WEEDS

I admit it, I have weeds. Weeds everywhere. The bunny weed control device can only do so much, and it doesn't seem to be very interested in either the weeds along the lake or the water weeds (gee whiz, why not?) So in the interest of coming clean about weeds, here are a couple that are really pretty, but can become invasive.

First, the Potentilla palustris, aka march or purple cinquefoil. It is pretty, don't you think?

Potentilla Palustris flower (above)
plant (below)

According to a botanist friend, Potentilla palustris is an invasive pest, so removing it it a good thing. Check out this official website for more information:
Potentilla

Next, the fragrant water lily (white and pink). Yup, these babies belong in self-contained ponds, not our lakes. This website has some good information on them:
fragrant water lily

water lily

Honey bee on lily pad?? Thought there was supposed to be frog there!

Houston, we have take-off

For identification of weeds, lists of plants or seeds that are prohibited in Washington, or any other weed into, check out the Washington State Noxious Weed Control Board website.

Instead of invasive plants, I'll leave you with a burst of positive sunshine, courtesy of a cosmos...






~Aerie-el

BEACHES AND BIRDS

While in Massachusetts, I managed to make it to a couple beaches.
Check out the lifeguard at Nauset Beach (below)...


Below are two different beaches at sunset...missing are the bugs and mosquitoes in these shots.




At sunset, Gray's Beach (above) always looks like some exotic, foreign locale to me.



Foreign to us in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) are a couple of birds that I captured on film. Above is a shot of the Baltimore oriole (looks like a towhee, doesn't it?) and below is a picture of a bright red cardinal.


See more information about the spotted towhee and Baltimore oriole at these two websites:
Spotted Towhee
Baltimore oriole

The last picture for this post is a bird we also see here in the PNW, the osprey.


So with summer but a memory and autumn having arrived, I guess it is that time to get back out to do the fall cleanup in the gardens, and enjoy viewing another migration of various birds once again...

~Aerie-el

BUGS...What's the buzz?

(Click on any picture for an up close and personal view;
click 'back' to return to post.)

I was thinking about how I used to view bugs...back then, any insect that moved was creepy and needed to be eliminated. Now, saving bugs is like my mission in the yard and gardens.




Since most bugs are beneficial, using broad-spectrum pesticides kills pretty much all the bugs-beneficial and pests. Once you do that, the pests, who tend to multiply much more rapidly and in greater numbers than beneficial bugs, can take over again with even more vigor.




At this point, I use no chemicals in my garden or yard. My biggest ally is compost, and my best tool is my hori hori. I add compost to my beds every year. As you can see in these pictures, I have plenty of bugs around, including lots of beneficial insects.






Happy bugging,
~Aerie-el

CLOUDS

NEWSFLASH FROM THE GARDENER'S ROOST...

it's a slow month for viewing eagles!
So while the eagles have presumably flown north to find some sumptuous salmon for supper, let's continue to set our eyes on the skies...



and the clouds...growing up, did you ever lie on the ground and look up to the sky, letting your imagination soar around the shape of the clouds?











Clouds...what do you see now?

~Aerie-el