Longwood Gardens Meadow – September 2015

This was our first time to walk around the meadow at Longwood Gardens since it was renovated several years ago. It was a sunny, breezy fall day – great for walking around but a challenge for photography. The meadow has grassy paths. There were some that were already closed for regeneration…and new ones mowed.

I liked the planters on top of the bird houses throughout the meadow. Some of them were not growing as well as the one below that happened to be near the beginning of our hike through the meadow. The birds that utilized the house – probably tree swallows or blue birds - are done with the box for the season but the ‘green roof’ makes it worth noting.

The meadow is full of yellow – sunflowers and goldenrod.

There is an occasional splash of purple from asters

And thistles.

There are buds and seed pods on the same plants sometimes.

I was disappointed that there was not much milkweed. Perhaps more will grow next year since there were a few seed pods spilling their seeds into the breeze.

Longwood Gardens Water Lilies – September 2015

I like the water lily court at Longwood Gardens and have posted photographs from it several times before (see the links at the end of this post). I tried some different techniques when we visited the gardens last week can got some better results than I had previously.

I tried to position myself so that my shadow fell on the flower – so the light was less harsh. The colors seemed ever more vivid and the surface tension where the petals touched the water was visible. I always think the center of waterlilies are surreal looking both because of their structure and their colors.

Sometimes water lilies look a little like tulips. This one was just opening.

Once open…the bees find the flowers irresistible. Many times there are several bees in the same flower.

Longwood puts black dye in the water of the pools to reduce algae growth but it helps with photography as well. Either surface tension or reflection is common.

Most of the time we think of lily pads as being green but they often have a lot of red – particularly when they are new.

This flower was partially submerged. I also like the water accumulated on the battered lily pad above the flower.

The flower was in the full sun but I managed to get golden reflection rather than overly bright areas. This is the flower of the largest water lily pads.

There are subtle color changes of the petals that are hard to notice with the flowers are in full sun.

Notice the framing of the flower (below) with the scalloped edges of the lily pads.

I was surprised but the increased detail visible in the petals when the flower is not in full sun.

The flower seemed to glow – surround by green…and the water tension visible where the lily pads touch the water.

Shading the flowers took some effort…but I like the quality of the images more than ever!

Gleanings of the Week Ending September 26, 2015

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

An Up-Close View of Bristol Bay’s Astonishing Sockeye Salmon Runs – Learn about sockeye salmon in southwest Alaska from the Yale e360 video contest first runner up video.

Oregon's "Lost Lake" Drains Down a Perplexing Hole – Surreal photographs….the lake accumulates in the winter and drains away each spring!

Great Grasses for Native Gardens – These grasses are for the Baltimore, Maryland area…but there are probably similar lists for other places. Native Gardens are not just for flowers! I think I’ll look further at the Red October big bluestem!

Training more effective teachers through alternative pathways – Wow! What does this mean for education departments in colleges?

Spinning Synthetic Spider Silk – Evidently the first application will be in apparel….in 2016. Potentially this ‘spider silk’ fiber may with proteins produced by yeast and then spun maybe the synthetic fiber of the future – as we shift away from petroleum based synthetics.

The Chemistry of Deodorants vs. Antiperspirants – The ingredients of deodorants and antiperspirants are sometimes in the news linked to health issues. This post is a nice summary of the current research.

Meet the Foxes of Silicon Valley – We have foxes in our suburban area on the east coast (Maryland). Good to know that the area around San Francisco has them too.

Reducing Food Waste and Setting the Table for All – Chart 2 was the part of this post that interested me the most. What do you think about this list of what stores could do to reduce food waste? I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what I can do to reduce food waste at home. My store already does most of the things on this list.

Camera Drone Captures Gorgeous Aerial Shots of Iceland's Diverse Terrain – Beautiful place.

Hackberry: The Best Tree You’ve Never Heard About – Maybe this will be the next tree I plant at the edge of our forest….although now that I know there is a black walnut tree nearby I need to reconsider how well other trees will grow.

Ten Days of Little Celebrations – September 2015

Noticing something worth celebration each day is an easy thing for me to do. The habit of writing it down reminds me to be grateful for these and a myriad of other things in my life. Here are my top 10 for September 2015.

Haircut – I’d gotten rather shaggy over the course of the summer….the shorter hair was worth celebrating!

Laptop – Hurray! My new laptop (after a rough start) is living up to my expectations. I am celebrating that it is definitely better than my old one in every way.

Acorn squash with homemade orange marmalade and butter – A vegetable that tastes like the dessert is always a celebration.

