warts and all

 Just because it's September doesn't mean that we don't have COLOR!

soldier beetle in a zinnia

Brilliant purple ironweed...

The color of our apples tells me that it's time to start picking!

Some of our colorful autumn sedum is blooming...

...and the hydrangeas are starting to blush around the edges.  Yep, starting to look like fall!

Recent rain has absolutely flattened a lot of my tall flowers.  Every year I intend to build in some kind of support system, and every year it's just too late by the time I think of it.  But at least the downed flowers provide waves of color!

The weeds love our wet, humid days, and have gotten completely out of control in the back garden.  In the middle, I can see a bright patch of flowers...

...but the weeds have grown incredibly since the last time I mowed the paths.  I can't even get through to pick flowers for bouquets (ticks!), so I'm just enjoying them from a distance...and waiting for a break in the weather so I can mow again.  

Ditto for my pumpkin patch!  The weeds grew up through the vines, so I can just glimpse a bit of color against the green.  I'm not sure when to pick them, because I have no idea what I planted.  I guess I'll just pick them when I like the way they look!

warts and all!

The brilliant yellow flowers provide a nice pop of color, too. I know that I mentioned my worry over poor pollination, but what a relief...the pumpkin patch is absolutely crammed full of every kind of pollinator.  I counted three bees...four?...in this one flower alone!

Hairy pumpkin stems are a delight, too.

I've been keeping an eye out for squash bugs, and quickly took care of these three intruders on a young pumpkin.  After the fact, I realized that they were not squash bugs, but assassin bug nymphs.  What do you call someone who kills an assassin? ;)  Anyway, I deeply regret it, because they are wonderful to have in the garden.

Inside, kittens continue to be adorable.

Frances is continually begging Calliope to become his friend, but she ignores him.  It's kind of pitiful, hearing his sad trills every day, but I guess he'll give up eventually.  Calliope is definitely not interested in any kind of fellowship.

Frances has branched out to sleeping on my keyboard...

...and requires a twice-daily nap in my arms.  It's a good thing that I work from home!  ;)

Barnabas is starting to follow his example.  My lap stays pretty full...just like my days.  Loving this cooler time as we slowly slide into fall.

Have a great week!

feline work shirk

A wonderful sign of fall...our apples are starting to darken up.

This continues to draw deer, but I'm happy that they're satisfied with eating fallen apples and don't venture into the mammalian smorgasbord that is the flower garden.  A few apples and then a mad dash to the hedge.

They're becoming fairly comfortable with us watching their antics, and don't seem too annoyed...

...except by the biting flies that proliferate in late summer.

Another late-summer proliferator...the cleome.  These tall, spiky pink flowers were a bit of a surprise.  I'd forgotten how bold they were when I sprinkled a few seedlings around the garden...they're now the dominant force there.

They're a bit wild and unruly, so I'll be more careful next year.  They're annuals, but are rabid re-seeders.  I've collected a huge bag of seeds already and if I'm diligent, can probably quadruple the amount I currently have.  I could seed a whole field with these guys!

Eriophyid mites have infected another group of coneflowers...

...but otherwise, things are calm in the garden.  I'm seeing delightful signs that summer - my least favorite season - is nearing an end.

Autumn Joy sedum is starting to bloom.

My pure white Little Lime hydrangea is starting to get a tinge of fall color.

And a great fall bloomer, ironweed, is coming up everywhere in untamed meadows beyond the fences.  If you see a splash of purple looming in the roadside weeds and fields, it's probably ironweed.

It's actually a member of the sunflower family and named ironweed for the tough stem.  These tall fall visitors are great for butterflies and bees.  The tiny flowers look like little asters when opened...

...and thistles when closed.

They make great fillers in bouquets, although I had to be careful when picking these from along an overgrown fence line.  Todd found a hornet's nest out by the white barn, and hornets are busily entering and exiting the nest all day long!

They're great pollinators and die off when the weather gets cool, so normally we'd just leave the nest alone, but I'm not sure we'll be able to mow in the vicinity of the nest if it's occupied.  We're still deciding what to do.

Speaking of barnyard companions, Claudia is keeping an eye on us.  Sometimes she's in the tree...

..or keeping careful watch from the vicinity of our outdoor activities.

She proudly delivered another dead vole this weekend, proving herself to be both a cuddly, joyful cat and a great worker, too.  We love having her around!

Our other cats are somewhat less motivated to work.

That's okay...we'll still keep them around.  :)

Have a great week!

a bout of scout(ing)

Last week, Todd and I drove to Kentucky to retrieve some merchandise being stored in an uninhabited 101-year old farm house.  While Todd "wheeled and dealed" with the merchandise owner, I prowled around the property, trying to keep the sweat out of my eyes in the 103-degree heat. 

The buildings have fallen into dilapidation, for the most part.  Nature is slowly but surely reclaiming the space.  You can see the vines sneaking up the edge of the roof on this barn.

Similar vines stretch across the front porch...

...and up the walls.

A trumpet vine threatens to strangle a small shed. 

Trumpet vines are beautiful plants, much loved by butterflies and hummingbirds. 

They can be very invasive, though, so plant them on a trellis but never against your house.  They will take over!

I saw wild grapes on an ancient arbor, almost invisible in the weeds.

Bright purple ironweed lit up a dark corner...

...and wild meadow daisies made a cheerful show in an otherwise parched meadow.

This odd weed reminded me of a flower...

...except for the gangly stalks that grew out of its top.

These strange rainbow-colored spikes were clustered around the front porch.  What were they?

I did some research later and discovered that they are arem italicum, or the Italian Cuckoo Pint plant. They aren't supposed to be up until fall, but the drought and heat caused them to spike prematurely.  Also known as "Lords and Ladies Plant", the roots of arem italicum were boiled and then powdered and made into a starch that stiffened the ruffles and collars of 16th and 17th century clothing. 

I'm going to file this away for future reference...they make beautiful late fall and early winter-interest plants!

I saw maple bladder gall all over these maple leaves.

Tiny mites that have overwintered in the bark of the tree cause these bumps.  They feed and then lay eggs there.

Another strange growth or gall is affecting these leaves, but I don't know what kind!

A type of boring insect caused the holes in this tree. 

There are a few fruit trees there that still produce.  This mystery tree was just starting to fruit...

...but this apple tree had been producing for a long time.

The apples were shriveled in the heat, but are still tasty to local wildlife.  Some deer scat underneath the tree indicates that this is probably a favorite feeding spot.

There were other signs of life, too.  Lots of little skippers were visiting the still-green clover plants.

I spotted an old ootheca...

...and soon enough, one of its former occupants.

 There were lots...and lots...of googly-eyed grasshoppers.

Some were brown but most were green...

...with black-striped backs.

I saw these red paper wasps swarming around a tree and burrowing under the bark.

They shred the bark from trees and use it to build nests in abandoned buildings.  I did not go looking for one of those!

Lots of beautiful spider webs hung in buildings and even in the trees.

Try as I might, I was only able to spot a solitary spider, hidden except for one or two legs.

It's interesting what you can see if you're willing to look closely at something that at first sight, seems devoid of life!

There's no "knitting" or "stirring" on today's post.  Unfortunately, we're entering our 12th week of no rain and 100+ temperatures, and our A/C unit is in need of repair and is not putting out much cold air.  It's being serviced today, so hopefully I'll be able to make more than the perfect glass of ice water soon!

Have a great week!