Wednesday wildlife, our green friend

Found among the blackberries:

I enjoy the small things like these frogs and hope he fills up on those Japanese Beetles this year. The neighbors have been spraying to try to control those devastating pests and they decided to congregate on my corn instead.

Drought warning for August, 2017

With barely an inch of rain since June 1st, this is the result:

 

 

What likes the Grand Canyon, this is an example of what the hay ground looks like. This is the 5th summer out of the seven that we've had the acreage where rain has been way below average. This week will be spent on pump repairs. And weed cutter repairs. Oh, and work on the mower. You get the point. (It's been one of those summers.)

Legacy trees, pin oak and red maple

A good friend of ours retired earlier this summer and as a tribute to Bill and his wife, Kathy, we decided to plant a couple of trees in their honor. Bill picked a picked a pin oak and Kathy chose a red maple. Interesting choices in that we have a plentiful supply of seeds and acorns and typically transplant young sprouts each year although not close together.

That changed as I planted several pin oak seedlings in the row next to the hay ground in the same row as red maples that were planted a couple of years ago. Space was available after we lost several due to our ongoing battle with rabbits.

Here's a look:

Pin Oak

 Red Maple

I've known Bill and Kathy for over 35 years and our paths have come together and diverged at least a dozen times in that period. I know that they've supported us behind the scenes throughout the years. As an honor of them and our friendship, these two seedlings are a reminder of their legacy here in Iowa and I think of them each time I haul water, cut weeds and other work.

Just a small token of appreciation for a couple of people that made a difference in our lives.