All the rain lately has really brought out the mushrooms.  We have seen these in the park two weeks in a row, growing on a pile of mulch.  You can see their different ages.

 

Seek told me they are Fringed sawgill mushrooms,  Lentinus crinitus.  When I looked that up in my Audubon mushroom field guide, I found no such thing.  So then I looked on the Internet, and found some pictures that look kinda like these.  

 

But, you remember the rule, right?  Don't touch until you are POSITIVE of their identity.  I don't feel too secure in the identity of these mushrooms.  I think I will call them fungi.  Not too inviting, when you look at it that way.  

 

Interesting, though.

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

How pretty is this?!  This is our first apple of the season.  The deer have gotten a few already, but I like them to be a little riper before I eat them.  We had this one with our lunch yesterday.

 

Boy was it good!!!

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

Here is some tree identification for you.  This is an American Beech tree, Fagus grandifolia.  I don't even need to see the leaves to know this tree.  The trunk has this beautiful mottled bark, and it is very soft.  I've heard it called the "lovers' tree," because it is soft enough for lovers to carve their initials into the bark.  We've seen a few.

 

This is the same tree that holds onto its leaves through the winter here.  Another easy tree identification feature.  They also produce small edible fruits, triangular nuts, eaten by deer, squirrels, bears, foxes, raccoons, turkey, and other birds.  

 

I hope you have some American Beech trees near you;  they are beautiful in all seasons.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

 

 

The peach harvest is over.  We picked all the ones that were left on our two peach trees.  

 

This picture is a bit deceiving.  It looks like we had hundreds of peaches, and at some point I bet we did.  But by the time they were ripe enough for us to pick, there were only about 50 left.  Between the deer, the squirrels, and whatever night critters are out there, we only got enough for a few bites.  

 

But, BOY!!  We're they good.  And it was fun watching the process.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

I have shown you Bloodroot when it is blooming, with sweet white flowers, and little upright leaves.  Well that only lasts a couple weeks in the spring.  The leaves continue to grow all summer, and they get quite large.  

 

This is a colony in Meeks Park, down near the river, and some of the leaves are 5 and 6 inches across.  It always surprises me to see them get that large.  But I love seeing them.  

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

The Sanseviera is getting ready to bloom.  

 

It is not a yearly occurrence, nor is it a showy flower,  but I get excited whenever it happens.  

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

Here is a picture of my Four O'clocks.  I've shown it to you before, but today I want you to notice the seed.  It is that black thing inside the little green cap.  The seeds are a little bit bigger than a peppercorn, but look very similar.  I have collected about twenty seeds, ensuring that we will have Four O'clocks again next year.  

 

I also planted a few Four O'clocks that I grew from seed up in the wildflower bed.  They really suffered during our drought, but  I noticed that since the rain they have come back.  In fact, I saw a hummingbird fluffing around the flowers this morning.

 

You won't hear me complain about too much rain.  I'm happy.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

I showed you Mullein last year when I dug a plant out of my friends' garden.  I put it in a pot, and it proceeded to bloom and make seeds.  Mullein is biennial, meaning that it blooms and goes to seed in its second year.  

 

Well, you know me.  I sprinkled seeds that I collected from that plant all over the place.  And some plants have come up;  this is one growing in the driveway.  I gotta pay attention to WHERE I sow seeds.  Oh, well.

 

You can see here that the first year plant is a rosette, and the leaves are very fuzzy.  

 

We will have to wait until next year for the blooms.  But you can see them all along the highway right now, blooming.  The bloom spikes are about 6 feet tall, and have small yellow flowers at the top.  Look for them in your travels.

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

I found this growing in my garden (amid the oxalis.)  It has been there for years, coming back every summer.  It is purslane.  

It typically grows in waste places and tolerates poor soil.  That doesn't please me too much, but it is interesting to read about.  I read that it is a good companion plant for tomatoes, removing salt from the soil.  

 

The leaves are fleshy, and it has an acid, lemony taste.  In many places in the world it is eaten raw in salads, cooked as spinach, and the seeds can be ground into flour.  

 

I tasted a little, just because, but we have so much other good food in the garden, we are not yet reduced to eating the weeds.  But I know that I can if I want to.

 

Please remember to POSITIVELY IDENTIFY any wild food before you TOUCH or TASTE.  Don't trust me for positive identification;  use field guides, and any other resources before you take a chance.  

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

 

 

This is Carraway grown from seeds planted this February.  You know that Carraway seeds are the seeds in rye bread.  We grew some a couple years ago, and got some seeds, but not enough to make even one batch of rye bread.  So I thought I would try it again.

 

Carraway is biennial, so we have to keep it alive until next year to get the seeds.  I am hoping for a mild winter, because it is out in the garden.  I may have to employ some season extension methods, like a cloche, or some other kind of cover if it gets too cold.  But I'm thinking that since it is in the same family as parsley, it may hold up to a certain amount of cold.

 

Wish me luck.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!