Homemade veggie soup – I used up some of the overwhelming numbers of tomatoes and other vegetables on one of our first cool days….celebrating the beginnings of fall with food.

Art of Flower Photography – A class that it beautiful to watch and spurs my own photographic experiments; this was another multi-dimensional celebration.

Mediation Course – I’ve only learned the bare minimum…enough to realize the potential…and am celebrating it as a beginning.

Glass birdbath – The glass bird bath in the front our house is something I check every morning when I come downstairs. Sometimes there is a bird…sometimes not. The sight of glass bowl in the morning light always starts the day on a positive note.

Longwood Gardens – Earlier this week my husband and I made a road trip to Longwood Gardens (posts still being developed). It was a 13,000 step walk around the gardens and meadow on a near perfect fall day.

Bird Walk – I’d never taken a walk with a birding group until recently. It was a good experience even though it rained off and on….birds seemed hunkered down rather than active. I celebrated that the area I live in has a number of active birders.

An indoor day – Sometimes it is a relief to just be indoors at home. I love the view from my office window!

CSA Week 17

I still have a few potatoes, sweet dumpling squash, chives, and bell peppers left from week 16. The potatoes will keep. I’ll bake the squash in a few days I should freeze the peppers and endeavor to use up the chives as quickly as possible.

The share this week was a typical fall bounty:

Beets ---- I am making fruit beety with the beets and using the stems/leaves in stir fries

Broccoli ---- We were warned by the farmer to soak the broccoli to get the insects out of it. I’ll probably make slaw out of it after that….which can be used in salads and stir fries

Bell peppers and snack peppers ---- It’s a bit overwhelming but I like peppers both raw and cooked

Parsley – I’ll use as much as I can fresh but will probably end up drying some of it.

Thyme – I traded my hot peppers to get a second bunch! I’ve become a fan of thyme in stir fry and soup…and it dries very easily

Kohlrabi – I’ll use the leaves and stems in stir fries. The bulbs may become part of the slaw I make with the broccoli

Tomatoes – We are down to a pound of the red tomatoes this week. I got a pint container of the sun gold tomatoes as my pick from the overage table.

Butternut squash – This is probably my favorite winter squash because it is big enough to have enough left over to make custard (made with the cooked squash instead of pumpkin but otherwise the same ingredients)

Eggplant - There are two again this week. I plan to make another batch of eggplant balls and may freeze some of them.

Yummy meals in week ahead!

Deck Garden – September 2015

The deck garden going to seed! I’ll have to collect the seeds for next year’s deck garden as the pods dry completely.  The Black Eyed Susans are all seed pods at this point. The zinnias still have some blossoms but about half have formed seed pods. I experimented with a drape from my camera lens (made of a white plastic shopping bag) to photograph this zinnia flower on a bright sunny day.

The basil is going to seed too but it is more difficult to pinpoint went the flower ends and the pod begins. I liked the color of the pod and leaves in this one.

The sunflowers have not done very well in my deck garden and it may be that they like deeper soil. They took a long time to create buds and the blooms were not large. They often look better from the back than the front.

The leaves of the purple peas have a lot of the color of the peas in their leaves along with the green.

The leaves of the sunflowers are just green but pattern of veins. Both of the leaf images were the underside of the leaves.

3 Free eBooks – September 2015

A feast for the eyes – the natural world and the world of houses that are homes – that is the abstract of the 3 Free eBooks I’ve picked this month.

Porter, Eliot. Intimate Landscapes. New York: E.P. Dutton. 1979. Available from the Internet Archive here. This book gave me a lot of ideas about some different types of photography…still nature photography but with the idea of smaller settings that wide open landscapes, but more than macro images of flowers. Porter was interested in the nexus of nature photography and art in all his books but this one seemed more focused on that in-between perspective on the natural world. I had seen several of his books in physical form; this is the only one I have found available electronically.

Yagi, Koji with photography by Rho Hata. Japanese Touch for Your Home. Kodansha International. 1982. Available on the Internet Archive here. I like the lack of clutter in Japanese homes. I was also intrigued by the window coverings (some examples show in the clipped image from the book.

Baker, William T. New Classicists. The Images Publishing Group. 2004. Available from the Internet Archive here. Some beautiful, classical looking houses from Atlanta, GA. This is a book full of inspiration if you are remodeling…or looking for a new house…even if most of us can only afford smaller versions of these high end homes.

Zooming – September 2015

The zoomed images included in these collages reflect my travels in late August and early September…and I’ve uploaded them in a way that you can see an enlarged version by clicking on the image.

