Maryland Butterflies

 

There have been a flurry of butterflies in the labyrinth.  My neighbors are noticing!  The clusters of Eastern Tiger Swallowtails feeding on the Agapanthis do catch the eye.  When I went out with my camera, I saw a hummingbird hanging out on the opposite side of this group, but it slipped away.

A close look at one of those yellow beauties lets me see how well my new camera focuses.  Of course I am not going to tell how many pictures were not focused where I wanted.  That is an operator error that I hope to get fixed very soon.

There are other swallowtails enjoying the long tubed flowers, such as this Spicebush Swallowtail.  While the top of the wings are very somber, the underside has dramatic orange spots that make it easy to identify.

Moving over to the Millenium Allium are some of the smaller winged creatures.  This is a Common Buckeye, with those very distinctive false eyes to confuse their predators.

The Hackberry Emperor is also enjoying the Allium flowers.  His underbelly is white, as are his legs which are partially visible in the flowers.

The Silver Spotted Skipper is enjoying the nectar of the Verbena.  This little guy kept his wings folded up so I could not see the top of them.  But that white spot is pretty distinctive.

I will watch to see how many others I can catch with my camera

After a Summer Rain

 

This year the rain has been fairly regular for us, encouraging everything to grow generously.  Yesterday's 1.23 inches continued the trend, even though the days before were very hot and dry.

Over the last few years this Crocosmia, 'Star of the East,' has been spreading throughout the Feather Reed Grass, Karl Foerster.  It is hard to weed but looks wonderful with the long display of orange flowers.

All of the hardy hibiscus have been stunning in size.  This one, Cherry Choco Latte has reached 6 feet, and has been swarming with bees, butterflies and the occasional Japanese Beetle.  The beetles are dropped into a plastic cup filled with soapy water.

The Sedum Autumn Fire is already showing its buds.  However, we are not sure if those buds will survive the browsing by the deer.  Each year we lose some or all of them.  At least it looks wonderful now without the flowers.  

Finally, there is this intriguing little, no I mean BIG, caterpillar for the Pipevine Swallowtail Butterfly.  I had to look it up to determine its adult appearance.  I do have a few hanging out in the labyrinth.  I will need to watch out for its chrysalis and make sure it is safe.

These photos are all from my new "used" camera that my brother sold me.  It gets great images, and all kinds of functions I am still learning to use.

Catching up on Spring

 

I have been busy keeping up with all of the deferred maintenance outside.  We were able to move back into the house about a year ago, but have spent a lot of time and effort in cleaning up the outside.  The results are quite noticeable this Spring.

These first two pictures are from the middle of April, when the Narcissus and Redbud tree were blooming.  The Bay is clearly visible through the trees.

In March we completed the path between the parking pad and the front sidewalk.  The orange tomato cages are protecting a Japanese Snowbell sapling from being nibbled by deer.  

At the same time in May the fern bed is bursting with new growth.  Since the tree died that provided shade for the ferns, and the new black gum is still small, I am not sure how the ferns will handle the full sun. 

Today, just a couple of weeks later the peonies are in full glory.  Under the birdhouse you can also see the Acanthus flower stems growing up.  The iris are also blooming and the Penstemon are also ready to open up.

Christmas 2020

It has been a while since I last reported.  Yes, those are snowflakes that you see coming down. 

New shrubs are visible in this view of the front. There are two Japanese cedars on the left, including the tall Cryptomeria japonica, Black Dragon.  I planted three Black Dragons in 2003 which have grown to about 12 feet tall, so I am happy to have a new one up in front.  Maybe I will see this one reach the same height?

Last week I splurged on a new plant, a Chinese Paper Tree, Edgeworthis chrysantha 'Snow Cream'.  The shipping cost much more than the tree because they sent it Fed Ex. You can see is a small stick with a single bud on top - though there is a second, much smaller bud below.  It is wrapped in hardware cloth to keep any of the marauding animals away until it gets some more substantial growth.  I hope this never becomes a favorite of the deer.  In this same place I had a willow bush that one spring was chewed down to the ground multiple times by the deer. So, no more willows.

Three Days of Work

On Saturday we began installing a brick path from the parking pad to the office door.  I wanted something that is more informal than the front sidewalk and more relaxed.  

Everything we used was recycled.  The cobblestones lining the edge were left over from the parking pad and sidewalk.  The bricks were from the massive brick bar the previous owner had built in the basement. The oral history is that Mr. Hyder, a former DC policeman, had brought all of the bricks down in his car from the Georgetown police station when it was demolished in 1978.

The first day we laid out the sides then dug out the soil.  If you notice the tree that is on the left side, you will appreciate there were lots of roots that had to be carefully cut out of the way.

The second day I hauled up all of the pavers from behind the basement, carrying them up by hand.  David leveled the base, and laid them out.  It was fussy because the bricks were hand made, and varying sizes and thicknesses.

Yesterday we finished laying out the bricks below the steps into the office, and spread the sand to hold everything in place.

We have done enough of these kinds of projects that we know how to work together. Now we are talking about how to landscape all of the open ground, to fill it with plants.

Thanks Sis!

Several years ago my sister gave me a packet of seeds from her garden, so I could try them out.  She had been collecting seed from a particular pink/magenta flowering Celosia.  Over the years she had been weeding out the white or pale pink flowering plants, to attain an intense color.  

Over the last years the plants have self-seeded throughout my garden.  I have continued selecting the same color, even though an occasional pale plant shows up, like the one in the middle of this picture.  This year is the best I have even seen them for one specific reason.  The deer have not been eating them down.  I lost the tops of several of these plants back in June, when some deer wandered through and chewed off the tops.  But for whatever reason, no other deer have been through since then.  

It cheers me up to see this wild abundance of blooms when I am feeling stressed with what is going on the world.  But I do need to go out and pull out that pale pink one before it sets any seed.

Black Gum "Afterburner"

 

Earlier in the Spring, the Cercidiphylum japonicum 'Heronswood Globe' died, with leaves turning brown and dropping off during a short period with little rain.  It has been struggling for all the years since a large Tulip Popular in our neighbor's yard, which provided wonderful afternoon shade, was cut down.  

We cut off the branches, and put a few birdhouses from our collection on the remaining stumps.  It helped provide some whimsy after losing the tree.

After a long search of what was available locally, and waiting for a 50% off sale at one nursery, I bought a Nyssa sylvatica, or Black Gum, 'Afterburner.'  Research confirmed it is a small, tough tree, which is needed for the site.  Then came a three week wait for the temperatures to drop to a more reasonable level before planting the tree.

Last week we planted the new Black Gum.  It is about two feet from the previous tree, to the left side in this photo.  It appears to be settling in very well, even with new growth.  

It will take some time before it provides shade for the ferns below, and provides the central axis around which the labyrinth circles.  It will be a few years before becoming an established presence.  But as a gardener, I have had to learn to live with hope for what will happen even when trees die.