The Beauties of Early Fall

As we walked around the Smithsonian Mall and the US Botanic Garden in Washington DC, the plantings were representative of ones that are truly at their best in this area just before the leaves turn and then fall. The roses like the cooler weather. The grasses have full seed heads. The asters show their blue and purple color liberally. The dogwoods lead the color change and the winterberry has bright red berries that contrasts with the green leaves still on the bush. There may not be as many butterflies but the ones that are still around may be easier to see because they don’t flutter as rapidly in the cooler temperatures. Enjoy the slide show of these beauties of early fall and celebrate fall!

Monarch butterfly

Grass

Dogwood

Persimmon

Winterberry

Aster

Rose

Flower glow illusion

Gleanings of the Week Ending October 6, 2012

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles I read this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article:

Sunrise time lapse at Havre de Grace

Earthworm invasion: Aliens causing more harm than good? - Did you know that there are different kinds of earthworms….and they influence what kinds of plant grow?

America’s Greenest Presidents - Teddy Roosevelt tops the list….but Richard Nixon is second!

Celebrating the Remarkable Mark Catesby - the man that published the first scientific description of the New World’s plants and animals….his first trip to America was in 1712. Several of his illustrated books are available online via Botanicus

6 Futuristic Sci-Fi Gadgets That Actually Exist - hurray for self-driving cars!

15 Ways to Enjoy the National Park System This Fall

2012 time lapse of Aurora Borealis from Denali (video)

100 Million to Die by 2030 If World Fails to Act on Climate - and more than 90% of those deaths will occur in developing countries

Nantucket Cranberry Cake - I’m going to make this rather than cranberry sauce this year!

Is it green to be green? - infographic comparing costs of ‘green’ vs ‘non-green’ choices over a life time

US Botanic Garden - Insectivorous Plants

The insectivorous plants exhibit at the US Botanic Garden runs through October 8th. We went to see it this past weekend. The exhibit is a clever mix of sculpture and real plants. I can remember being fascinated with Venus Flytrap plants as a child. The pitcher plants (at right and included in the slide show) were the highlights of this exhibit for me - particularly the outdoor sculpture grouping of them. The sculpture of the Venus Flytrap was mechanized; push a button and it snapped shut!

There are several more posts from the Botanic Garden visit…they’ll come out over the next week or so. I posted about the landmark building models in the conservatory at the US Botanic Garden last November.

Celebrating October 2012

What do you celebrate in October? Here are some ideas:

Apples and squash. The new harvest is in and apples are at their best. There are a large number of varieties to try other than ‘Delicious’ – so experiment and find a new favorite! Many communities host festivals that feature the produce of fall and fresh apple cider or apple butter.....and all those colorful squashes.

Foliage. Take a drive or a hike through a forest of deciduous trees. Timing it just right is always a challenge – but easier now that there are so many web sites that predict the peak color and even have pictures of areas.

Leaves. Play in piles of leaves. Yes – the raking is a chore…but make it into a fun activity while you are at it.

Cooler weather. After the swelter of summer and even September – October has some very welcome cooler days. Celebrate with some outdoor activities and enjoy a picnic.

Halloween. Buy those bags of candy and be prepared to offer a treats to all those goblins that come knocking! We purchased a plastic jack-o-lantern that looks like the real thing years ago; turned out to be a great purchase to decorate the front porch for the big night.

Dahlia and LED Water Light Photographs

Seeing the Bruce Munro light installation at Longwood Gardens inspired me to do some experimentation with LED water lights. We purchased a package with a submersible LED light that changed colors and came with 100 clear acrylic pieces to reflect the light in the Longwood gift store.

Looking around for a subject - I decided that my dahlias were prolific enough this year to sacrifice one for the project.

The first series is of the whole flower - positioned over the light and crystals. Just as in the Bruce Munro pieces, the longer exposure for the photograph intensifies the color.

The second series is of petals. The crystals are more visible. The petals almost give the image a painting type texture.