Can you find zoomed images of

• Sunflowers (hint: they are not open all the way)
• Queen Anne’s lace (hint: from underneath)
• Maple leaves (hint: already changing color)
• Jewel weed (hint: it’s yellow rather than orange)
• Thistle pod
• Morning glory
• Zinnias (hint: one red, one pink…the hummingbirds checked them out frequently as they prepared for their migration from Maryland)
• Chipmunk
• Crow (really it was a boat tail grackle but the tail does not show in the picture!)
• Onion flowers

Enjoy!

 

 

 

The zoomed images included in these collages reflect my travels in late August and early September…and I’ve uploaded them in a way that you can see an enlarged version by clicking on the image.

Can you find zoomed images of

·         Sunflowers (hint: they are not open all the way)

·         Queen Anne’s lace (hint: from underneath)

·         Maple leaves (hint: already changing color)

·         Jewel weed (hint: it’s yellow rather than orange)

·         Thistle pod

·         Morning glory

·         Zinnias (hint: one red, one pink…the hummingbirds checked them out frequently as they prepared for their migration from Maryland)

·         Chipmunk

·         Crow (really it was a boat tail grackle but the tail does not show in the picture!)

·         Onion flowers

Enjoy!

Fallen Leaves - Old and New

Back in August there were already hints of fall in the New York State Parks we visited….a few freshly fallen colorful leaves. I noticed instances where a newer leaf as meshed with older ones and thought about how quickly most leaves begin to decompose once they are on the ground - particularly in wet environments.

Notice the tip of the maple leaf (below) that has already cracked off the main body of the leave and how faded the color seems to be.

Leaves that are actually in water probably don’t last long at all.

Fresh leaves on old leaf mulch and wet rock stand out because of their contrasting color.

 A fresher looking leave under the brown leaves…how did that happen?

Sometimes green leaves fall. Was there a storm or did this leave simply fall from the tree in the same way leaves do this time of year?

I’m primed for the big show where the majority of leaves on the deciduous trees turn from their summer green - hang on to the tree for a little while - then swirl away. Fall is never long enough to be boring! 

CSA Week 15

I’ve put another gallon ziplock of tomatoes in the freezer; this week we only got 3 more pounds of sauce tomatoes…the beautiful small ones are done for the year. I did pick up an heirloom tomato from the overage box to savor with a little salt and fresh oregano.

New in the crisper this week are chard and scallions. I have eggplant to make into balls - a big batch. The garlic supply is replenished. There were 3 kinds of peppers (bell, snack and hot; I traded the hot ones for more chard).

There were also 2 more pounds of potatoes. Fortunately they last without refrigeration since the other items were bulky.

Overall - the bag for this share was seemed heavier that previous shares (except for the ones that included a watermelon).

My crispers are full and there are bins in the other part of the refrigerator. It is all good eating - but almost too abundant. More than tomatoes may need to be processed into the freezer. 

Growing In/On Rocks

I photographed a lot of organisms growing on the rocks when we made our tour of state parks in southern New York (Stony Brook, Robert H. Treman, Taughannock, and Letchworth). Most of the gorges are crumbling shale - small and large slabs. Since we are focused on waterfalls - some of the plants were cling to wet or damp rocks.

There were mosses and ferns that see to require very little soil

Others that grew in a bit more soil in the cracks…or lichen that grows on the surface of rock, breaking away small bits of the stone over long periods of time.

Any structure built of stones seemed to have colonized by something from algae to lichen to liverworts to mosses to ferns to higher plants. I enjoyed taking pictures of the small landscapes on the rock walls of the gorges and the walls/bridges that had been constructed for the trail. Enjoy my picks for the slideshow below!

Black Swallowtail Caterpillar

Several of the celery plants that I sprouted last spring (by putting the cut off base of a head of celery in water…then planting in dirt at soon as roots formed) stayed green and grew new stems and leaves during this past summer. In August - before I went off to Texas - I discovered a caterpillar on them. It was a black swallowtail caterpillar. It was a great end to the celery experiment. I don’t know where the caterpillar went after it ate most of the celery…but hope it should be becoming a butterfly soon.

I was surprised at how much the front appendages looked like they had point black ‘fingernails’!

Learning Log - September 2015

I’ve pasted monthly about the classes I was enjoying on Coursera for the past year or so.Last month I expanded to ‘online classes’ since I enjoyed a Creative Live photography class. This month I’m expanding beyond that to the idea of a ‘learning log’ post each month as a way to document my learning paths; it’s an acknowledgement that my learning paths are evolving all the time both in content and learning strategies.

Learning by doing. I am endeavoring to take/make opportunities to apply what I am learning. The best example over the past month was the nature photography activity I did with summer campers. Teaching someone else is a great milestone for learning. I’m in the process of writing out the activity notes…and lessons learned….so that I can do it again next summer - even more effectively. The interaction also prompted several photographic projects for my continued development.

