-
Barred Owl
Barred Owl (Strix varia). Yesterday afternoon as I wandered out into the vegetable garden, I heard a great cacophony of bird calls. Much more than what I usually hear. Within seconds a Barred Owl flew out from its ill chosen perch and settled onto a branch across the way. Things settled down immediately. I went…
-
Spotted In The Garden
Spotted St. John’s Wort (Hypericum punctatum). The herbaceous perennial is native to eastern North America into southern Canada. The plant grows to 2.5 feet, though often shorter as it volunteers in my gardens. Aptly named, Spotted St. John’s Wort is covered with tiny spots. On petals, sepals, and buds. And tiny spots on leaves too,…
-
Carolina Horsenettle In Bloom
Carolina Horsenettle (Solanum carolinense). Native to the southeastern United States. All parts of the plant are poisonous including the berries which look like yellow cherry tomatoes. The stems, as well as leaves are hairy, and those stems, leaf midribs and petioles have many needlelike thorns. Carolina Horsenettle is in bloom right now. Watch out for…
-
Horned Passalus Beetle
As I was leaving the yoga studio yesterday morning a Horned Passalus Beetle (Odontotaenius disjunctus) greeted me on the sidewalk. One BIG beetle. They can grow to be 1.6 inches long and this one was certainly at least that long. Weighing in at 1 to 2 grams they’re able to haul 50 times their weight.…
-
Everlasting Pea
Everlasting Pea (Lathyrus latifolius) native to Europe. An herbaceous perennial vine that has 3 to 6 foot long winged stems. It’s occasionally found along woodland edges, at the sites of old homesteads or in this case at the site of an abandoned church along a dirt road in the mountains. The seeds of Everlasting Pea…
-
Larger Flat-headed Pine Borer
Well, that’s quite a name. And take a look at this beetle. It’s quite the insect too. It grows to a size of 1.25 inches. The Larger Flat-headed Pine Borer (Chalcophora virginiensis) can be found throughout the US, anywhere conifers grow, where they breed on dead trees and stumps but they will also breed on…
-
Narrow Leaf Sundrops
A native of eastern and central North America, Narrow Leaf Sundrops (Oenothera fruticosa). The bright red-orange buds lead to blooming in the late spring and early summer, for a period of about a month. Bees, skippers and butterflies are the pollinators of these flowers. As summer turns to autumn, the leaves of the Narrow Leaf…
-
Wild Geranium Seeds
In late April or early May, the Wild Geraniums (Geranium maculatum) up here on the mountain are beginning to show off their sweet, rich, pink. The blooming lasts for about a beautiful month. Though the plant continues the show without the dramatic color, still the show goes on. This the beak-like fruit of the flower…
-
Scarlet Beebalm And Morning Rain
Scarlet Beebalm (Monarda didyma) native to eastern North America. A delight for hummingbirds in the area, bees, and some sphinx moths. A cool and crazy looking flower that makes me wonder if Dr Seuss used it as inspiration for some of his drawings. Perhaps?
-
Plume Moths
While admiring Common Milkweed which produces an amazing fragrance across long distances, I discover several unusual looking insects. They look like a capital T or an old-fashioned airplane, with a wingspan of perhaps 5/8 inch. Feathery wings and spiny, delicate looking legs. These are Plume Moths (Pterophoridae). There are more than 1,000 species of Plume…