biodiversity along the riverrim

biodiversity (now that is a word to ponder the meaning of!) is important...over the past few days, these (and many other) different species have been noted along the riverrim.

some are considered beautiful, others are not.

there are good creatures, and oh, shall we say, undesirable creatures...and just like in the real world, they duke it out in the garden. Right now there is a battle going on between the Lovage and a red Astillbee...I try to look the other way and let them settle it peacefully if they can. Sometimes, I need to step in and protect the underdog....

This year, the flea beetles have been doing a number on the potatoes...

but I have noticed that several small toads have moved into the patch, feasting on the flea beetles...I am reminded to take the good as well as the bad.

Anyone care to take a guess at the names of the species in the photo's above?

To read more about biodiversity and what it means...here is a good link.

spinning peeps

I just finished spinning up another Shetland sample from Cathy. This one was labeled "Peeps". Since I know that Leigh has been keeping such good notes about her Shetland samples in her notebook, I suggest that you stop by and look at her entry about "Peeps". She was spinning it last September. She has an image of the actual fleece sample. (By the time Peeps got to me, the sample was already processed into roving.) While you are over there, take a look at the gorgeous sweater she is making up from her samples. It is fun for me to look at it and imagine "Peeps" is in that sweater, somewhere.

I spun "Peeps" with a supported longdraw style, on the good ole Ashford Traddy. I wound up with a lot of these slubs...which I imagine to be smaller pieces of the undercoat that build up between my fingers. Try as I might, I cannot seem to spin in longdraw style without accumulating slubs.

No matter, they picked out easily enough, but the floor was littered with them by the time I finished. The notes are tagged...

I wound up with an ounce of 16wpi/ woolen....and have now completed 3 of the samples.

a meme

Elizabeth of Trailingyarn tagged me, and she wants to know...

What was I doing 10 years ago?

Ten years ago, I was pretty much doing the same things I am now....but differently. The years buy experience, knowledge, and skill. They spend physical strength, (ahem) physical appearances (ten more wrinkles?, ten more lbs?), and a certain amount of innocence. There are "trade offs" for the time. If I do it right, I am graceful and growth comes slowly and easily. I am not the same person I was ten years ago, and yet I am. On the inside, on the outside... Life, and the years it affords, change a person..Sometimes in an instant, this I have learned....so we adapt, adjust ...reconcile, expand and grow.

What are 5 things on your TO DO list.

Which To Do list would you like to see? I keep several. (indoors, outdoors, desk work, projects etc.) I like to keep lists, they keep me focused. I'll show you my "Garden List"

1. Make Pea Trellis
2. Plant corn beans and squash.
3. Mulch paths
4. Pick and process rhubarb
5. Spread compost on Asparagus bed.

Snacks I enjoy

1. Sunflower seeds
2. Peanut butter & apples
3. Giardiniera
4. Utz
5. grapes

Things I would do if I were a billionaire

If I were a billionaire I would put someone else in charge of my money. I don't have -and never have had- enough to know how to manage, or what to do with large amounts of it. I like to think if I were a billionaire my life would be easier. As my seventh grade teacher once told me, "They say money cannot buy happiness, but I would love the opportunity to prove that saying wrong."

5 Places I have lived

In a city.
In suburbia.
Beside a lake.
Beside a bay.
In the country, along the river's rim.

Any peeps who want to play, please consider yourself tagged!

phenological events May 2008

phenological events

May 2008

1st - Yellow warblers
2nd - Indigo Buntings
- wasps wake up
4th - Towhee
5th - hummingbirds
7th - scarlet tanager
8th - common yellowthroat
12th - green currants
14th - asparagus bugs
22nd - crabapple sets
26th - till garden
I have now kept at least a year of phenological events...and now on the side bar, I can reference the label for phenology, and compare events from month to month.

bearing fruit

Sometimes nature just needs a helping hand. I was very happy to discover that the crab apple flowers cross pollinated with the cut blossoms.

The tree has started to make fruit...some even have a blush to them already.

I found an old photo that I took of the garden last year during the first week of June. When I looked at it, I was surprised to see how much more had been accomplished last year - in comparison to this year. The weather, and other events, have set me far behind my goals. I still need to plant corn and beans and squash and a few other things, that by the looks of last years photo were already growing!

Some things do just fine without any help at all. The asparagus has been wonderful, and the herbs like chive, top setting onions...

.... thyme,

and sage....

have obviously enjoyed the mild winter we had. PS...so have the bugs....

taking time to notice

The canopy has opened...

the ferns are up and starting to unfurl.

The lilac blossoms tumble down the hillside, and release their perfume into the hills. They mix with the cold rain and smell wonderful.

The gooseberry drops it flower almost as soon as you notice that it has set. There is so much happening in the wood at once, if you don't make time to see it, it will be gone for another season.

I finished the lacy winged shawl and blocked it. It is the first lace shawl that I have ever knit. Here is a photo of the shawl in the midst blocking it.

I discovered this....

yes...it is a live stitch. I must have dropped it. I thought my count was off...I should pay closer attention to the numbers. I'm not sure what to do with it...where to go from here. I'll just think about it for awhile.

mentha

Mid spring, and the mint arrives. It is now tall enough to harvest.

Bergamot

It sprawls and reaches into places in my garden where it should not, and sneaks into areas unnoticed.

Orange Mint

It surprises and delights the nose when it's aroma is released. One looks down to realize they have walked on top of it, crushing the square stems, the decussated leaves.