Brookside Gardens in September

Brookside Gardens in September is making the transition to fall. We went first thing in the morning; the temperature was decidedly cool. Here are the highpoints of what we saw: 

• Red magnolia seeds
• Fall crocus
• Coleus - some in bloom
• Dogwoods turning and one already in full fall reds
• Roses - they always get a second wind as the temperatures get a little cooler
• A walking stick on the ‘switch grass’ sign 

Enjoy the slide show!

Black Swallowtail Caterpillars

A few weeks ago I found caterpillars on my parsley plant. They were easily identifiable as black swallowtail caterpillars so I decided to sacrifice the plant to have the caterpillars as photography subjects and increase the next generation of black swallowtails. There were four caterpillars and they ate about half the rather large plant before they made their chrysalises. They will probably overwinter in that form since the temperatures are definitely cool at night already and there is not enough time for the cycle to get from butterfly to egg to chrysalis again before it is too cold. 

The caterpillars eat rapidly…then go into a food coma…shed their skin. They have stubby feet that grip the stems of the parsley but can lift themselves off the stem too. They sometimes sprout yellow orange horns if they are threatened but not while they are in a food coma. Enjoy the caterpillar slide show below.

Variegated Crotons at Brookside Gardens

The garden or variegated crotons are colorful residents of the conservatory at Brookside Gardens. Sometimes they are simply a backdrop for changing displays. At other times they are some of the main color for their quadrant of the north conservatory. The pictures below were captured on the same day as our tour of the butterfly exhibit.

It’s interesting that the new leaves are most often green and that the different plants vary not only in color but pattern of color. Green, yellow, red, orange….the whole range of colors can be found on a single plant!

Leaf Etchings

Have you ever made leaf etchings? They’re easier to make with crayons than with a pencil. The trick is to hold down firmly and complete each section completely before moving on. No going over the leaf a second time since it generally shows that the leaf has moved slightly.

Can you name the trees from the etchings I show below? They are all very common trees in Maryland.

<< Tulip poplar'

Sycamore (just one edge because the leaf was too big for the paper) >>

<< Maple

Oak >>

….Another way to celebrate the ending of the summer….the beginning of fall.

Begonias

The begonias of summer are about gone. Let’s celebrate how beautiful they were:

Their flowers as thin as tissue paper with the sun shining through

The green of their leaves - sometimes with another color around the edge or underneath

Their crinkly centers - bright yellow

Their delicate look while being surprising resilient to whatever summer brings

Gleanings of the Week Ending September 15, 2012

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles I read this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article:

Decoding the Black Death: Anthropologist Finds Clues in Medieval Skeletons - how ‘health at death’ can be determined from skeletons…the impact of disease (like the Black Death) on populations (health of survivors, genetic diversity)

Hadley Crater Provides Deep Insight into Martian Geology - craters within Hadley….there is still a lot to learn about Mars

Fungi Need Some Love, Too - Why? They are nature’s recyclers, food, and source of drugs such as antibiotics. We need them.

CHOCOLATE-PEANUT BUTTER “TRUFFLES” - these sound decadant but 'healthy' too - put on the list for upcoming holidays if you don’t make them this week!

15 Things I Never Knew About Health & Fitness - from Marlo Thomas

7-Point Action Plan for Repowering U.S. - If the US wants to remain a leader rather than become a follower in the world - we are going to have to start down this path to ‘energy independence’ rather than reverting to the strategy of the 20th century (i.e. heavy dependence on oil and coal)

Pumpkin donuts - these are baked….and sound yummy. I’m going to make them in mini-Bundt pans

Good Food on a Tight Budget - The guide includes a food list (by food group), tips, recipes…and more.

British Health Open for Research - Giving researchers access to the health records of 52 million people in England could prove invaluable for studying disease. Finally - some truly large scale analysis will be done. How many drugs and procedures that are widely utilized now will withstand the analysis?

