After spending a morning painting, I was
glad to just take a leisurely ramble around
our property to assess the state of things--
living things, that is. Starting with the garden.
The tomatoes are looking fine. Two varieties
this year, Better Boys and Celebrities. First
sandwiches scheduled for July. We trust.
Here's a nice compact row of potatoes. And
not one potato bug yet! We can't wait to let
the grandkids help us dig some taters.
These healthy beans are white
half runners and will need poles soon.
That's a sampler of what Judy and I
planted. Now for a look at some of God's
Garden that is with us year-round.
Can't name this shrub. Though its flowers
resemble huckleberries, there's a difference
I can't quite get a handle on.
We enjoyed seeing this little wildflower last
year. Well, it's back, and I still don't know
what it is.
In the open area where timber was cut a few
years ago, a lush carpet of bracken fern has
established itself. Other ferns need more shade
and the dampness of streamside or swamp, but
the bracken thrives on dry uplands in full sun.
Its stiff, not-too-delicate fronds allow it
to retain moisture, in contrast to most ferns.
In early spring we observed some patches
of wild irises. It's past blooming time now,
but here's a newly-discovered patch, bigger
and healthier than the others. We'll be
watching it next March.
Judy commented on how this patch of
broomstraw looks just like an African savannah.
The resplendent shades of green abounded
everywhere, as the plant world flourishes
with the recent rains and mild weather.
This lone specimen of Royal Fern greets us
when we go down to our stream. There may be
more in the dense undergrowth accross the water.
And here's our little stream, beloved by us
and the grandchildren.
I've mowed the walking paths deep in our
woods, and here is where you must choose
your path. Unlike Frost's "The Road Not
Taken," you can backtrack and take both ways.
In fact, I highly recommend it.
The blooms don't show, but scattered among
these wetland-loving trees are Carolina Bay
Trees, a lesser-known cousin of Magnolia.
We had seen many blossoms the evening
before, so they must close up in the daytime.
This is the cactus plant that I showed on
a recent blog when it was full of blooms.
Those blooms are in business forming fruit now.
But this other prickly pear cactus, closer
to the house, is on a different schedule.
It will take a discerning eye to distinguish
between leaves and tiny pears in this picture.
But it appears, we will have another bumper
crop with our three 100+ year-old pear trees.
We've already watched them go from acorn size
to ping pong ball size. And they're still growing.
The final picture is the one that's not here.
Picture this: With camera in hand, I heard
a mighty stirring in the thick brush behind me.
I turned to watch a white-tail deer bound three
times as it vacated its sanctuary I had intruded
into. Just moments later, as I returned to the
house, this deer and its friend were leaving our
property very quietly and discretely on another trail.
I could have easily taken a picture, my camera was
right there. But in the time I raised my viewfinder
to my eyes I would have lost the magic of the
moment. So instead, I trust to my memory to
preserve that idyllic scene.
You get the picture?
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