, apparently the tiny nepeta blossoms were just the right size for this diminutive butterfly. Considering the size and dark color of the Northern Cloudywing, they'd be easy to miss if you weren't paying close attention.

This is a Red Banded Hairstreak, another uncommon visitor. However, it's so small, around 3/4 inch, maybe I just miss them. Sumac, their host plant, is quite common around here so we probably have more than we realize. They pack a lot of beauty into a tiny package.

We don't like dill, but these guys sure do. I planted two tiny dill plants back in the spring for the butterflies, but I hadn't paid them much attention since then. I stressed way too much over the monarchs and promised myself I'd adopt a laissez-faire attitude next time. I'd seen some black swallowtails lately, and obviously they found my dill.

Despite having monarch caterpillars this spring, this is the first monarch butterfly I've seen. Here it's enjoying the anise hyssop. I freaked out when I saw it and ran for the camera, this the best I could do. After not seeing one for so long, it looked so exotic!

I hope they keep coming!

Introducing...A 6 Inch Long Wasp!

2011-07-15T16:06:00.000-04:00

This is the beautiful and bizarre Ichneumon Wasp. For the second year in a row, Jeff has found one over at Dean, this time he was able to photograph it. It's body is only about 1.5 inches long, which is not unusual, however females can have tails (ovipositor) up to 5 inches. This particular individual was approximately 6 inches long, the Felco folding saw in the picture below is 6 inches. They can be quite variable in their coloration and appearance, but the female is quite unmistakable. Dean has quite a few dead trees on the property which undoubtedly play host to numerous species, this one included.

From an article titled The Amazing Ichneumon by Connie Hjelmeng-Johnson:

Ichneumon wasps are truly a study in contradictions. They look frightening, but they are harmless to people. They are highly numerous, but seldom seen. They are great allies against insect pests, yet few people know about them. Females penetrate wood with tiny ovipositors, but scientists don't fully understand how. And while they are common in the world of insects, they are certainly "uncommon" to those of us who have observed their amazing behavior first hand.

Phoebe Fledgelings

2011-07-12T17:05:00.001-04:00

The Phoebe chicks fledged yesterday afternoon. It was quite stressful for Jeff, who was keeping an eye on them, for safety. Just the night before, the weakest one fell out of the nest, but since Jeff had placed some old patio furniture and cushions underneath just in case (it's happened in previous years) he was able to quickly rescue it and place it back in the nest where it remained until fledge time. He had observed them earlier in the day standing on the rim of the nest cup, getting frisky, but they seemed too small to be considering fledging. We estimated it had been about 14 days since they hatched. I guess they know what they're doing! After making the jump, the parents called them up into the woods, and we have no idea where they are now, but Jeff's seen the parents hunting and heard them calling. There are 3 chicks in this picture, 2 are obvious and the 3rd is under a leaf on the left-middle of the photo. Good luck little ones!

A close up of the hiding chick

Critter Cam Update

2011-07-10T17:04:00.000-04:00

Our night-time critter visitations slowed down in June, but they've picked back up here in July. The skunk family seems to have moved on, we haven't seen them in the past couple of weeks. However the fox has returned and has been making regular visits again. We have a "mommy" deer visiting regularly also (she has teats), but we haven't seen her fawn(s) yet. The highlight of them all occurred on the 4th of July, when a deer and a raccoon were both feeding within view of the camera, and I'm guessing they weren't enjoying each others company. It's blurry but it appears they charged at each other. You be the judge...

Here's a "best of" collection from the past couple of weeks...

Our regular fox

Zombie!

They're getting along fine here...

Still ok...

"Who invited you?"

"You'd better back off, I have thumbs and I know how to use them!"

"Did you hear what he said to me?"

What the heck! Patience wore off I guess...

Two bucks playing nice

Eastern Phoebe Nest

2011-07-06T16:35:00.000-04:00

Jeff's patience finally paid off, he was able to capture some excellent shots of the phoebe nest over at Dean. They've used this same location off and on for several years, they build it on an old hanging light fixture up under a covered patio where they're protected from rain, wind, and climbing predators.

Mud and moss perfection

Look at those fuzzy little heads!

Looks like there's 3 chicks

"I'm next, I'm next!"

