A Closer Look?...

While experimenting with my camera trying to get some closeup shots I took the following photo. Yes, it's our common "weed" the Dandelion! When you look at it closely it is beautiful! Perhaps we should look more closely at other things around us!

Here is the fresh growth on an evergreen tree at the edge of my lawn...

And the closeup view...

The white Trillium is blooming at the end of my driveway.

And again,... a closer look!

It's been raining for a couple of days now, I wonder what will be blooming when the sun comes out? I will be looking more closely!

Looking Up and Looking Down,...

Yesterday the outer bands of clouds generated by tropical storm Hanna gave us a heavy grey sky all day. Only a few sprinkles of rain fell. The Adirondacks are several hours drive inland from the Atlantic coast so we had only a dreary and cool day.

I stood outside my carport facing the west to take the photo above,.... as I turned to go back in the house I realized right at my feet there were several small Queen Anne's Lace flowers growing by the edge of the lawn.
It is good to not be too busy looking up to look down,.... or not too busy looking down to look up. Sometimes a lovely thing is right there waiting for you to notice it!

Right under my nose!...

Yesterday morning I heard a mysterious "thumpety, thumpety,... thump!" back and forth across the deck on the front of my house. After hearing it two or three times by the time I got to the sliding glass doors to check it out I laughed to see it was my cat, Midnight. She was cavorting around on the deck and then jumped down and ran around on the lawn below it, even into the edge of the woods and back. This was not her usual behavior.

So, playing detective, I followed her back to the side of the house ..... ahah! She was sniffing and rubbing against a plant. I came to the computer and did a search as I thought after rubbing the leaves it might be catnip. It was. Here was a catnip plant less than a dozen feet from my door, and I'd been paying for a little bag of it at Petsmart! So I will scout around here and see if there are more plants and dry my own for her this fall.

Midnight is a very happy cat and I'm still laughing.

Turning colder, turning golden,...

At 6:00 p.m. yesterday the thermometer in my carport read exactly 60°. That chillier afternoon temperature tells of things to come. Officially, Fall does not arrive for another four weeks, but at times it is already in the air.

Bearing testimony to the approaching colder season, the tips of the sumac leaves are turning golden.
The bountiful rain all summer long has created an environment where mushrooms are growing in the lawn, ... also golden.

Of course the Goldenrod is blooming all across the fields and woodland edges,...

And one final golden lily blooms in my flowerbox along the side of the house. Farewell to summer!

New kid on the block,...

The past week or two I've noticed a lovely, tall and rosy colored flower in a few places along the road near my home. I had not noticed this in the past. Something new?

I consulted with one of my favorite reference books, "North American Wildlife," edited by Susan J. Wernert, and matched it with a photo of Sweet Joe-pye-weed. According to the listing it's prevelent in the eastern half of the country. However, I am very certain it's not been here in our immediate locality before. An internet search shows it as a native wildflower, whose blooms attract swallowtail butterflies, so I will say "welcome!"
I will be watching next summer to see if it has spread further. What a welcome new neighbor!

After the rain,...

And finally,... sun.

Blueberries....

While camping last week at Macomb Reservation I realized that the ground was covered with low lying wild blueberry bushes! There was plenty there for everyone,... I only picked some for breakfast. With the amount of rain we have had this summer in the north country they are lush, large and sweet!

Invasion?...

In the past decade here in the Adirondacks several plant and aquatic species have been labeled "invasive species." Efforts have been made to eradicate or at least control, if possible, the spread of these species that in their own growth choke out our native plants.

I'll only show one of them here,.... purple loosestrife. It spreads along roadsides, and into fields. It eventually chokes out the cattails.
Here you can see a few loosestrife plants just beginning to invade a growth of cattails.


A pretty plant, with its tall spikes of brilliant rosy-purple blooms, some people have innocently transplanted it into their home's flower gardens. Over time those people may regret introducing it into their property.

If you wish to learn more about purple loosestrife and other "invaders" you may visit this site:

http://www.nature.org/initiatives/invasivespecies/features/art8863.html

Sweetest scent,....

Along the roads and in the fields this plant grows in abundance. The Common Milkweed,... considered a weed, for the word is contained in its name! But look at the lovely broad leaves, the tiny star shaped flowers growing in clusters,.. and most of all, breathe deeply the scent, -- a heavenly aroma!

I do not find anything "common" about this gift from nature. I guess it's like love, all in the eyes of the beholder!

Work to be done,....

Excavation for the full basement for this house created a pile of rocks nearby. Eventually many of the rocks were trucked away and only a few remain. Over many years I've had several false starts at creating a rock garden on that spot. My thought is to try to make something nice from a mess that was left behind. This summer I am tackling that job again. Here is the "before" picture!

I have a few things from earlier attempts that have survived amid the weeds. This Stargazer Lily is one of the determined flowers that won't give up waiting for me to make the rest of the rock garden attractive.

Stay tuned, in a few weeks I hope to have a nice "after" picture to post for you. But until then, -- there is work to be done!

Backyard Beauty -- Up Close and Personal!

How often do we walk outside and overlook nature’s beauty? While walking in the woods near my home I looked down and found a birds nest. It had tiny evergreen cones in it, and was weathered, obviously blown down during the past winter. Now on the ground it was once a safe home for a family of birds, the grasses though brown and soggy still hold the original tightly woven shape.



The ferns are such a vivid green this time of year. So young and fresh.



Mulleins are stretching upward, with their rosette centers. Later there will be a tall seedy blossom with yellow flowers. Their leaves are velvety soft. Try them as innersoles in your shoes!

Delicate Bittersweet Nightshade... This lovely flower produces red berries later in the season, but don't taste them, they are bitter. Some believe this plant is poisonous, like it's European "cousin."

Look closely at the bark of the White Pine tree,… notice the shades of grey and brown and tan.

See the rocks with whorls of lichen growing in such neat circular patches!

In my yard are dots of brilliant red,… wild strawberries, tiny yet juicy. Tomorrow before my grandson mows my lawn I will pick some for a special June treat.

The lesson learned,… never overlook what is right before our eyes, or under our feet!