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Ironweed – Gone To Seed
Ironweed (Vernonia) with brilliant purple flowers, blooming in July. Blooms that attract many butterflies and other native pollinators in search of the pollen and nectar that the flowers provide. Now those flowers have turned into seed heads. During autumn and winter many birds will eat the seeds including Goldfinch, House Finch, and Song Sparrows. And…
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Why The Name – Blackberry Lily?
Blackberry Lily (Iris domestica) Thanks to inspiration from Thomas Jefferson’s gardening mentor, Philadelphia nurseryman Bernard McMahon, seeds of this plant were sown at Monticello in 1807. Now, one of many favorites in my yard. In 2005 this plant was moved to the genus Iris and given its new scientific name thanks to molecular DNA sequence evidence. Here,…
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Copperhead
Out on a walk this morning, I came upon a Eastern Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix), appearing to be frozen on the path in front of me. It stayed there for 5 or 10 minutes just watching me, being perfectly still. Made me think of some creatures that freeze and seem to be saying through mental telepathy, “You…
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Blue-winged Wasp
A Blue-winged Wasp (Scolia dubia) enjoying Apple Mint (Mentha suaveolens) in one of my gardens. This is a wonderful wasp to have in the yard. The female tunnels into the soil to find Japanese Beetle grubs (Popillia japonica). It will lay its eggs on those grubs, and as the eggs turn into larvae, growing and…
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Aromatic Aster Time
I was thinking that it was about bloom time for the Aromatic Aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium) and sure enough this afternoon I came upon a few flowers. Just the beginning. It’s an herbaceous perennial, native to parts of the eastern and central United States, grows 2 to 4 feet tall. It’s the host plant for the…
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Wild Ageratum
Wild Ageratum (Conoclinium coelestinum) native to eastern and central North America, where it blooms from July to November. Here in central Virginia it usually blooms in late summer into early autumn. These beautiful lavender flowers attract birds, butterflies and bees. In these two images, there is a Sachem Skipper (Atalopedes campestris) demonstrating how attractive the…
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Carolina Wolf Spider
Today before lunch, this spider was found just outside the garage, here at the cabin. This is a Carolina Wolf Spider (Hogna carolinensis). After I got my pictures I realized I should have had something in the image for scale, but in reality it was moving so very quickly I could not have managed that.…
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Curious Betelgeuse
Betelgeuse, my very curious GrandKitty, peering over the top of the table. I can imagine her thoughts, “What’s for dinner?” Or is it, “Is there something up here for ME?” ________________________________ If you would like to receive my daily blog posts by email, sign up here!
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A Little White Moth
Lesser Maple Spanworm (Speranza pustularia) with a wingspan of 3/4 to 1 inch. Their favorite host plant is Red Maple but will settle for other Maple trees, and many others trees like Birch, Poplar, Fir, and Hemlock. This moth can be found in the United States east of the Great Plains and in adjacent Canadian provinces.…
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And POOF! They Are Gone!
Oodles of them. And so much action it’s impossible to count them, unless of course I cheat and take a picture of them. This particular moment I think I see 13 Ruby-throated Hummingbirds (Archilochus colubris), blurred by their insane movement. And then something startles them. Perhaps someone uttering the word, “autumn”. And then – POOF!…