Category Archives: Uncategorized

Where the Words Live

  Writing about our backyard requires words.  Lots of them, of high quality.  So I keep a supply of all the best words handy, and, in this house, they mostly live in the book up above, which, as you may … Continue reading

Posted in Books, Musings, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

Going Native

Our yard—front and back—is a curious place, located at a cultural and environmental crossroads.  Depending on one’s point of view, our yard is a treasure, an eyesore, an oasis of biological diversity, a blight on the neighborhood, something to be … Continue reading

Posted in Gardening, Landscaping, Musings, Native Plants, Society, Uncategorized, Wildlife | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

The Ballad of Quercus flatus: A Tale of Spring

The sap is rising in our backyard.  Spring has finally sprung (we think), after a couple of false alarms, and signs of life abound.  Our redbud is budding red, our wahoo is leafing out and preparing to flower (Wahooooooo!!), our … Continue reading

Posted in Insects, Musings, Natural Areas, Photography, Seasons, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

A Miracle of Monarchs

We have seen very few Monarch butterflies in our backyard for the last two years, but that doesn’t mean they are not there.  Caterpillars are showing up on our milkweeds, so it seems that they must be making whoopee somewhere, … Continue reading

Posted in Insects, Native Plants, Photography, Seasons, Uncategorized, Wildlife | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Unnatural Selection: Cardinals, Cowbirds and the Mob

There seems to be something attractive about plant stands near our front and back doors.  So far, we have tried to assist in three attempts by Carolina Wrens to use them as nesting sites, which makes getting in and out … Continue reading

Posted in Uncategorized, Wildlife | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 28 Comments

Scanning Nature 2: Queen Anne’s Lace

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Scanning Nature: Great Spangled Fritillary

   

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