***Elsewhere over at Dean the blueberry bushes I planted about a month ago aren't attracting any birds yet despite the fruit being ripe. However, they are attracting little neices who like blueberries! Also good for attracting little neices is dill, which I planted for the Black Swallowtail butterflies, of which I've seen zero. I hope you enjoyed them Olie! Next year I'll plant more, enough for everybody. Don't worry, I'm not mad, I'm just glad somebody's enjoying them!

Happy Independence Day Everyone!

2011-07-04T09:09:00.000-04:00

Then join hand in hand, brave Americans all!
By uniting we stand, by dividing we fall.
~John Dickinson

I hope all of you out there have a wonderful day! Wear sunscreen, drink responsibly, and be careful with those illegal fireworks!

Here's a little red, white, and blue from my yard...

Serviceberries (from May)

Monarda "Raspberry Wine" (not red, but close)

Skunk! (with lots of white)

Shasta Daisy

Salvia "Black and Blue"

Catmint

*I tried to get pictures of a Cardinal, a White Breasted Nuthatch, and our daddy Bluebird, but they wouldn't play nice this morning.

Dragonfly Rescues and the Skunk Family Returns

2011-07-02T17:06:00.000-04:00

Over at Dean, there's an old leaky swimming pool with a disintigrating cover. Obviously it's dangerous to have a cover with holes in it, it will have to wait until winter because if we get it fixed now we'll trap who knows how many dragonflies. Every day Jeff saves countless dragonflies trying to emerge from the water, ready to fly away after their metamorphosis. It usually takes them a few minutes to warm up and dry off, then off they go. They are truly beautiful creatures, we hardly ever see any at home but Dean has a very healthy population of both dragons and damsels.

The skunks came back a few nights ago, little black and white whirling dervishes. We haven't seen them out before dark ever since. Although we miss seeing them, it is much safer for them to wait until nightfall.

*All of todays photos were contributed by Jeff*

A Swarm of Skunks!

2011-06-30T08:58:00.000-04:00

What do you call a group of skunks? I think swarm fits the description, considering how they moved across the back yard a few nights ago. For the past couple of weeks we've been seeing an adult skunk every night like clockwork at around 8:00pm, when it's still quite light out. This particular night it came out a little early, after a thunderstorm, and brought the family along for the first time. Momma led the way, and the four little ones held close but always in constant motion, almost swirling. From a distance it just looked like one huge skunk. They're so cute, as long as they keep their scent to themselves. We've had resident skunks in the area ever since we moved here almost nine years ago, some years it's miserable with them spraying all the time, other years they hardly ever spray at all. They like to dig, which can be annoying, especially around newly planted things where the soil is soft as they search for tasty insect morsels. I never cease to be amazed at what shows up in our yard.....

(I know, the photos aren't great, but how close do I really want to get to FIVE skunks? I had to act quick and I didn't have the zoom lens on)

Goldfinches Relieve Guilt!

2011-06-24T08:55:00.000-04:00

Don't feel guilty about not getting out there in the garden to dead-head your Coreopsis, they will become seed heads and goldfinches will appreciate it! I knew not to dead-head the Echinachea, but I didn't know about Coreopsis too. I've been dead-heading the plants to keep them producing flowers for all the small pollinators, but I decided to stop as flower production slowed down, as an experiment to see if any birds would be interested in the seed heads. I wasn't even sure if it was going to make seed since it's just a cultivar (Coreopsis grandiflora Rising Sun). I think it's pretty amazing how the birds know that those plants are a food source, even if they've never seen that plant before. I have a full feeder of thistle seed in the backyard, easy pickings, but this bird would rather hang on a milkweed stem and pull seed out of the coreopsis. Because it's natural!

Baby Broadwings!

2011-06-21T16:29:00.000-04:00

I know it's not the best picture, but right in the middle is a Broadwing Hawk nest with at least two chicks in it. My husband and I have been keeping our eye on it for the past few weeks, this is the first time I've seen the babies. Jeff spotted the nest after repeatedly hearing, then seeing the parents where we park our cars to use the trails on Mill Mountain. It appears they built their nest on top of an old squirrel nest in an oak tree. It's seems unusually low compared to other Broadwing nests we've seen, maybe 30-40 feet off the ground. It's so exciting, I wish them luck! I'll keep the blog updated with their progress, and hopefully better photos.......

