Sunday, June 27, 2021
Bees And Butterflies
Wednesday, June 23, 2021
Self Planted Beauties
Monday, June 21, 2021
Racoon Tales
Here I got the best side of the racoon both for him and for me. Racoons are cute and furry with a lovely striped tail, but they also snarl and hiss and have impressive teeth and nails. Wild racoons are best left in the wild. I know that from long experience.
It was about 60 years ago that I learned that lesson. My parents went to pick wild high bush blueberries. I really loved animals in those days. As luck would have it my Dad came upon a baby racoon in a bush where he was picking. He captured the beautiful little creature by throwing his jacket over it. I don't remember exactly how we got it home, but I do remember putting it in a makeshift cage in the basement. I gave it plenty of food, even a chocolate chip cookie, and some water. I went to bed happy but I will never forget that night. That racoon whined loudly. I went downstairs, turned on the light and sat with it and all was quiet. It seemed like the baby was asleep so I crept up the two flights of stairs to my bedroom and collapsed into bed. When the mournful cries of the racoon started again they were louder than ever. I remember making many trips to quiet that baby racoon before it woke my Father. It was still dark when he got up and returned the racoon to the blueberry patch. We both learned an important lesson about racoons that night. I'm smarter now. I'm smart enough to let this racoon find his own way home.
Sunday, June 20, 2021
Cleistogamous Found
This photo shows newly forming flowers on the more common Partridgeberry. Aside from the two flowers joined at the base intending to form a single seed carrying berry, this plant will help us remember when Polygala begins its possibly summer long process of making viable seed.
Sunday, June 13, 2021
Native Plants Almost Gone Wild
Directly adjacent to the roadway, sword like leaves grew but no flowers were seen. Blue flag is another native plant that we have purchased but we were unsure about their actual identity. They closely resemble Siberian iris so our question was valid. Since a nearby bog is loaded with Blue flag growing in shallow standing water, there is a chance that these plants grew from their seed. These flowers are the first to appear here and with any luck we will have a total of six blossoms. It is solidly possible that these native plants grow in close proximity to each other in a natural setting. The fern also meets the conditions to escape a jerk from the weeder. The gravel bank hill delays the arrival of direct sunlight so these plants are slow to begin their year's growth escaping some of the harsh temperature swings of early Spring. If we can eliminate the Garlic mustard, there is an excellent chance that these plants will survive on their own. Brilliantly colored red flowers should fill this area later in the year. More photos can be expected.
Saturday, June 12, 2021
Going Native
Partridgeberry is a plant that grows wild here. When Ed last moved trailing arbutus here it was when long time friends moved away. He never moved arbutus plants in October before. He had no choice. It was his last chance. That was in 2019. Sadly the Trailing arbutus died. However, the Partridgeberry and the Wintergreen that came along with it are doing great. Partridgeberry is to my way of thinking a perfect native plant. The leaves are attractive. The red berries are edible and have the unique mark of two navels. I was delighted to see that the twin flowers are starting to bloom. One flower is open here but there are more buds showing. Knowing when your favorite wildflowers bloom makes them so much easier to find!
Wintergreen is also a perfect native plant. It has a reputation for being somewhat difficult to transplant and that has been our experience. It is almost three years later and finally we are finding new growth on these plants. I love to chew on fresh wintergreen leaves, but these are forbidden fruit! It was not until I saw the photo that I noticed the tiny beginning of wintergreen flowers. If we have flowers we might have berries. Wow I love teaberries! These plants had beautiful berries when they were moved. I will keep watching and perhaps see them again!
Thursday, June 10, 2021
Invasive Pests
This is another European immigrant. It is easy to understand why daisy seeds were intentionally brought from their European homeland to bring a touch of home to this new land. We have tried, mostly unsuccessfully, to grow large swaths of commercially offered larger plants. This cluster was pulled from the level ground at the base of our gravel bank to see how it liked the open area near our woodland garden just last year. It seems to have settled in. We know that this plant will take and hold considerable ground so we intend to move it nearer to the south edge of this area when a now wild area is cleared.
Wednesday, June 2, 2021
Simply Beautiful
This plant is a true biennial. Its first year of growth consists of a low rosette of leaves supported by a deep taproot. These young plants fill both our planting beds and the stone paths between them. We will have a generous display of mostly purple colored flowers next year but this year is nearly empty. To break the cycle of flowers every other year, plants would have needed to be brought in for two consecutive years. I simply did not take the time to guarantee great displays every year. We do have a few plants in flower this year so eventually the problem will self correct.