Orange and not orange...

My porch is surrounded by nasturtiums and a pumpkin vine!

I tried to get them to climb a stick, but that didn't work well. Next year I think I might shape something out of chicken wire and a tomato cage to see if I can make them grow up that!

I really do love the way they try to take over. 

The plants actually grew on a chair after I coaxed the vines.

I will miss this riot of orange and green after the frost hits.

Here is an old barrel with a skeleton goat and one of the pumpkins that got chewed on. Since the other ones grew up nice, I may toss this one back in the pasture for the red headed mules to munch on.

I do adore the warty pumpkins, they have so much character!

And the stars of the oranges are the Nasturtiums.

These old time orange ones really shine and do so well. I've tried other colors and they aren't as prolific as these seem to be.

And not Orange.

Lil' Richard out in the morning light near the old oak.

This was another hot hot day. The humidity was pretty intense in the morning but that evaporated quickly.

I didn't get out in the woods to hunt up those maple trees across the field. For whatever reason, it seemed like grabbing a blanket and sitting under the pines in the shade with Charlie was a better choice late this afternoon. The breezes were soothing and cool under the trees.

So we just enjoyed the quiet time.

Tonight is a full moon with a partial eclipse happening! I hope to be able to stay awake for that!

AND...I missed a wonderful display of the Aurora Borealis last night. 

 

Happy August

 

It has started out very August-y. Hot Hot Hot. But the gnats have started to dissipate here and being out in the flower garden is more comfortable [in the shade]. 

I am bummed. I woke up yesterday morning and listened for our resident wren. She/he always sings and scolds me when I go out with Charlie. In fact several wrens generally serenade the yard each summer morning.

I was left wanting. 

Their voices have disappeared. Left in their place are crickets and an occasional Robin, Wood Thrush, and Woodpecker voice in the predawn. Another voice not heard is the Red Wing Black Bird. The birds are starting to migrate.

Hmmm. Not to be a bummer, but I read somewhere that August is also the month where we lose a significant amount of daylight. 😔 

I still feel like it should be ... more nice summer and not heading towards fall. But that is how nature works, right?

Time waits for no one?

However, August is the time for flower gardens to shine in their glory with annuals!

My Zinnias that were not doing well have finally hit their peak! So color me happy!
They aren't as plentiful or tall as they have been in years past, but I adore being able to cut bouquets of them and add color to my kitchen counter.

This side garden of flowers was all my leftover seeds from last year. I did not expect to have this!

The girls say good morning!

Here is a closer shot of the orange cosmos bunch. They are thick as thieves and I don't think any weeds even grew up in between them. So much for spacing them out a few inches. I just dumped the seeds on the ground and raked it, then stomped them into the dirt. 

I'll be gathering a lot of these seeds again this fall.

This makes me smile even though August races us towards Fall.

Some other stray cosmos got in the mix. My favorite colors of cosmos are the multicolored ones, but the orange ones sure are prolific with their fern like foliage and bright colors.

And then there was a huge surprise. A white Malva aka known as Prairie Mallow came up in the middle of the orange cosmos!

They are related in a way to Hollyhocks, but are more sturdy and readily reseed. I hope to see more of these white beauties next year. I'll have to collect their seeds even though they will do it themselves.

The humming birds are going crazy over the 4 O'clocks in the evening and through the morning. The flowers close up during the day and re-open with a sweet scent all evening.

I have hundreds of these plants on the west side of the house.

Every year now, I collect Nasturtium seeds and replant a few around the porch. Each August I am always surprised as to how they want to spread out and take over everywhere. 

I let them. Here they crowd out the stepping stones to the porch. The violets are volunteers from a hanging planter I had there last year. They actually are doing better as volunteers than they did in a hanging pot.

I'm going to let the plants do what they want and just carefully go around them.

I have one more spot that I planted with Zinnias and Cosmos. It is an area where the old veggie garden used to be. Next year I hope to add another small extension of carefree flowers. 

The morning glories have gone crazy and have covered the wagon wheel. I had to put out a couple of posts to give them more climbing area.

Have a good weekend and stay cool. 

Color Blasts

 

The above photo was taken while it was drizzling and very overcast. Charlie and I decided to go to our favorite place to go for a hike despite the weather. When I saw the incredible colors on the hillsides, I found a side road to pull off on and stop.

I live in the likes of these hills and heavy forests. This side road is on the flood plain of the Kickapoo River. It is one of the rare 'flat' areas in the region. 

Since I live surrounded by large forests and valleys, I enjoy walking in the morning and afternoon to catch the sunlight that streams down on changing leaves.

The colors are beautiful as they always are. I imagine that things will really get going and be done within two weeks around here. 

The deep forest is still quite green in most areas but splashes of color are all peeking through.

This time of the year I generally walk up and down this old 4 wheeler trail and watch as the forest turns colors.

In a few more years, the forest will grow back over the trail and it will be hidden from view, but for now, I'll enjoy it.

Soon all these maples and other trees will start to drop their yellow leaves and the path will look golden. Then...it all disappears. In the late fall and winter, this makes for an interesting walk too. 

I went by one of the wild apple trees and decided to pick some for some apple sauce or more jelly. This tree is fun to watch in the late fall from a stand I have in my pasture. The deer come through late fall and winter to eat the fallen fruit.

Walking back to do chores I found another huge flush of Chicken of the Woods! This time on an old Ash tree stump that we'd tried to burn. This is our old brush pile.

