Daily Musings

Thanks Andy!

I finally have something to post here. Not that I don't see alot of wildlife here in the country, I do, but I don't always have the camera with me.
For about a year now there has been this little black rabbit that I see almost every morning. He comes out of the woods and runs around on my neighbors lawn or mine. He has taken to eating the neighbors pet goats food, clover and now of course what ever he desires out of our gardens. Amazingly he does NOT destroy the garden, he is very gentle and not a greedy bunny! He and his mate were let loose 2 years ago by the people down the street and have survived, until last year his mate was hit by a car. Thats when I started to really pay attention to him as he was alone and I was concerned he would try to cross the road looking for her.
I often see him in the early morning when I go out to take pictures of my flowers. He never lets me get close enough to get a good picture so I had pretty much given up on catching him on film. This morning he must of had a change of heart or finally figured out im not a threat to him. He came up into the driveway in between my DH truck and mine and let me take several photos, getting closer to him each time. Here's what I got.

Pixie - he's so cute. Except for the white on the nose - I used to have a black rabbit when I was little. He retired to the chicken farm when he got older.

Anita ~ I too had some as a little girl, and some when I wasn't so little. This is Annie, she is a "Satin Dwarf Rex" picture was taken last summer, she passed away in Nov. at the age of 8 years old. (Rabbits life span is approx. 7-8 years)

Believe it or not....this was her best friend, Romeo. If you left the cage door open he would crawl in with her. If not, he would lay on the top of her cage.

This thread prompted me to take a walk through the field and here is what I found.

I see you've got the choke weed too! I sat out this morning and considered the weeds that frequent all our gardens. It totally amazes me that with little effort they thrive. We have an ongoing war with them and yet there always seems to be an infiltrator ready to drive us insane with their ability to survive even the most all out assault! The two that I battle on a continuous basis is the choke weed, which actually has a very pretty flower, and the crab grass. I would like to know why the crab grass always looks better than my grass!!! I don't water it, I don't fertilize it yet it thrives in every spot of my yard!!!!!!

I really think Mother Nature enjoys yanking my roots!

Pixie, I must send you a compliment. Your last collage is one of the best I've seen lately. It's worthy of hanging on anyone's wall. Very nice job!

Thank you nap! (blushing)

It disturbs me that people have pets and just turn them loose. I'm glad your little black bunny friend is surviving, pixie. I had a friend who had a series of pet bunnies over the years and they were so sweet. she made a cage out of a wooden playpen covered in chicken wire. had to watch them when they were out of the cage because they really like to chew the electrical cords....love the collage, too.

anita, my current foe is horsetail (equisetum arvense), a nice bright green ferny looking thing that is apparently almost impossible to get rid of. spreads by spores and underground rhizomes. pretty sure my landscapers brought in the spores from somewhere because I only have it in one bed, but it is rampant. I found an article that says if you crush the stems and paint on something with glyphosphate (roundup) it will travel to the roots and kill it from the bottom up. I can't really spray because it's coming up in the middle of everything that I don't want to kill, so painting it on is a good option. now just need the time to do it. I consider it a weed, but it is also an herb that is sold for hair, nails & connective tissues and a bunch of other stuff. maybe I should just eat it :-) with my luck, i'd be allergic

gram

Good idea about the 'painting' - I'll give that a try. I have a few other viney type things that like to pop-up all over the place, but since the root systems seem to be miles long, it's almost impossible to yank out!

Re: Roundup - My Dad uses cotton golves over latex gloves on his hands and dips his gloved hands in roundup and applies it to the weeds that way. He can control exactly where it goes and which leaves it gets on.

pixie - I love Romeo - he looks a lot like my Wallingford.

