Study of Small Things

I wrote this poem after hearing last night's news.

Study of Small Things

Crystal H. Rogers

 Daddy heard USDA allowed

a small number of rat hairs

in peanut butter.

I laughed and kept eating.

Now we hear bottled water

has micro and nano particles

of plastic.

I pause to consider.

I know what happens to

rat hair when I eat it:

It’s digested. No harm done.

I do not know

what plastic

may do.

I think I hear butterfly wings.

Forsythia or Yellow Bell

Forsythia is long gone now. Every flower has dropped away and in place of a bright yellow flash in the landscape, I now have a hum drum green forgettable shrub. But it was pleasure while it lasted, and the great part is, it will be back next year, in spite of anything I may or may not do to it. It takes care of itself. It would be denser and produce more flowers if it were in less shade and was watered in dry spells and treated to fertilizer each year, and pruned a little. But Forsythia is not my only concern in life, so I let it take care of itself.
The easiest way to propagate Forsythia is to cut 4 or 5 twelve inch branches and stick them straight into the ground where you want them to grow. (Clay is OK). Keep them watered the first year, especially in dry spells, then before you know it you'll have a nice bush.

Rocks From Lake Superior

This plate of  "cookies"

was brought to me from the shores of Lake Superior at Whitefish Point, near the Edmund Fitzgerald Museum. (The Edmund Fitzgerald was lost with 29 souls aboard in 1975.) The collector of these beautiful rocks reported that it appeared that on this beach made of rocks, each one was different (isn't Nature wonderful?). I know that it must be a sight that lives long in memory, as this is only the second person I know personally who has visited Lake Superior, and both were struck by the stony beach. The waves were huge and pounding at the time these stones were gathered, and it was said that the waves and stones will grind many stones to sand in as little as 6 weeks from the time they arrive at the beach.

I call this a plate of cookies because every time I pass them sitting on the kitchen counter, I fleetingly think they are cookies and want to eat one.

Weather update: after 2 days of bitter (40's) wind that felt like it was off ice, this morning there was a pretty good frost. Just a reminder that we are not finished with frost yet, in spite of the warm temps  in February

Edgeworthia (Paperbush)

I have posted about Edgeworthia (Paperbush) several years ago (look here). But I think it's worth an update. These fragrant flowers are always worth a second sniff.

My bush suffered a tragedy last summer. I don't know exactly what happened but most of the limbs broke or rotten off near the bottom where they came from the original stalk. Now it is about half the size it was when I first posted about it in 2016.
 I am studying over how I might reshape it by pruning after the blooms pass. I read online that clay soil (which I have) and staying too damp (remember how much rain we had last year) can cause a familiar form of root rot. Maybe I ought to plan to root some of my prunings and if I get that done and produce something to replant, I better try to make the soil faster draining wherever I plant it.

Daffodils Popping Out like Crazy

Spring has jumped ahead of me (once again). It always seems like there is plenty of time to get seed started, get a few new trees and shrubs in the ground, etc and then suddenly it's getting late for all these things. I have planted a few pepper seed but no tomatoes or flowers yet. In fact the flowers I ordered from the American Horticulture seed exchange have not even arrived yet. But it is hot as blue blazes, 80 degree days and 60 or 70 degree nights. And it is far too early for all this heat. The weather man says that a Bermuda high is responsible for all this heat and lack of rain, and mentioned the drought of 2007. I hope we do not go there again!
But the daffodils are moving along at an incredible rate, as are the hyacinths. They all smell so sweet. (Well maybe not some of the Narcissus.)

                                                        Peeping Tom daffodil

Hepatica blooms a long time

This Hepatica, an early wildflower, has been blooming since December, although it only has one bloom left now. I have to go out early winter and scratch in the leaves if I want to see it. Sometimes I miss it as it's so well hidden. The name Hepatica comes from the lobed leaves that must have reminded someone of the liver.

Mobile Bay From Fort Morgan

Mobile Bay as seen from Fort Morgan. Plenty of pelicans were enjoying riding the rocking water under the watchful eye of too many gas wells.

The remains of an old pier at Fort Morgan, with the gas wells in the background (again).