Seems the color theme of the day was of reds, yellows, and orange colors!

I'm so pleased that my Lego People are always around to lend a hand.

Beautiful Morning....June 1st

I woke up early which is normal for me in the summer. As soon as my sleeping body senses a light change, I am up.

Charlie followed me around the house and demanded breakfast as I as started making my morning decaf coffee. 

I walked outside with him and looked to our east. It was still pretty dark, however the sky looked amazing.

I grabbed a to go cup and my keys. Charlie wasn't letting me go without him. There was a time when he would run and hide any time I grabbed the keys. Now? He is a car ride nut case.

We headed up to the spot where two of our gravel roads intersect.

I've photographed this ridge for nearly 10 years at least so I generally know where I want to go for a shot. I let the folks in the new house on the corner know that I parked or walked up to the intersection often in the middle of the night or predawn.

They have no issue with that.

Charlie got out of the car and explored the crops while I watched the land start to appear.

The sky just kept me amazed. 

I kept trying out different shots and some were up to 10 seconds long. The clouds were barely moving. 

Then for the last shot, I decided to go wild or go home....

I don't normally do HDR but sometimes it can be fun.

Happy June 1st. Looks like a beautiful weather day!

Distractions

I have the mind of a wanderer. Did you ever set something down right there, and then promptly forget where right there is? 

I do. I have to chuckle at that often. During my physical, I had a 'memory' test. I was sure I'd flunk given that I set my cell phone down, or my keys, and immediately forget which flat surface I dropped those things on.

I start to fold laundry and end up vacuuming because I see Charlie hair roll across the floor. That morphs into cutting up squash to cook and freeze while I am cleaning, washing dishes...and OH...wait, I was folding laundry!

What is this mean? Is my mind filled with gobbledee gook or what?

This past week has been especially distracting. IF I do not write down my list of To Do's with a cup of coffee first thing, I will definitely get off track for the day.

My father used to say that a distracted mind was a sign of being creative. My mom would say different and I think her mind always was calculating and spot on.

So for our Sunday Stills yesterday we were to go out and take shots from a bug's eye view. That is not an issue for me at all.  I have a flip screen on my DSLR and my pointy shooty camera is tough so I will lay it on a log or in debris to get those close to the ground shots. I like those views anyway.

I live surrounded by a cluttered forest. So my attention always falls to the forest floor. 

The afternoon light filtered through the trees above ... on a hillside...

But then above me ... more light.

and Charlie who is searching all tree trunks for any squirrels he can chase...

...then the sun and leaves provide a stunning scene along the trail.

So I just start to walk through the afternoon light in an aimless sort of way back to our place. I start finding fungi, moss, and interesting little things. I realize that as soon as I stopped concentrating on the one thing I set out to do, I was having much more fun.

I must be destined to have a distracted mind.

When I got to the house I spotted a butterfly. A spotted Sulphur, I think. So I dropped my stuff on the porch and completely forgot about getting things ready for supper and doing chores.

A tiny bee landed on the butterfly and then took off. Thanks to the feature on this camera that starts photographing before you press the shutter? ... I got the bee taking off from the Sulphur's wing.

How cool is that?

I eventually decided that I had better go in the house and get some stuff ready for supper.

Otherwise, I'd get distracted by something else important. Like watching the afternoon light on the trees that still have leaves.

I'll be that old lady that wanders off in her PJ's because she saw something pretty or interesting outside and just thought she'd go take a look.

Then she'd keep on going...

It's about trees, I think

 A while ago I read a book that mention the interesting but odd tree or bush if you called Witch Hazel. So I started paying attention to the local trees and bushes on my walks around our gravel roads.

For the life of me I ran across one particular bush or small tree that I could not Identify. It confused me to no end. I looked up Witch Hazel as I was pretty sure that this odd plant had to be it.

I was sure until I was hiking at KVR and spotted a real Witch Hazel bush!

Those strange looking flowers gave it away. It was alongside the trail  crowded with every other imaginable plant.

Now that I know where I can find them, I will have to make sure to go back when the leaves fall and take another shot of them. 
The idea of them being so odd makes them something I'd love to have in my yard.

The other bush or small tree that I thought was the Witch Hazel was obviously not one. However I finally nailed it. No book showed it the way I was seeing it. And what plants have catkins in the fall? 

I used that to start my search and I found this to be

A Hazelnut Tree or Bush...

August photo:

Two weeks later:

I must say they really are kind of pretty. 

I've counted about 4 of these alongside one part of the gravel road. Again they are sort of hidden amongst many other trees and bushes. But I found them exotic in a way. 
They are obviously much different than oaks and maples which also line this road along with dogwoods.

And then finally on my walk Tuesday morning:

Apparently the catkins stay there all winter. They are the male part of the bush/plant and flowers will appear on the ends of the female branches come spring.

Nuts will appear in the late summer and if a person likes Hazelnuts, they have to get to them before the birds and other wild creatures do.

I know I will walk up there during one of the first frosts or snows and see if I can't get the catkins covered in white!

Another favorite of mine, Bittersweet in August:

Bittersweet October 5th:

The berries will disappear over winter.

The Dogwood in August looked like this:

Now? Just barren branches with no leaves.

I think I may have identified a pin cherry. But I am not sure quite yet. I need to do a bit more research.

I'm starting to recognize the trees and brush. This was something I never really paid attention to before. But what the heck. Learning is fun.