Nice collage, Pixie. Is the choke weed the white flower in the bottom left. We call that wild morning glory.
When I was a kid, I got the OK from my parents to set up a garden. I ordered a truck load of loam. It came with that loam and stayed there for ever.
This Spring I set up a new bed at the corner of my lot nearest the new construction next door. The builder had dug up my old neglected bed to connect to the sewer line. He was generous with the new loam, BUT there is that darn weed again. Now it's coming up in this new flower bed.
The two tall shrubs are all that remain from the old plantings.
Andy P

This hot weather has changed our schedule. Dog walks are at night, now.
There is quite a difference at night. We did the nearly 1 mile walk without encountering any vehicles.
It's very warm and the swimming pools are busy even at this hour. A few BBQs and parties continue. Some of the cooking odors make me drool. The Vietnamese create the most wonderful fragrances on the grill.
Sarah needs her walks or her old leg injury acts up.
She cornered a raccoon in the yard today. I was surprised to see one IN the yard in the day time. The yard is all fenced in.
She backed off when I called her, the poor coon never touched her. Half an hour later it had dug it's escape under the fence. I refilled the hole.
The cicadas are buzzing again, for 3 days now. It must be mid-summer.
Andy P

The cicadas seem extra loud this year. Or is it just me?

I think that they have "pumped up the volume" this year.

I went to the beach this morning. The ocean waves always mesmerize me. Watching the swells and trying to guess which will wind up being a large wave or one that will die before it is realized. Another fun thing to do at the beach is to people watch. How many will try to sit real close to the water line only to have to run as the waves try to claim their blankets! There are others that choose to ignore the basic rule of never turning you back to the sea. Those are usually the most entertaining. We usually go to Smith's Point Beach in Suffolk County. It tends to not get real crowded until later on in the day, when I am about ready to head back home. It's very peaceful in the morning with the few early risers such as myself. Ten years ago [I can't believe it's been that long already], it had been the site of a plane crash [Flight 800 to Paris]. Since the tragic accident that claimed all on board [230 people], they have built a very lovely memorial. It is filled some beautiful plantings that now attract all sorts of wildlife. As a result, this morning I was enjoying the antics of several Monarch Butterflies. Most stayed over the beach and flitted from blanket to blanket. Several took their chances amongst the waves. I am not quite sure what the attraction of this was, but it was fun watching them dance back and forth as the waves came in.

Once I returned home and had settled in the backyard to enjoy some lunch, I noticed some of the plants that had gotten droopy with the afternoon heat. It is so amazing how they look almost dead. I can understand how they felt as today is extremely hot and humid. I look forward to their recovery later on as I too felt as if I would wilt and have retreated to the air conditioned house.

I've been watching the Canada geese on our lake for the last week growing in numbers, already getting ready for fall migration. The lake, rather ironically, is called Eagle Lake, and I'm fairly sure there are no eagles around. When we chose the lake front lot, the nature of the geese was explained to us. We enjoy them and live in peace, but not so many of our neighbors who seem to have made a full time job of chasing them from their yards. these are not excellent photography, they are taken from inside my sun room thru the window (I'm still in my jammies), but I enjoy these beautiful birds and thought you might, too

There are around 150 of them now, but there will be more as fall approaches. If you get up before 6, they are quietly floating on the lake, or sleeping on lawns (pic 1), then they spend a little time having a drink, splashing in the lake, whatever (pic 2). You can tell when they are going to take off because of the honking. Some leave quite abruptly in groups. The last group this morning must include younger juveniles from this year. There was honking and then I could see that they had a purpose. They all started swimming towards the end of the lake (pic 3 & 4). They neared the end and started turning around (pic 5). And sure enough...takeoff (pic 6). like they needed a runway.

have a lovely day
gram

i have 'chokeweed' too. we call it field bindweed. crown vetch is my nemesis though. i have dug up one of my gardens and thrown everything away including the soil in order to get rid of it, but 2 weeks later, there it is. i can't believe people buy this and purposely plant it on their property.
gram- equisetum is so cool. i use it in floral arrangments all the time. it is a pre-historic plant, an ancestor of modern grass.
martha- good luck with chemo. some people don't get a lot of side effects from it.a few years ago, a friend of mine ran the nyc marathon on chemo(had to get special permission because he couldn't pass the drug test, but..)

erica, you can have ALL my equisetum. I'm sure it would come right back up. It's pretty and has a neat history. I just wish it didn't feel it had to own my flower bed :^(

gram

Gram. nice little story. Are dogs allowed in your community? They would have fun with the geese, lol. Thanks for sharing.