Black Cohosh is blooming!

2011-06-19T09:22:00.000-04:00

One of my all-time favorite wildflowers is blooming right now, Cimicifuga Racemosa. I've seen it called black cohosh, bugbane, and snakeroot in different books and online, I don't know if one name is more correct than the others. Black cohosh was one of the first wildflowers I noticed when I was younger and was actually able to identify. It's impossible to overlook or misidentify this dramatic plant, it usually grows around 4-7 feet tall and is covered with insects when blooming. It's one of the few plants that grows well under the deep shade of a hardwood forest. In addition to being an incredible pollen provider, it's also a host plant for numerous butterflies, like the Appalachian Azure.

Never before have I seen so many bumblebees so deep in a forest! Unfortunately these pictures were not taken in my yard, I came across these plants on a nature trail, deep in shady ravine. However I do desperately want to add some to my collection. There are a few garden hybrids available, and I have two of them. One is called cimicifuga atropurpurpea, it looks very similar but the flowers smell sweet. The flowers on the wild version smell somewhat stinky. The other is called Kamchatka Bugbane. They both are extremely sun sensitive and prefer to have little to no direct sun at all. I love these plants, and so do the insects!

Gardening with Deer

2011-06-16T16:37:00.000-04:00

I'm sure everyone who's reading this has had at least one prized plant (probably more) ravaged by deer. You may have even thought to yourself "how can I create a habitat, especially one with host plants for butterflies and fruiting trees and shrubs for birds, if the deer eat it all?". Forget the deer resistant plant lists, they'll eat anything if they want to. From the thorniest of roses to poison ivy, to even monarda, which they're supposed to not like!
But this is a wildlife habitat, right? I think deer are unfairly blamed and maligned, it's the humans who have screwed up their environment. I try to accept and work around whatever challenge they may bring. One thing we have done, after they started nibbling on the dogwoods we planted this spring, is to put cages around newly planted trees. We bought some supplies at Lowes, 4 and 6 foot stakes and a roll of wire fencing, and caged our dogwoods until they could get established. This also helped prevent our resident diggers (raccoons and skunks) from digging them up looking for tasty morsels (yes, that happens a lot).

Over the past 3 months I have been trying out a new deer deterrent spray, Deer Out. I never had any success with Liquid Fence, so I tried not to get my hopes up too high, but Deer Out is different. It's mint based, whereas others on the market are garlic or urine based. It's working so well that I think for the first time I may actually see my daylilys bloom! Many years ago I planted some daylilies, before realizing we had deer, and I've never seen them bloom because it turns out daylilies are deer candy. We have deer pass through are yard virtually every night and so far, since I've sprayed the daylilies, not even a nibble! This is not a paid endorsement, I just want to let you guys and gals know about this product, there may be hope after all. We can garden with deer, not against them. I purchased mine direct from them here. I've even been able to get rid of the cages around my viburnums and they're ignoring my blueberry bushes. It really works for me (so far, I hope I'm not jinxing myself) and I hope you find it successful too.
Here's an interesting fact about deer.....One of the many reasons deer are overabundant on the east coast is due to a lack of a top of the food chain predator, namely the wolf. Our ancestors killed off the wolves in the 1700's when they settled here - they were a ''pest" to the sheep and cattle herds. Wolves, buffalo, and elk were abundant here in the Roanoke Valley 250 years ago.

One non-native I'm keeping, and a truckload that I'm not

2011-06-15T17:06:00.001-04:00

Here's a story of another non-native on our property. It's name is Ligustrum vicaryi, or Golden Privet. Privet is a well known invasive shrub across much of the country, and there are many different varities which can make identification a problem. In fact, it took me years to finally identify mine. The problem with privet is it usually spreads by both suckering and seed dispersal by songbirds eating the fruits. Luckily Ligustrum vicaryi neither suckers or makes fruit, and I have not been able to locate it on any invasive lists. (If anyone knows otherwise please let me know.) In the 8 years we've lived here I've never observed any naughty behavior from it.

What makes this privet so special? Why would I want such an ordinary bush in my yard? Because the butterflies and bees love it. Eight feet tall and eight feet wide, they are literally covered in pollinators when blooming and we have two of them. The only downsides are it's kind of scraggley looking and the flowers smell a bit stinky.

