What's Happening in My Garden and Beyond

 It's exciting to us to see variety of all things nature in our garden.  I believe the more variety you entice to your garden the healthier it is.  All wildlife is welcome here and we intentionally don't use chemicals that would harm if at all possible.  

I don't know about you, but my camera is usually in the opposite room when I wish to take a photo.  This was the case when I saw a Black-capped Chickadee on the dogwood.  By the time I reached my camera and returned to the front window I was surprised to find an Eastern Buebird in its place!

One afternoon I spotted a Silver-Spotted Skipper on the geranium blossom on the patio.  He obliged my desire to take his photo.

So many Yellow Tiger Swallowtails have graced our patio as well.  

I always am amazed when the Colchicum pop up in early Autumn.

Some people refer to them as Fall Crocus, but are not crocus at all.  My dear neighbor that shared these with me years ago used to call them crocus.  It's always nice to see them come up.  I understand they are poisonous as many plants are.  I'm not a fan of eating plants unless I really know they are okay to munch on!

When Grayden and I went out for our early morning walk we discovered a large Katydid perched on the door of our car.  

I'm not sure why he found the door a good perch, but we enjoyed seeing him.  He's related to the Cricket and is one of the night sounds of summer.

Maybe he thought the shadow was a potential mate. 

The next photo may not be to your liking.  So warning ahead if you don't like snakes!

I understand as I used to have quite an aversion and still can't say I'm in love with them, but they have a place on our planet.

This appears to be a Gray Rat Snake.  He is not venomous, so we don't need to be afraid.  He is defensive so we didn't bother him.  His diet is mainly rodents.  

I wanted to share another photo that I took last week in Culpeper.  Since it's not far we often visit there.

 After having lunch we enjoyed a stroll through the small town shops.  As we were walking Grayden spotted an interesting insect.

Unfortunately this is the dreaded Spotted Lanternfly.  I had heard of this invasion but had never seen one.  He is a plant hopper that prefers the Heavenly Tree (an invasive tree) as his host.  He eats grapes, stone fruits, soybeans, and apple trees causing extensive damage to crops.  Originally from China and Vietnam the lanternfly has spread to Japan, South Korea, and the United States.  Canada has intercepted Lanternflies in shipping crates in Ontario.  It's always nice to see another insect with which I'm not familiar, but this is one insect that I was very unhappy to see in Virginia! 

Thank you for taking a look at our recent observations!

"Having your head in the clouds, even for just a few minutes each day, is good for your mind, good for your body, and good for your soul."

Gavin Pretor-Pinney

 

Flowers Everywhere!

Hello friends, it's been a while since I've posted.  I do hope all is well with you.  This sweet little Eastern Bluebird visited us one morning.  

Life has been quite busy for us.  We've had a new roof installed and a new refrigerator delivered that took a whole month because of bad advice. Our old refrigerator was 28 years old so we really were happy for its long life.  We understand new appliances don't last as long now so here's hoping for the best with the new one.  Enough complaining as there is much to be happy about.  Seeing the American Goldfinch visit the feeder is always welcome. 

Spring is here in all of her glory.  I've said it before that it is almost an embarrassment of color all around us now!  In our garden the daffodils have bloomed, the dogwoods are blooming along with the azaleas, wisteria, and viburnum along with many plants in the perennial bed.  It's a great time for most of us if you can stand the enormous amount of pollen.  I have been sweeping up on the patio frequently and Grayden has been using the blower for that job as well.   The pollen from our oaks reminds me of tumbleweeds as the pollen gathers together.  When Spring blooms in Virginia it comes all at once! 

Instead of posting about our garden as I have done many times in the past, I decided to show you all the florals we recently viewed in Colonial Williamsburg the week of April 10-18.

We passed this field of yellow buttercups on our way to the Duke of Gloucester Street.  Do you know the little test of holding one under your chin tells whether you like butter or not?  If it glows, you like butter like I do!

I know that they are considered weeds, but I enjoy seeing them growing.  The bees and some birds eat them when food is scarce.  Unfortunately they are poisonous to livestock and cause blisters in their mouths if eaten.  Farmers do not like them in their fields for this reason.

Behind most homes in Colonial Williamsburg there are lovely gardens that one is welcome to visit.

 This garden was full of lovely tulips!  

Tulips were the queens of the gardens in Williamsburg during this week. They really don't like the very warm weather.  Luckily we were there to see them before the hot weather of Virginia begins.  The Blue Poppy was dancing in the wind as we continued on our walk.

The above two photos do not do justice to this lovely blue, yellow and white garden. 

This white rambling rose was quite spectacular growing on this picket fence. The honey bee agreed.

Though wisteria is on the invasive plant list it is quite beautiful growing on this fence with the Dogwood tree.  

In front of the home there is another lovely bed of tulips.

Grayden and I never tire visiting Colonial Williamsburg.  Thank you for visiting with us!