We were admiring Rosalie's zinnias, looking for deadheads to gather for seeds, and this Spicebush Swallowtail came to visit too.  

 

I can never tell from the description in the book which is the male and which is the female, (this one is definitely one or the other) but I am sure it is a Spicebush Swallowtail, also called "Green-clouded Swallowtail."  See the greenish cloud?  

 

Another way I know that this is a Spicebush Swallowtail is because there are a bunch of Spicebushes down on the Creekside Trail, and we've seen their caterpillars down there.  Spicebush is most distinctive in early spring when it's blooming.  I'll get you a picture then.  

 

Meanwhile, I love seeing butterflies in my garden, and all around the neighborhood.  They feel like flying flowers.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

 

 

Nancy and I were walking on the trail the other day, and noticed LOTS of this grass growing.  I asked Seek to identify it for us, and learned that it is called Japanese Stiltgrass.  So when I got home I looked it up, and this is what I found.

 

Its botanical name is Microstegium vimineum.  It is an annual grass with common names like Packing grass and Nepalese browntop, and has adapted itself to live in low light conditions.  Stiltgrass is native to South and East Asia, and has become an invasive species here.  This is what I read in Wikipedia:  

 

 

White tail deer don't browse the Stiltgrass, but eat other species nearby, opening the space for the Stiltgrass to spread and take over.  It is also a common habitat for ticks, so be sure to check your feet and legs after wading through the tall grass.  

 

I have always loved seeing this greenery growing on the forest floor.  Now, maybe not so much.  But, it's better to know than not know.  

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

I met a new neighbor this week.  Denise Mann is a photographer, and she snapped this picture of deer in her yard.  She has other pictures to share, and you can see them by logging in and going to her profile page under the Five Forks neighbor directory.

 

I hope you will enjoy her pix and welcome her to the neighborhood.  She told me that she will be at the annual meeting next week. 

 

Thanks Denise for sharing. 

 

Look around, and you can see these "weeds" growing everywhere.  And they're blooming right now, along roadsides, in meadows, down by the creek.

 

Botanically, it is Eupatorium purpureum, and is in the sunflower family.  Its common name is Joe Pye Weed, or Queen of the Meadow, Gravel Root, Kidney Root, and Purple Boneset.  It is indigenous to the Eastern United States, and grows to a height of 12 feet or more.

 

Joe Pye Weed is very attractive to butterflies, bees, and other nectar-eating insects, and is a larval host plant for Clymene moth.  

 

Joe Pye was an herb doctor in New England during colonial times.  He used Eupatorium to treat a variety of ailments, as some of the common names suggest.   And folklore says that American colonists used it to treat typhus outbreaks.  In the 18th century Native Indians used it in the treatment of kidney stones and other urinary tract ailments.

 

Let's steer clear of the medicinal uses for Joe Pye Weed; and just enjoy its beauty in the meadows.  That's my plan.

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

OK,  it's August, and we still have Golden Delicious apples!!  Yay!!!  Our squirrel-proofing efforts are paying off.  From this picture you can't see all the electricity and flashing that we've installed, or all the neighboring tree limbs that we've cut,  but it's working!!!!!  SO FAR!!!!!

 

The limbs on the tree are so heavy with apples, that they are hanging down, but not breaking.  We check them every day.  Harvest time is at hand.  

 

These are THE best apples.  We just haven't had any for the past two years....THIS YEAR WE ARE GOING TO HAVE APPLES!!!!

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

Another type of winter squash:  Cushaw.  It is delicious!!!

 

Cushaw is an heirloom variety of squash.  That means when you grow it, and harvest the seeds, they will germinate TRUE to the variety.  Last year when I was in Virginia, we went to "the farm" in Gloucester, and I bought a Cushaw squash.  We cooked it over the winter, made soup, and it was delish!!!! I saved the seeds.

 

So naturally, this spring, I planted several seeds along with acorns and butternuts.  Fortunately I planted these in the shady part of the garden, and they are doing great!!!  One vine has 4 squashes on it.  Each one weighing about 1-2 pounds.  Big enough for us.  

 

Really!!!!  Isn't it pretty?  Oh, the plastic underneath?  That's to keep the ground bugs from burrowing into it.  Best to keep them off the ground.  Don't know how they manage that at the farm.  But in my small-ish garden, it's easy enough.  

 

HAPPY  GARDENING!!!

 

 

 

 

Do you know these little Japanese lanterns?  They are tomatillos.  Delicious garden vegetable.  This plant is a volunteer from last year's plants.

 

Tomatillos are in the Nightshade family, along with tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers.  They are more closely related to ground cherries, though, since they also have  husks.  When they are young and developing, the husks seem full of empty air, but the berries are growing inside them.  When they are ripe, the husks split because the berries fill them up.  

 

Tomatillos are the main ingredient in salsa verde.  We also love them skewered, and cooked on the grill for a couple minutes.  They are tart like tomatoes, but turn sweet on the grill.  Try them; they're available in the produce department, and probably at the farmers market this time of year.  Or grow your own; they are really easy.  

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

 

 

 

 

We've seen these bushes all along the roadways.  On Tuesday when we were traveling on 294, we were able to stop and get a picture.  I had to use my Seek app to identify it.  It told me it is Reynoutria japonica.  So I searched my reference books, and found this:

 

It is highly invasive, spreading by rhizomes, making it difficult to eradicate.  Some rhizomes are up to 10 feet deep!!!  But the good news is:  it stabilizes swampy soil, and grows in waste places;  so it does serve a few purposes.  It is also valued by beekeepers as an important source of nectar for honeybees.  The honey from Knotweed is called bamboo honey.  

 

And, my favorite part:  it's pretty!!!

 

HAPPY TRAVELS!!!

 

 

 

Here's Tere having fun in the lake.  

 

 

And me wishing I was on the boat.  Captain Roger tied this life ring to the boat so I could feel secure in all that water.  

 

I did get to tell my college swimming stories, though:  I took Beginning Swimming three times.  I got an A all three times, because I showed up and got in the pool, but I could not bring myself to get in the deep water (10 feet.) And the one time the instructor made me, I had to be rescued from the bottom of the pool!!!  They called me "Brick."  Hahaha.  It's funny, NOW!  (I guess.)  I'm just not a fan of deep water........still.

 

HAPPY TRAVELS!!!

 

 

 

Here's a better picture of the falls.  We could've gone swimming here, but it just looked too slippery to me.  So we just hung out and took a bunch of pictures. 

 

 

Old snag, still standing.

 

Such a beautiful place.  After that, we got back on the boat and went to the smallest beach.

 

 

See it there?  We waded in and floated around a while.  Nice to be in the cool water.  Jon took some pix there, but I'm not sure I'm ready to show those.  

 

HAPPY TRAVELS!!!