Pelicans and gas wells (again) on Mobile Bay. I keep showing these as I was amazed (alarmed?) at their proliferation since the last time I was there several years ago. At one point I could see 9 wells in the Bay, and I am not sure there were not more than that. Good Grief! Do they really need that many because of pockets or the way the gas is in the ground, or is this just an effort to suck the gas out as quickly as they can? It certainly makes for a miserable view. It destroys the calmness of gazing out to the horizon. By the way, does anyone know what happened to the money that Alabama schools were supposed to get from these wells? As I remember, these wells were touted in the news as being the salvation of Alabama schools. They could have everything, be the best. No more school taxes. The gas would take care of it. What happened to that promise, that dream? Close to 50 years have passed, and I do not remember a time when Alabama schools were not in need nor a time when they didn't need overhaul. I am not talking buildings as much as what goes on inside the buildings. Tell me, what happened and is happening to the money from these wells.

I have found some info  on the Alabama Trust Fund. It appears that the money just goes into the budget, not directly to schools as I had though. See info here

Fort Morgan in February 2018

These are 3 iconic views of historic Fort Morgan which is about a 30-45 minute drive from Gulf Shores, Alabama. It stands at the mouth of Mobile Bay and was used in both the War of 1812 and the Civil War. This is a good time of year to visit the fort (especially with children) as it is not so hot and is pleasant to climb the many sets of steps throughout the fort and walk through the cool passageways.
 I "discovered" a passage that was too dark to see your hand in front of your face. It made several turns so that light was excluded, and ended in a small room that was used for ???  It brought a feeling of excitement and mystery that one seldom finds in any public places these days. I was standing in the tunnel to let my eyes adjust when someone came in from the entrance with a flashlight. He was very startled to see someone already there and started to go back. I invited him to come on by me and bring his light so that we all got to see and go on the adventure together.
 In 2008 an unexploded ordnance from the Civil War battle was found during construction. There are discoveries to be made, but some not so pleasant.
 Fort Morgan is a National Historic Landmark administered by the National Park Service. Admission is adults $7, students and seniors $5, but if you have a National Park pass, just drive on in.

February Orange Beach Sunrise

Rhapsody   William Stanley Braithwaite

I am glad daylong for the gift of song,      For time and change and sorrow; For the sunset wings and the world-end things      Which hang on the edge of to-morrow. I am glad for my heart whose gates apart      Are the entrance-place of wonders, Where dreams come in from the rush and din      Like sheep from the rains and thunders.

The Trees at Dusk

 One evening recently, I took these pictures of trees in my yard. They look like black lace against the sky.

                                              The previous  two are in the back of the house. 
                                                                  Such nice silhouettes!

Note the mistletoe in this one. We affectionately refer to this, our oldest and largest tree as 'Johnny Reb'. I don't think it has been around that long, but it has been here a long time.

Winter Sunrise January 2018

This is a winter sunrise out my back door, with the sandbox that was long ago converted into a rooting bed/ holding area for plants that were awaiting a permanent home. The wooden bar across the top is the remnants of a failed rooting  project on camellia where I put them under a plastic cover to increase the humidity. Now I use the bar as a stand to spray paint occasional projects. The green in the back part of the holding area is a combination of two plants: an enterprising red cedar and a tangle of Jackson Smilax that I  can easily dig and sell. The trusty clothesline appears in the far back with it's surround of brick. You can see my trail through the leaves. The color that morning was gorgeous, but short lived. The pictures are nice, but do not exactly capture reality. I let the leaves lay where they fall as I love to look at them, love to walk through them and hear them crunch, and anyway, come spring, the wind will have put them exactly where they should be.

Looking in another direction to the east the same morning, more trees and beautiful pink/purple
sky with a little orange thrown in. Bare trees against the sky looking like lace is one of the more beautiful sights on this earth. The orange dot in the far back is a pumpkin on its way to the next stage. The closer orange dot is the roof of a fairy house made for me by a friend. In spite of my patience, no faeries have taken up residence (yet).

Winter at Gold Hill Plant Farm

 Winter is my least favorite season, even though we do not have enough really bad weather to complain about. Winter here is more like a low grade fever that makes you feel listless and blue, but not really sick enough to go to bed. And so, I live for the daffodils that will soon begin marching forth from the ground.
 In the meantime I do a few crafts that I hesitate to call "Art" but which are very satisfying to me.
My latest is a nature box.
Left to right
top row: overcup oak acorn, 2 different polished rock specimens from a long ago rock show

second row: jewel box bivalve, 3 acorns (unknown variety), broken top from fighting conch

third row: dried hydrangea blooms, broken top from a whelk shell, another polished rock

Fourth row: tiny pine cone brushed with paint to look like snow, 2 more rocks, one polished and one   natural, some dried candles from (probably) Norfolk Island Pine

Beautiful Flowers in Japan

Here is a link to a beautiful garden in Japan. I never heard of yellow wisteria.

Armadillos On the Loose!