Eyes: a Window to Diagnosis - A possible quick and easy screening for Parkinson’s, ADHD and FASD…maybe other neurological functional differences.

Butterflies at Brookside Gardens

This week is the last hurrah for the annual butterfly exhibit at the Brookside Gardens south conservatory. There were still a lot of butterflies to see. It was the first time I’d gone with a camera - and I found that I enjoyed it more while I was there and now that I am looking at the photos again. My more challenging shot was of the blue morphos (to the left) because they so rarely stay anyplace for long with their wings open. Enjoy the slide show below of my favorites for the photos my husband and I took!

Gleanings of the Week Ending September 8, 2012

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles I read this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article:

Stalking Sharks - researchers monitor movement of sharks off California’s coast

In Bike-Friendly Copenhagen, Highways For Cyclists  - one third of the people of Copenhagen ride their bikes to work or school…and they are extending the existing infrastructure out to the suburbs.

Birds hold 'funerals' for dead - experiments with western scrub jays

Face of America: Spirit of South Florida Montage - high energy montage of clips from Wolf Trap's upcoming Face of America: Spirit of South Florida, set to appear at Wolf Trap National Park (article at National Parks Traveler here)

Raw Veggie ‘noodle’ dishes - a step beyond spaghetti squash. If you don’t want to invest in a spiral slicer, try putting your veggies horizontally in your regular food processor and using the grating blade; the opening in my processor is large enough to make 3-4 inch ‘noodles’ this way (see zucchini and sweet potato noodles at left)

Learn the Top Native Plants for Your Backyard - beautiful and usually require less maintenance!

Grand Canyon National Park - the guide from National Parks Traveler.

Wow! NASA Video Shows 'Mind-Bogglingly Gorgeous' Solar Eruption

Green Money-Saving Tips: Cheap Ways to Be Environmentally Friendly - 10 tips (scroll over the images in the slide show to see the accompanying text). The 8th one (make your own cleaning supplies) includes of link to recipes for cleaners!

Cheers, Voyager: 35 Years of Exploration - the most distant human-made object was launched 35 years ago on Sept. 5th

Around our (Maryland) Yard in September 2012

September is the winding down of summer. I have onions blooming - a brilliant display over the lemon balm cut back last month. The insects really were enjoying the flowers.

The dahlias are still blooming profusely but sometimes one just dries out to look more like a sculpture than a flower.

The mushrooms are still growing around the old oak stump. The ones on the stump itself just get bigger and bigger. The puff balls a little further way on the mulch grow and then the puff opens to send spores out to grow other puff balls. It seems like we always have new pristine white one somewhere in the mulch around the oak stump while the older ones still disperse more spores when the wind is just right.

And finally - a feather in the grass. It must have come from a good sized bird. Since it was the only one - I’m assuming it was from molting rather than a death.

Previous Months: August 2012, July 2012, June 2012, May 2012, April 2012, March 2012, January 2012 

10 Years Ago – In September 2002

Many years ago I started collecting headlines/news blurbs as a way of honing my reading of news. Over the years, the headline collection has been warped by the sources of news I was reading…increasingly online. Reviewing the September 2002 headline gleanings - I forced myself to pick 10.    

1. Jordan is hoping to save the Dead Sea from dying completely by channeling in water from its large and less-salty southern cousin, the Red Sea
2. Millions of Muscovites have been advised to stay indoors as thick smoke from forest fires shrouded the city.
3. A Pennsylvania judge has imposed an injunction against Hershey Foods from selling itself
4. Military jets have resumed round-the-clock patrols over New York and Washington as the anniversary of the September 11 attacks approaches.
5. World Security Tight Ahead of 9/11
6. Milk and other dairy products can be as effective as some conventional fungicides in controlling powdery mildew in vineyards
7. Using DNA extracted from the dung of wild elephants in Africa, biologists have determined that three different types of elephants exist on the African continent
8. The Pyramid Rover -- a robot the size of a toy train -- took two hours to crawl through a narrow shaft in the Great Pyramid outside Cairo, drill through a door at the end and push through a camera to reveal: another door.
9. A top Russian space official has proposed temporarily shutting down the International Space Station (ISS) because the cash-strapped country can no longer pay its bills
10. "Vampire" appliances cost consumers $3 billion a year -- or about $200 per household. 

