Blue Iris

Irises were my grandmother's favorite flowers. She had dozens of both solid and multi-colors growing west of her house at the top of the hill. This blue iris came from our neighbor who has since passed away when her parents owned our house. We transplanted several along the south gate at the farm and this year, the irises have been late.

Here's a blue iris just after a morning rain:

Enjoy the blue!

Friday is buck day, taking it in stride

From a week ago, this buck dashed across one of the trail cameras. His antlers need a chance to grow back and if given a chance, he will feed well on the recently planted corn (provided the electric fence fails.)  After 5 days of cloudy skies, the batteries on the fencer are running low, so that's a possibility.

He could be running from or to something. The pictures taken before and after give no clues but he was in a hurry to get where he was going.

Bird Calls - May 2020

Don't be too disappointed that I don't have pictures, as I did not have the camera ready and the thrasher was a bit elusive.

Brown Thrasher - this is a new one for us here. While we live in their area of habitat, we hadn't seen these birds before. The link has several playlists to hear their long melodious calls.

Eastern Bluebird - I built several birdhouses for these birds but sparrows and swallows squat in before they have a chance to take occupancy.

Previous year visitor

Our weekend was filled with fencing repairs and digging out white pine seedlings between the needed rains.

When taking a break, the air was filled with swallows swooping through the air mixed with turkey buzzards circling above.

It was a good couple of days.

Morning quartet

These ladies showed up on the camera this past week just before sunrise

Early morning quartet

Spring planting 2020, April update

If the weather holds, we should have a good couple of days planting this coming weekend. Popcorn for our cash crop and we'll have the ground ready for beans in mid-May.

We've already planted some hazelnut trees, peach, apricot and a couple of variety of sweet cherries. So far, so good as they are all caged to keep rabbits and deer away.

Our hickory nuts and both red and white oak acorns that we collected last fall are set in planter "tubes" and we'll keep those protected until planting next year.

We have some pin and white oak ready to plant this year along with sugar maple seedlings and a larger sugar maple that will be planted near the cabin.

After last year's spring of rain from March to July, this year is hopeful.

Morning daffodil

Keep your spirits up with a morning daffodil growing at the homestead.

From a single acorn, a forest

As the acorn sprouts to open sky
one of many to be planted on the hill.
Some day this one will be added
with a chance to reach towards heaven.

Red oak in the makeshift greenhouse

 Last fall we had a good harvest from my sources of acorns of white and red oak. The neighbor's pin oak was not short of it's yield and squirrels had their fill and more. I'm sure I'll find acorns sprouting throughout the yard as a result of their hard labor.

But this is a red oak - and that means it's special. Among the oak species, the red oak was the one most prized by my father for his carpentry work and our kitchen table he made was from red oak.

Also, this seedling is a cousin to the Stranded Tree.

Red oak seedling a few inches tall

This year, we continue to experiment in our planting times, fertilizer, etc. to collect additional data for future plantings.

I also have something special planned for this year (if only spring will cooperate) and I hope to reveal it soon.

In the mean time, I'd like to share from a song from David Gray, The Sapling:

Gonna lay down in the grass
And watch that acorn
Split in two
Slowly take root

Linked at Poets and Storytellers United:Weekly Scribblings #13: All The Small Things

Tuesday Triumph - Spring 2020 arrival

Our three-legged deer decided to return for her first visit this year. It's been nearly three months and, once again, we feared that she met her demise. She survived deer season to give us another visit and she did not disappoint. Standing here with a companion at nearby, she gives a profile of her wounded leg that looks well.

Find more pictures of Triumph on earlier postings.

We hope to see more of her this year.

The blackbirds returned

My brothers have returned home this week
the blackbird with the red wing.
To give notice that our spring arrived
while singing songs from past memories.

I ignore the Vernal equinox
that's not truly true spring around here.
It is the day of the red-winged arrival
to summer fields they now call home.

From a previous year.

We look each year for the red-winged blackbird arrival as the mark of spring. This year, on March 2nd, we saw the first birds on our morning commute along the roadways perched on the fences and old weeds in the ditch. It doesn't mean that we won't see significant snow yet this season but planting time is near.

Memories of listening to the call of the red-winged blackbird filled each summer that we spent at my maternal grandparent's farm. The humid and hot July and August days were filled with the cocaphony of the males calling while perched like pictured above.

Here is an example of their call (unfortunately, I don't have a video available of my own):



Linked at Poets and Storytellers United: Writers' Pantry #10: March is a month of considerable contemplation

Friday's flowers

Some color to brighten up your weekend. Enjoy!