Still Not Finished

Even with an extra day in February this year, I am still not finished with my winter sowing.  Over the past 2 weekends, I have sorted through my seeds, and I even sowed the wetland species that I collected last year.

I plan to direct sow a custom mix of native seeds (including those that I collected myself), but I will also want to plant some of several species as plugs to add as needed.

Today, I filled four trays full of pots (from those that I purchased last year--and probably I've yet to post about).  I had an open bag of Promix in the greenhouse, and I bought another one which is still unopened by our sliding glass door along with a potted tray of last years seed order.  I'm hoping that they will all still germinate.

 Well, it has been a strange winter...but we will still have some freezing and thawing as spring arrives, so I am hoping my seeds will germinate with no problems.  Honestly, I am not even sure if most (or any) of them even need cold, moist stratification.

I'm looking forward to spring...and making more progress on the native meadow I have envisioned here for years now.

At it Again

For years now, I've collected seeds of native plants from my yard...and the roadside.  I propagate them...and as the years go by, I seem to collect more and more--I do have 2 acres to fill. ~smile~

Early this fall, I was out collecting things and waiting for more to ripen.  After a while I slowed down...I think I collected a bit more last year than this.  Today, while walking the yard, I spotted some seedheads of one of my favorite goldenrods--early goldenrod (Solidago juncea--I had to look that up).  Up until now, I've not included the seeds of Solidago species in my seed mixes--they have occurred naturally on their own, and through natural succession, the goldenrods do eventually seem to take over.  I want to include them--for their beauty and their high wildlife value.  I just don't want to speed up the succession process.  I'm making an exception with S. juncea...it doesn't appear to be one of the goldenrod species that tends to make huge stands.

I collected the seeds of the 2 or 3 individuals that showed up a couple of year ago--they've not spread on their own...and, being a favorite, I want many more of them.

Before my walk was over, I'd collected a handful of the goldenrod seeds along with some frost aster, and a few other aster species.



I'll add this bouquet to my seed collection.  February is fast approaching--that has become my traditional winter sowing month. 

Winter Dreaming





 





 

potential bench:  a before picture



 




Despite how quiet I've been, I have been making steady progress--even some large strides in some areas.  I've even had some "post-worthy" wildlife encounters.  My best bet for sharing those are to go through the past year or so's pictures and share them (and the stories that go with them) as I rediscover them.  It is hard to believe that I've basically lost a year of so of documenting my progress.

Yesterday, I was out walking the yard, waiting to see if we'd even get an inch of snow from the huge storm (Jonas, I think) that was walloping areas south of here.  We got nothin'

Surprisingly, I was a little disappointed, (considering how THRILLED I've been with the unseasonably warm weather we had in November and December--I worked outside every chance I had).  Part of me wanted about 2 or 3 inches, just enough to blanket the ground to simplify and beautify the yard.

While walking, my mind toyed with various ideas I've had lately about making a natural-looking bench that would blend in with the natural landscape I envision for our habitat garden.  As I walked past a 5-foot tall locust tree growing at the edge of a path alongside my future native meadow, instead of my usual thought of cutting it down (it is invading the meadow which I want to keep in an earlier stage of succession)...I looked to the lower branches and decided to cut the tree right above its three lowest branches--my thoughts, far-fetched perhaps, are to encourage it (and manipulate it) to grow some low, thick, horizontal branch (a horizontal trunk really), that I will eventually be able to turn into a natural seating area.  Eventually, I plan to kill the tree...but its wood resists decay, so I'm hoping I'll have it for many years to come--assuming the idea comes to fruition.


The placement, right by the path and in the middle of the meadow, seems ideal for a "bench.



Cut to the lowest branches...bench height.

This will be trained to grow horizontally...or even arch to the ground.

Here is another potential (and more realistic) natural seating area.  This  was my first idea--using a chainsaw to carve out a bench that would (hopefully) appear natural.  This wood, though, is already showing signs of decay, so its life span would be fairly short.

You've Got to be Kidding Me

First, I can't believe how long it has been since I've posted anything here!  Second, after a long stretch of unseasonably warm weather (which I got very used to), things have gone unseasonable in the other direction; the temperatures went below freezing over night--into the 20s!  We had snow today--not that it lasted.

The last time I put off posting was on April Fools' Day--another day we got snow! (...and I wasn't happy about that either--even though it didn't last either.  (I searched for the April snow pictures, but didn't find them.  I doesn't matter--the purpose of this post it to start me posting again anyway.)

Some flurries this morning and ...

...hail this afternoon.  Okay, I confess, both pics are of hail.
I slept in this morning...and it is hard to take pictures of snow!

  

I have to get past the idea that everything must be kept in chronological order--that has kept me from posting all sorts of things...until I post what had happened prior to it.

So, later (I'm a procrastinator, remember), I will post some highlights of that past several (plus) months.

A Sure Sign of Spring!

For the past week or so, I've been scanning the roadsides for red-winged blackbirds.  Nothing.

The other day, I was at a hardware store to pick up some more birdseed (black oil sunflower seeds).  Across from the store is a natural area, swampy with some trees, cattails, and some winter berry holly (Ilex verticillata)--it always catches my eye.  While crossing the parking lot to enter the store, I heard the distinctive call of the red-winged blackbird-one of the few bird calls I know.    It made me smile.

Hearing them was great...but I had still not had a sighting...until this morning when a small flock of them appeared outside our bay window enjoying the black-oil sunflower seeds I'd sprinkled there.  :)

Not the best shots--taken with my phone...and the red-wings are pretty skittish when they see movement near the window:

Great sight for the first full day of spring!

Melting...melting...melting...

I remember, when I was a kid, snow seemed to stay around for most of the winter, over the past two decades or so, that rarely seems to happen.  This year, it did.  I was fine with the snow for a long time, but now I'm thinking spring.  So, when it finally started to melt, I tried to document the process:

....and then... the first robin!

...three more robins...

...and then we got MORE SNOW yesterday for the first day of spring!  

This Winter

This winter, we've had a LOT of snow in January and February...and into March.  The temperatures have been unusually frigid too many days, but I did get out in the yard...sometimes...but not as often as I would have liked.  

Snow can be pretty...and I was okay with it for a long time...but, I'm ready for spring (first full day today...not that it seems like it)...I decided to share some of the photos I took...then post pics of it melting! :)

Watching the birds that came to the feeders always helps.

Winter does blot out many details which allowed me to highlight
individual trees that are lost in the details of spring, summer, and fall.

A trail in "the woods".