Coursera courses are still something that will appear in my learning log almost every month….I’m not planning to have more than a couple in progress at any particular time. I finished the Geodesign course in August. It was a nice follow on to the Geospatial Revolution course I took earlier in the year and I’ve noticed more articles about communities apply Geodesign ideas since taking the course.

I’ve started a Mediation course from the University of Virginia. It is the first in a series which will extend at least through the end of the year. Right now it is almost overwhelming but interesting enough that I am making the effort.

Later this month, a Forest and Humans course will start. I’m looking forward to the lectures and references during the fall in Maryland (lots of colorful leaves from the forest behind my house).

My husband purchased The Art of Flower Photography from Creative Live so we are beginning to watch in at hour at a time. As usual….I am interested in composition more than anything else although strategies for dealing with full sunlight (which often it too bright for good flower photography) may also be part of the course.

Photo Week 2015 on Creative Live happens in September too. My husband has already signed up for watching it live (and free). The three segments I am most interested in are:

• Photography Tips for Everybody (9/21 10:45 AM, 1.5 hours)
• Landscapes and Light (9/21 3 PM, 1.5 hours
• Beyond Macro Photography: Into the Microscopic World (9/24 10:45 AM, 1.5 hours)

Stony Brook State Park - August 2015

The first and last park we visited in our trek to state parks in New York back in August was Stony Brook State Park. The first time we were in the park was a hot Monday afternoon - and there were lots of people in the water. It was hard to get pristine pictures of anything. We returned during a damp and cool morning a few days later; the only other people in the park were park personnel!

There is a lot of moving water in the park: large falls and little trickles. The gray day made it easier to photograph.

My favorite of the images is a low falls - a little dark with the greens  and mists of late summer framing the water.

I liked the stone bridges

And wooden bridges.

Both had lichen and moss growing on their stone abutments.

There were some leaves that looked worn from summer…getting ready for fall.

There were berries ripening too.

There were a few cairns but not as many as we saw at Robert H. Treman State Park.

Last but not least - there was a spider waiting patiently in a web suspended from hemlock branches full of water droplets.

Gleanings of the Week Ending September 02, 2015

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

New blood test for colon cancer improves colonoscopy screening results - It would be great to have a blood test for initial screening rather than a colonoscopy. Eventually it might happen. I have another 6 years before my next one is due….and hoping the blood test becomes the recommendation before then!

Dos and Don’ts to preserve your brainpower - No surprises in the article…suggestion like “Don’t feast on junk food” are common sense but hard to follow 100% of the time in the modern world. That probably says something about cultural aspects that are wearing down the brainpower of the overall population.

The alien within: Fetal cells influence maternal health during pregnancy (and long after) - The interaction between fetus and mother is two way…and complex. Research is just beginning to explain the mechanisms.

How to choose a Black-eye Susan - It’s the state flower of Maryland and grows well in my garden. I’m going to have more of it next year both in pots and in the front flower beds!

Mexico City’s Ambitious Elevated Park - Creating green space in the middle of a city is a challenge. This example is in the planning stages but it references successful projects in other cities around the world that have tried a similar approach….elevation over traffic or canals.

A Guide to Different Types of Fat - A good review of the nomenclature of fats.

DIY: Compost Bin - You don’t have to be an expert to make your own compost bin!

The Stunning Ways Driftwood Builds Landscapes - From National Geographic.

Take a Virtual Tour of Mount Vernon - I’ve been to Mount Vernon many times - still enjoyed the virtual tour!

The metamorphosis of a caterpillar into a monarch butterfly - A short video showing how the Monarch caterpillar forms its chrysalis…and emerges a butterfly.

Robert H. Treman State Park - August 2015

Another New York State Park that we visited in August was Robert H. Treman State Park near Ithaca. We have hiked it before - in the fall of 2012 (blog post here). There was more water this time. My husband was do experiments photographing the waterfalls which gave be time to look at other things along the Gorge Trail…

The stone brides and walls of the trail through the narrow gorge

The view of the sky from the bottom of the gorge….the trees precariously balanced on crumbling sheets of shale.

Water droplets splattering on a ledge. It must be consistent enough to support the film of brilliantly green algae…or it is lichen.

Some wildflowers.

Cairns left the falls. They are evidence that people wade just about everywhere in the water on some days…but no on the day we were there.

Some imprints of plants long gone left in the shale.

The erosion of rock by smaller streams of water. Or maybe this falls is much larger when it rains.

And finally ---- waterfalls.