Just in case you're starting to think we're not commited to the removal of non-native invasives from our properties, here's what we're not keeping: Asian Honeysuckle Bush, Autumn Olive, Tree of Paradise (Ailanthus), Multiflora Rose, Wisteria and several others. This is an ongoing, neverending project, as many of you know. We (mostly Jeff) fill up this truck about once a week with invasives as we try to reclaim a 13 acre property from the evil grips of these plants. If it wasn't for the poison ivy, we could do even more. I'm extremely fortunate that my husband shares my enthusiasm for habitat restoration and creation, critters, birds, and bugs. In case I don't say it enough, thank you Jeff!

The decision was made for me

2011-06-11T10:37:00.000-04:00

   I have a confession to make. I ~~have~~ had a Butterfly Bush (Buddleia). I wasn't going to tell any of you out of fear I might be shamed. I'm trying to be a responsible habitat gardener with an emphasis on native plants, I had no idea when I planted it last year that it might be considered a bad thing.
   Buddleias are probably the first thing the average gardener plants when they decide to start gardening for butterflies. There it was, right in the middle of my butterfly bed, it was going to be my tall visual anchor along the front sidewalk. As I started to learn more about habitat gardening, I discovered what "non-native invasives" are, and Buddleia is on the list for Virginia. All these years I mistakenly thought Buddleia was native to the Pacific Northwest. I'd seen them growing "wild" there when visiting the Seattle and Snoqualmie area many years ago, they were in full bloom everywhere along the roadsides. Now I know what I really saw was an invasive non-native plant colonizing natural areas. So I had a dilemma, dig up my butterfly bush because it's on the invasive list for Virginia, or leave it because it doesn't seem to be a problem here in my part of the state? I've dug up Nandina, Autumn Olive, and Burning Bush with no remorse or regret, but Buddleia is such a great nectar plant, I couldn't decide and I felt guilty every time I looked at it.
   That brings us to Thursday. Boy, the butterfly bush looks awful. The leaves are yellowing, falling off, and the swamp milkweed next to it looks even worse. Oh no! Spider Mites! Crap! I've never had spider mites on outdoor plants before. Well, it looks like the decision on whether or not to keep this naughty non-native invasive was made for me. Since I don't and won't use pesticides, extraction seemed like the best remedy. Unfortunately, since it was also infected, I had to get rid of some milkweed, but I can buy more, and I can't have monarchs laying eggs on infected plants. Friday morning I went out and began carefully clipping the stems, trying not to shake them too much. I placed them in a trash bag, then scooped up all the surrounding mulch and any leaves that had fallen from the plants. Then I dug up the roots and carefully placed them in the bag also. After refilling the holes in the ground with soil and a light covering of mulch, I checked the other surrounding plants for mites. There were a few on the monarda fistulosa and agastache aurantaica, so very gently I rubbed each and every leaf on the plants, trying to smoosh any remaining mites. My fingers smelled great afterwards! The final step was something I read on the internet to do as a control, a hard blast of water to the plants, especially the undersides of the leaves. I'll repeat this until I don't see anymore for a while. It may take some time to truly eradicate the mites. I've always tried to avoid getting the leaves of plants wet for fear of powdery mildew, especially in that spot because I have two types of monarda there, but I'll trade spider mites for powdery mildew I guess. I sealed up the bag and into the trash can went my butterfly bush. Maybe the garden gods were trying to tell me something.....
   I still need a tall anchor for the space, so I grabbed an unused obelisk put it where the butterfly bush was, and I plan on planting a clematis virginiana on it, then maybe some more milkweed, maybe some joe-pye, goldenrod.....now I get to go plant shopping!

Spider Mites on the Milkweed

The naughty butterfly bush pre-extraction

Post-extraction, cut up, and in the trash

Lots of room for new plants!

Who's eating my Columbine?

2011-06-08T08:26:00.000-04:00

I've had my eye on the columbine lately, I'm waiting for the seed heads to mature so I can collect them before they pop and spill out. Apparently I wasn't watching closely enough! Last night I discovered these caterpillars chewing through the seed heads and possibly even eating the seeds.

