Flora and Fauna

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"A rose by any other name..."



I love roses and rose bushes. This time of year, there's a rather large bush that's always ablaze with roses and rose buds. I love the delicate lines of the rosebuds....they're so calm and soothing!





The Weird Tree...

I'm not sure what type of tree this is, but it's rather interesting. Every year, I'm absolutely fascinated by the seed pods it produces. They produce a very pretty somewhat pink "puffed tri-fold" seed pod. It's amazing. They look like little suspended pillows that just seem to float with the breeze.





















"A field of dreams..."

Everywhere I look there are fields and fields full of Golden Rod....just waiting for the natural dyer to stop by and harvest some to create beautiful yellows and golds. I dyed some roving with Golden Rod two years ago - it was beautiful! I used alum and the golden rod flowers...and finished the dyeing process with shaved ivory soap to create a rich golden yellow.











There is a fungus among us...

These two growths were fascinating and rather large. The first one was growing from the ground and looked somewhat like a wrinkled leaf until I took a closer look. The second one was forming a natural "tutu" around the trunk of a tree or perhaps it's forming one of those Grecian or Italian wall shelves......fascinating!











A little tart...


The persimmon trees are all heavily laden with their very tart fruit. The first frost isn't far away...and then these lovelies will be made instantly sweet and ready to eat!



An unexpected eco-system...

Ah...to some, this appears to be a simple park bench - a place to rest and catch your breath. However, if one were to take a closer look, a miniature eco-system would soon be discovered. Little bugs and ants scurry across the top of the bench and encounter lichens and moss growing on various parts of the bench.....or hiding in the shadows below the seat. But there's more! If you look closely, you'll discover other flora growing in a straight line from a crack in the seat. It's amazing! I didn't think there would be enough "food" wedged in the cracks to sustain flora such as this! Be sure to click on the pictures for a closer look - the plant life growing there is quite substantial.











Busy as a Bee...

Amazing...the butterfly (or is it a moth? I forget how you tell the difference!) had no qualms about joining the bee for a quick sip of nectar. And the bee didn't seem to be bothered in the least at having to share the thistle flower.











"Where the deer and the antelope play..."

This doe and fawn have been hanging out in our neighborhood for several weeks. They are beautiful creatures to watch. I suspect that these two were the culprits that chowed down on my neighbors corn just as the tassles browned late last month!

Every time I left my camera at home, these two would dance around the forest....however, if I had my camera with me, they became "stealth deer" and hid in the woods. Perhaps they're a bit camera shy? Thankfully, DH managed to catch a quick photo with his cell phone camera.

Big turtle, little turtle...

Last week, I found a rather large turtle meandering the grass next to the walking path. He was nearly as long as my sneakers! (Sorry...I didn't get a comparison shot, but he's much larger than the leaf next to him.) This morning, I found a very small turtle wandering the path. The little guy was only as big as the front of my sneaker! The patterns and colors on both of their shells was substantially different. Awesome shells on both of these guys!
























I found the shell top of the little turtle to be absolutely fascinating. I loved the "brown on brown" colaration. The resultant pattern reminds me of modular knitting...perhaps a mitered square? I'm thinking that this pattern would make a fabulous project - a felted bag or a vest of some sort.



"Butterflies are free..."

This poor monarch flew very slow and a very limited distance. Apparently, the chilly weather was a little much for this lovely specimen. Barely able to fly, this poor little guy slowly moved from sunny spot to sunny spot. Each time the monarch changed branches, it flew further and with a bit more vigor as it absorbed much needed warmth from the sun. By this time next week, it may be too cold to encounter any of these lovely creatures...