Here's all you ever needed to know about armadillos, and more. Who cleaned up that one up with the white fur on it??

String of Pearls

String of pearls (Senecio rowlyanus) or rosary string of beads is an easily grown succulent and it's care is like most other succulents: don't overwater,let soil dry between waterings, and give plenty of bright light. These plants are wonderful in a hanging basket or crawling over the edge of pots. It blooms also, but the blooms are small ragged affairs that are not that striking to me. if the stems get too long, it can easily be propagated from the cut stems. Just lay them on the soil in a pot and they will root there.

January Sunrise

                                                  If you can see one, there's nothing like it.

Confederate Rose in January

I moved  my confederate rose to a new place where it got more sun. It rewarded me by growing to 8-10 feet tall. ( Didn't measure, but is way above my head.) It bloomed beautifully this fall, and even now is January, it is still beautiful. These dried seed heads look beautiful in a dried arrangement, as well as left standing.
 Confederate rose  ( Hibiscus mutabilis) is a hardy hibiscus and is also called the giant rose mallow. It is a huge plant and is best used as a stand alone or accent plant, unless you have a large border where you can situate it in the back. The flowers open in late summer or fall and are white, fading to rose or dark pink as the day progresses. Each flower last only one day, but multiple flowers may be open at once. It grows in either full sun or light shade and likes, but does not require moist well drained soil. Who in central Alabama has that?
 Propagation is by either seed or cuttings, but cuttings produce a blooming plant faster.The conventional wisdom says to cut 12 inch pieces of stalk, making sure to keep the root end down. Place the cuttings in water and roots will speedily form. These can be potted or planted directly in the ground. I have lost a good many cutting of this plant and others when rooted in water. They sometimes have a hard time transitioning from water to soil. But if you have a lot of cuttings and only need one or two plants, this need not be a hinderance. Some say to hammer the cuttings into the ground where you want them to grow, but although I have only done 2 or 3 cuttings like this, none ever started new growth. I prefer to start the cuttings in community pots, letting them root there. Then when they leaf out I can remove them to either separate pots or the ground.

Lipstick Plant (Aeschynanthus)

 

I have several Aeschynanthus (lipstick plants) blooming in the greenhouse right now. Once they start, they bloom for a long time. Lipstick plant is a red flowering vine  that originated in Malaysia . It needs to be trimmed back to about six inches from the soil about once a year . This is not a plant that does much branching so the trimming keeps the plant from having extremely long unbranched pieces, which would look beautiful in front of a long window, but few of us have that kind of display background. So do what I say, not what I do, and trim after blooming.
The plant blooms from the tips and after bloom finishes, these tips can be easily rooted.
 Be careful not to overwater. This is a plant that lives on rocks and in tree crotches in its natural environment, and lipstick cannot stand standing water. Use well drained potting media, and a hanging basket best accommodates the growth habit of this plant.
 Aeschynanthus will draw "Ooo's" from all who see it.

Mistletoe With Berries

This mistletoe with berries is growing on a Grancy Graybeard. There are three small mistletoe plants growing on this tree (bush) but only one has seed. The species of mistletoe most common in the Southeast is Phoradendron  flavescens (also called Phoradendron leucarpum).
Mistletoe is a hemiparasite and takes water and minerals from its host, but it has chlorophyll and produces all or most of it's own food. It generally does not become a heavy enough infestation to degrade the quality or quantity of a wood crop, however western species do damage and degrade the quality of the wood they infest. Mistletoe is spread by birds eating the berries. The seed may spread through the droppings of birds. Also the berries and seed are sticky. This helps the seed to stay on the branch till the hostorum can invade the limb and the plant can become "rooted" into the branch. Birds get the seed stuck on their bills and wipe them against the limbs to clean them off, thus placing the seed on a suitable growing substrate.
 Mistletoe is a historical Christmas and New Year's decoration, involving kissing the number of times there are berries on the plant. But mistletoe also is a larval host for several butterfly species, as well as a food source for birds. Winter is, of course the best time of year for spotting mistletoe as it is not camouflaged by the leaves. 

Tropical Pitcher Plant

This is  a tropical pitcher plant that I have been growing for several years. They are difficult to root for me, but it can be done with limited success. The rooting media has to be moist, but well drained, as does the growing media. I never fertilize mine. In the summer when insect are more prevalent, the pitchers  fill with water and  collect and digest a collection of bugs. If you spill some of this liquid on yourself while moving the plant, you will need a bath as it smells so awful. Several times a bumblebee became trapped in a pitcher, but had the presence to chew a hole in the sidewall and get out.