Aahhhh! What's happening here?!

They appear to be Tobacco Budworms, and will eventually become moths. I also noticed on the same plant when it was flowering that somebody was chewing on the petals, but I didn't think much of it. Tobacco Budworms feed on many different types of flowers and vary greatly in color. They are widely considered to be a pest. I, however, try to be open minded and let creatures do their own thing (even if they are eating my seed that I was planning to share and distribute). They are only a "pest" because we humans think they destroy the pretty things we like to look at. They're not actually posing a threat to our or our pets' health. Ticks and Black Widows, now that's another story. They get squished. I even left a Bald-faced Hornets nest up last year- it was far enough away from the house and eventually they abandoned it. I guess I'll leave them alone unless someone can make a valid argument otherwise.

A few feet away from the columbine I found this Harvestman on my Agastache "Blue Fortune" (Anise Hyssop). I've never seen a black and white one before, only brown, and I couldn't identify it specifically. Did you know Harvestman, aka Daddy Long Legs, are not spiders? Although it looks like it has huge fangs, they are actually pedipalps, which act like hands. Also, its eyes are on its stomach. Pretty cool huh?

Prime Real Estate Oppurtunity!

2011-06-03T08:16:00.000-04:00

Attention all young home buyers! Especially you bluebirds, you know you want to raise a second brood. Available for immediate occupancy! Priced below appraisal, in fact it's free! Penthouse living at it's finest, 360 degree mountain views, move-in ready, hardwood floors, deluxe raccoon baffle installed in the basement, plentiful resources within ~~walking~~ gliding distance from your new home!

A male bluebird is previewing the property!

You never know how much you appreciate someones company until they're gone. Our tree swallow babies have fledged and the family has moved out. In the morning they were there, by the afternoon they were gone. The yard is just so quiet now, I really miss them. Every year when they fledge they leave for good. They don't seem to hang around and hunt here either. It's only been two days but I'm excited to see a pair of bluebirds checking out the box. We already have had one successful brood of bluebird babies fledge from our other box on the far end of the lot, maybe they want a change of scenery for family #2.

We saw this commercial on TV last night, it has to be the embodiment of Jeff and I! (in spirit, not appearance)

2011-05-30T15:40:00.001-04:00

My husband is a much better photographer than myself. He also has an appreciation for our wild kingdom and a great eye for spotting stuff. We both love finding, identifying, and watching all the wonderful insects out there, this is a collection of his best from the past couple of weeks.

Orange Patched Smokey Moth or possibly Black and Yellow Lichen Moth

American Grasshopper, boring name for an exotic looking and beautiful insect

Same American Grasshopper

Silvery Checkerspot caterpillar

Unidentified...

White Marked Tussock Moth, my favorite of the bunch

Unidentified cricket...

Likely a Buck Moth

How do Hummingbirds Drink?

2011-05-28T08:11:00.000-04:00

Have you ever wondered how a hummingbirds tongue works? Watch this video to find out!

<embed allowfullscreen="true" height="334" width="560" src="http://www.sciencefriday.com/embed/video/10383.swf" />

What's Blooming Now, etc.

2011-05-27T16:09:00.000-04:00

Lepidoptera Family, your table is ready, Asclepias Tuberosa is now being served

Clematis "The President" weaving in between Milkweed and Coneflowers.

Penstemon "Husker's Red" and Nepeta "Six Hills Giant"

An anonymous Columbine still getting it done. These have now spread all over the yard and have been blooming since early April.

An anonymous Coreopsis

The Serviceberries are almost ripe, the birds have really been checking them out.

A Soldier Beetle on Astilbe

Ladybug at sunset

Whoa! Looks like the deer is not too happy to see the skunk. I can't tell you how many times we've been awakened in the middle of the night by skunk spray being pumped in by our our conditioner unit. I can assure you it's not pleasant.

Friends in the night?

2011-05-24T16:13:00.000-04:00

A Deer and a Raccoon sharing a meal and a moment

Not the greatest pictures of course, but cute none the less.

If you're a mischievous critter lover like myself and you haven't seen The Fantastic Mr. Fox then you must! This guy reminds me of Kylie (the possum) with his swirly eyes.

Speaking of Mr. Fox (or Mrs.?).....Simply beautiful.