August 2012 Doodles

I did so many doodles in August. Looking at the Zentangles site, looking at botanical print books from the 1800s and book illustrations from the early1900s (which have been scanned and made available online) gave me so many new starting points. So - I did some culling from the pile and came up with some groups to share. The collage below is the ones that have a botanical theme; they also show a beginning influence of Zentangle type drawings.

My overall favorite of the month is a "sun."

The ones I liked the best from some of the illustrations from the early 1900s were corner or border elements. they have a bit of a botanial look...also lots of spirals.

Doodle posts from previous months are here.

Blog: September Celebrations

September begins tomorrow. What do you celebrate in September? Here are some items that are listed on my calendar.

Labor Day on 9/3. It makes a 3 day weekend for many in the US. Even though summer is not officially over until later in the month - Labor Day is typically the last hurrah of summer. Schools are starting and swimming pools are closing. Celebrate with end of summer foods like watermelon and corn on the cob.

Grandparents Day on 9/9 in the US. If you have grandparents living, this is a prompt to celebrate your relationship with them by sharing some aspect of your day with them. If your grandparents are deceased, acknowledge the legacy they left and their positive influence on your life.

First Day of Autumn on 9/22. In most parts of the US, the majority of leaves will still be green but this is a good time to get organized for cooler weather - deciding on additions/deletions for your fall wardrobe - and to plan a fall foliage excursion for the appropriate time in your area. Celebrate the change in seasons.

And - there are two Jewish holidays celebrated in September 

• Rosh Hashanah on 9/17.
• Yom Kippur on 9/26.

Charmed by the Unexpected

Have you ever noticed how the something unexpected transforms an ordinary time or place into something extraordinary? It happened to me yesterday when I was pulling weeds and trimming bushes.

First I noticed a discarded cicada skin. The sun was shining on it like a spot light.

Then as I was taking the buckets of clippings back to the forest, I noticed a very large spider web suspended from the maple tree and anchored to the ground. Again - the sun was shining on it like a spot light. There were lots of flying insects around the web and the blank places in the web structure show that the spider had already been very successful with this particular web placement. By the time I came back with my camera the spider has disappeared (probably up into the tree) but the web was still magnificent. It was my little celebration for yesterday!

Macro Water Lilies

I’ve posted before about water lilies (Cheekwood in June 2012, Longwood in November 2011). This time I’m sharing macro photos. These were all taken at Longwood Gardens in mid-August 2012. I love the colors and the shapes the magnification brings out. If I didn’t tell you they were water lilies would you be able to guess?

Enjoy the show!

Gleanings of the Week Ending August 25, 2012

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles I read this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article:

The Secret Life of a Cardboard Box - infographic

Developing Economies At Highest Risk of Climate Change Disasters - resilience outranks risk

3D-Printed Exoskeleton - Engineers at the Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children in Philadelphia used a 3-D printer to make a lightweight plastic exoskeleton for a 2-year-old girl named Emma Lavalle.

Slideshow: Echoes of the Ancients - large file but wonderful images of Mesa Verde and other Southwestern US National parks

Top 25 Wild Bird Photographs of the Week #20 - learning about more birds from around the world with each of these postings

Sunflower Party Time - great pictures of the plant and some insects

Ecuador's Tungurahua volcano (pictures)

Easy whole grain pumpkin-banana bread - sounds yummy….but I would just double the recipe to use up the whole can of pumpkin

Make Room for (the New) Daddy - Essay and slide show from Marlo Thomas

Renewable Energy’s Growth Over the Past 15 Years - infographic