CSA Week 14

When I returned home….the whole week 13 share was waiting. My husband had not even cut the watermelon! I managed to eat a few tomatoes, some peppers and half the watermelon before I picked up week 14! I was glad that I still had room in the freezer for the larger tomatoes.

I celebrated that sweet potato leaves were included in this share. I like the so much I traded the okra for a second bundle….and there was lettuce too. There will be lots of good salads this next week. I made tomato soup for the first meal after I picked up the week 14 share…using some of the tomatoes, peppers, sweet potato leaves, and oregano.

Another celebration in this share: honey. It was well timed to sooth my linger sore throat (along with lemon in hot tea).

Deck Garden - August 2015

The deck garden has not gotten much attention this year so some of the pots have a few weeds…but I am still enjoying it both from the kitchen window and outdoors.

The sunflower seeds my sister gave me for Christmas have taken longer to develop than sunflowers elsewhere - maybe because the deck only gets sun for half the day….or maybe sunflowers need deeper soil than the pots provide.

The zinnias were started from seeds I had from previous years and some my sister gave me. The hummingbird stops buy periodically to feed at the flowers. I only had pink ones in previous years

So the red ones must be from my sister's seeds.

The gold finches love the developing seeds of the zinnias this time of year…and on into the fall as long as they last.

The poinsettia from last Christmas is a small bush at this point. I’m not sure what I will do with it. I may attempt putting it in a dark room to see if I can get some red foliage for this Christmas. It is more tolerant of getting a little dry than I thought it would be.

Last but not least - the purple pea vine is climbing all over the peacock pot sculpture. It has worked out well to have basil growing in the same pot; I like harvesting basil for a salad or cooking just before I need it. I’m likely to plant this combination again next year.

August 2015 Road Trip

Our August road trip was from Maryland up to New York (south and south west) primarily for waterfalls in New York State Parks from a base in Mt. Morris NY. I have several subsequent posts planned about the state parks. I’m focuses on the drive itself today.

Our first rest stop had Monarch friendly milkweed among their plantings….but no butterflies.

The sunflowers were in all stages of development and harbored quite a few different insects:

Bees

Wasps

And wheel bug (with a much smaller fly).

Several other rest stops along the way had similar plantings.

My husband was driving leaving me free to take pictures while we were moving down the road. The drive through the middle of Pennsylvania is through the Allegheny Mountains so there are sections of raised highway and

Steep road cuts.

The day we drove up was sunny (and hot) with fluffy clouds building.

On the way back it was somewhat cooler because it was cloudy much of the time. The high humidity made it feel hotter than it was. I manage to get a picture of the replica of the Statue of Liberty on an old bridge support in the Susquehanna River as we zipped past.

Gleanings of the Week Ending August 22, 2015

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

Why statins should be viewed as a double-edged sword - The results of a study from Tulane that indicates that statins may not be appropriate as a preventative measure for those who do not have cardiovascular disease…because statins increased aging and death of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs); MSCs can become all types of cell types including bone, cartilage, muscle cells and macrophages. Thus - the risk/benefit for people without cardiovascular diseases need careful consideration.

Four Ferns for Dry Places - I planted some Christmas fern under my deck and it is thriving!

Smart Windows Just Got Cooler - I’ve always thought it would be great to have windows that could selectively block light - and it seems like there is ongoing work. This start up is based on chemical engineering work from the University of Texas at Austin. It would be great to not need to close the draperies in my west-facing office on hot summer afternoons!

Survey reveals best practices that lead to high patient ratings of hospital care - It turns out that it is not about high-tech resources!

Butterflies in Peril - Droughts and habitat fragmentation….hard on butterflies. Many are becoming locally extinct. We are not in a drought here in Maryland but we are very away of the decline in Monarch butterflies in our area.

The Next Great GMO Debate - Evidently Monsanto is learning how to modify crops by spraying them with RNA rather than tinkering with their genes. What about unintended consequences? I’d rather we focus research on sustainable agricultural practices rather than new sprays that may have a short term benefit and potentially have a long term consequence.

An inside look at the world’s biggest space telescope - An update on the progress on the James Webb Telescope (video and pictures).

Cherokee Purple: The Story behind One of Our Favorite Tomatoes - These are the type of heirloom tomatoes we’ve been getting from our CSA; they are tasty. I enjoyed hearing about the history of how it became one the favorite heirloom tomatoes

The Periodic Table’s Endangered Elements - There are 9 elements that may ‘run out’ on Earth within the next 100 years and 7 additional ones that may join the list because of increased use.

Field recording Irish traditional music - Instrumental, song and dance videos…the roots of Riverdance.