Musings

Fencerow story

Fencerow rose

Fencerows are interesting microenvironments. Say the land is cleared, good for pasture or row crops, and the necessity for fencing is at once apparent, either to keep critters in or out.

So, across this open area is now the perfect perch for meadow birds and others that will tolerate the newly opened area, lacking the original biodiversity, including, most likely, trees.

So, foraging birds perch now and then on the fence. And do what birds do. Look around. Make noise. Excrete.

Seeds collect here and there, some germinate, some live longer, and a microenvironment develops along the fence line. Where these roses came from, I’m not sure, but they are striving on this old fenceline (the fence is now gone)….

Cyber-sending a fleur

Rose karlan

A rose for my sweetie….

World traveler

Tattered flutterby

This lovely flutterby was enjoying the rays and I could see how tattered s/he is, I assume from a long trip north from somewhere far away.

Love the bumper

Heap de row

Photo name is John D. MacDonald reference; can’t remember title—it’s the one where they went to Mexico, I think Dress Her in Indigo.

First cutting of hay is dry enough that they’re baling it in far NE TN/far SW VA. Just so ya know.

Light-edged azalea

Azalea white backlit

Ah, ’tis the season when the low-rise azaleas in our backyard (British: garden) bloom. Unlike the full-statured versions, these tend to bloom just once annually.

Eyebrow building

Exbarber shop now taproom

Best part of this for me: the barber pole. Well, and the building’s painted accents.

Several glancing blows, spatially, with our pasts and futures….

Finally, home!

Great glowing sky

Ohio spring dusk sky

Transition day. Crossed the troll-bridge. Motored across many miles of old lake bottom. Saw train track crossing at Deshler, with a train each direction in the few minutes we visited!

Highlight! Afternoon hours with Carol! (And the height-challenged Angel*.)

* Angel, the dachshund. But, shh, she thinks she’s a person.

Great Gitchee

G Gumee rocks

I freed the rhubarb (five wee crowns) from the worst of the quack grass and weeds. I’ll give them another purging later this summer.

Meanwhile, guess where we played today (for an hour or so only, but still!)….

Scourge or feast?

Dried milkweed pod

For the most part, I see milkweed as a scourge in the orchard. They are taking over, squeezing out grass and fun flowers like lupin and sweet pea. And I don’t know how to reduce their aggressiveness.

On the other hand, I’m happy to have more than a few around to support the monarch butterfly caterpillars, as the species is besieged in so many places, especially in their wintering landscape in Mexico and points south.

View south

Almost view across lake

No, the eagle didn’t hang around and wait for his/her fifteen minutes of fame.

We’re in another in what has become a series of wet days. Several minutes ago the bald eagle upped the interest level in this view. While the camera was pocketed.