This morning I went out to snap pics of my Hibiscus, a great big pink and white one. It was so humid the lens fogged up, ruined the pics. I'll try again.
Andy P

I saw a bug I had nver saw yesterday at the arboretum, a hummingbird moth. I followed it for a while trying to get a picture, but boy are they fast.

Oh, dogs are definitely allowed. some of the neighbors with hunting breeds have a bit of trouble keeping their dogs from chasing the geese right into the lake. and I half expect to see one of the older folks who chases the geese to go headlong into the lake as well (hope not).

looking forward to seeing your hibiscus, Andy. my glasses fogged up when I went out for the mail today LOL

gram

cool, Al. too bad you couldn't get the pic. I think somebody on the butterfly/hummer forum got one a while back.

Al here is my only shot of the hummingbird moth. It's in a Hosta flower.
They are tough to get a shot of, for sure.
Andy P

That's pretty good Andy.

I actually saw 2 there, but it was later in the morning and maybe they were less comfortable being out?

I've only had two in my yard that I've seen. I remember the first time I saw one, I was so excited thinking that I actually had a hummingbird!!! Both times they were going nuts over my Phlox

I took this picture of a humming bird moth within the last two weeks. Since my butterfly bushes have been blooming the butterflies and humming bird moths have been swarming around them. I counted five hb moths on one bush! They are really fast and hum when they fly just like a humming bird.

This message was edited Aug 2, 2006 9:06 AM

EXCELLENT!!!!! What time of the day have you noticed them. The two times I have ever seen them was in the early morning

i don't have air conditioning. we very rarely get temps over 80 here so we don't usually need it.( yesterday was 98, and all i have is a small fan), so i don't have a problem with glasses and lenses fogging up.
i have never seen a hummingbird moth, but i have hummingbirds. they love my lambs ear.

i don't have air conditioning. we very rarely get temps over 80 here so we don't usually need it.( yesterday was 98, and all i have is a small fan), so i don't have a problem with glasses and lenses fogging up.
i have never seen a hummingbird moth, but i have hummingbirds. they love my lambs ear.

Alan, I'm jealous. I want a nice pic like that, LOL.
I have one Butterfly bush in bloom but it's on the side of the house where I seldom go.
Another is in the back where I always go but it needs another week. Hopefully I'll get another chance.
HM moths like the Agastache, too. I've seen one there but it got chased away by a wasp.
No AC here either, but I have a cool work shop in the basement, 76° now, 20° cooler than outdoors.
Andy P

Anita, I see these guys all day long, 6:30 in the morning til 7 at night. I'm outside all day on weekends and they're a constant presence - my husband is always trying to get one to land on his hand. We thought they were hummingbirds the first time we saw them too! They also seem to be attacted to the wave petunias I have in pots, the bee balm was great for them, and the rose of sharon that's just coming into bloom. The butterfly bush is the fav though :)

you are lucky - enjoy them - and send some my way!!

excellent pic, Alana. I don't think I've ever seen one, but maybe I did and thought it was a hummer.

I just heard it on the radio. Boston has officially hit 100° for the first time in 4 years.
I thought I'd pick a few blackberries before they 'cooked', I cooked, lol.
Here is a refreshing pic for a hot day. Taken this morning when it was only 88°.
Andy P

very pretty Andy. the edges are just blushed peppermint.

I don't think it has made 100 here (98 was predicted today), but we've been on an air quality alert for 2 days because nothing is moving.

Coming home from work today it was 102 in Bridgeport at 6:30. Plants seem to be thriving in spite of the heat - wish I could say that for the cats - they are way past wilted!

A violent storm came through around 6:30. The initial winds were crazy, blowing dust and everything around. I saw a kid go by on a bike, peddling his butt off, lol.
Not much rain but vivid lightning.
We dropped 20 degrees in half an hour. It's 76 degrees now. Humid as all get out, but cool.
Andy P

Alana, Great photo!
Dave