Pineapple Mint

As a garnish, it enhances the plate and the palette.

It's oils can be rubbed, inhaled, or swallowed. A balm for body and soul.

Chocolate Mint

Lamiaceae (or Labiatae if you prefer), a family with over 200 genera and over 3000 species, of which only a few reside in my garden. And of all the characteristics they possess, the thing I love most about mint is that it refreshes, restores...revives.

...and whatever is clipped or ripped or pinched, can go right on the windowsill or kitchen counter, or bathroom sink...to be used in a number of ways...the stems will set root easily, and they can be replanted.

using the last of the Shetland Fleece

A few weeks ago, I was working on a project for a Cathy. She has been very generous in sharing her Shetland Fleece samples, and I wanted to make something for her to show my appreciation. I decided to use up the rest of the Shetland fleece...the bits that were cast off, not suitable for spinning. I decided to make some felt with them.

Cathy likes petroglyphs and pictographs. So do I. So I made a piece of felt with some petroglyphic designs that I had seen while reading about them. The pictographs are usually painted on rocks, and the petroglyphs are carved into the rocks. The symbols are found world wide. It is interesting to compare some of the symbols and shapes that are found in rock art from different places. I become amazed at how some symbols repeat themselves. I wonder about their meaning. I wonder about the person who made them, and why. I marvel at how old some of them are, and how they have survived all this time. I've never seen any in real life, but I have looked at some wonderful images online.

The project I made consisted of making a notebook to cover with the felt. There is a lot to learn about bookmaking..and there are lovely knots and different techniques to master. My first efforts, amateur at best, left me wanting to learn more. I did find some interesting videos on Youtube that were helpful.

I made several different buttons that I could choose from to work with a lashing to close the notebook, but I forgot to make a note of which one I finally selected.

walk with me wednesday, a world in bloom

A white pine floor and a low ceiled room, A wheel and a reel and a great brown loom, The windows out and the world in bloom.

I have never seen so many Orioles around the riverrim before. We have had up to 15 in one Quince bush at a time. There are Orchard Orioles as well as Baltimore Orioles. Their song is as delightful as their appearance.

My walk today had a purpose. The crabapple tree (that was given to me by my husband for my birthday a few years ago) is in bloom. I want to be sure to get some crabapples this fall. So- I walked down to the end of the road to the old apple trees, to snip a few branches of blossoms to hang in my tree.

The blossoms smell wonderful. I hung the branches in the tree, and stood and watched while the bees do what they do best. I don't think they noticed me. Now my tree has something to cross with...and I should see some fruit. My tree is an old heirloom variety, called Whitney. It should have palm sized apples. It is the only crabapple tree with apples sweet enough to eat right off the tree.

I have been knitting. This is Judy's sock yarn. Isn't it lovely? I keep thinking of moss when I knit with it.

It is soo soft and smooth to work with...a merino/nylon blend. The pattern is from Miriam Felton...Razor Shell Socks. I like it. Fun and fast.

Thank you to those who have inquired as to the lack of posting in these past few weeks. Life has been dealing out some....well... "challenges"...I'm just doing my best to keep up...and that requires my time and attention to things outside of the blogosphere. At the urging of a friend, I made certain to make some time today to walk (thanks, Robert).

new fence

It has been at least ten years since I've had deer inside the garden fence.

These two have cost me several days of repair (hard labor) and about fifty dollars worth of new fencing materials.

The little yearling is the culprit. He made his way in through a small hole, and his mother must have followed. I don't know how long they were in there...long enough to eat all of my day lily collection, and the strawberries. It was early evening. Just twilight... I went out to close up the greenhouse, and there they were in the garden, munching on my hellebore and crabapple tree. I yelled at them, "hey!! What are you doing in my garden??!! Git outa there!!"

The yearling freaked out and ran around, throwing himself at the fence and bouncing off and thrashing around on the ground, while the mamma just stood there watching. Finally, she walked over to him and they both stood still for a moment. Then, suddenly- she ran for all she was worth, got up as much speed as she could- and jumped/dove right through the 8 foot fence! The little one did the same thing right behind her. The fence had 2 big holes ripped through it. GRRRRRRR!

This morning when I took these pictures, they looked so innocent...I think I'm going to start using my air horn to keep them away from the house and garden areas. We work too hard in the garden to have them in there helping themselves! Thank goodness I hadn't planted the lettuce out yet!

walk with me wed like humans do

The warm weather has brought the frogs out. They are still dark in their coloring. This one has lived here for several years. I pass by him (or her, maybe he's a she) anyway, I pass it twice a day. Once in the morning, when I walk on my way to the henhouse to let the gals out...and once in the early evening, on my walk back at the end of the day to lock the gals up. We exchange pleasantries. Today ~we agreed~ was a nice day...a bit windy perhaps, but enjoyable.

"i'm breathin in
i'm breathin out
Like Humans Do."
David Byrne

We talk about the birds...they are looking for nesting sites, you know. I tell the frog about one that I found yesterday...in the trumpet vine.

He tells me that the chickadee wants me to clean out the nest box over on the garden fence...the one that the wren used last year. I made a note of it.

A few of the hens wander over to see what we are talking about,

or rather, to see if there is anything good to eat...the frog leaves with a kerplunk into the pool.

The hens are thinking of nests too. I've got a broody hen in the coop. There is a slim chance that the eggs are fertile, but I'll let her sit for now. I shared an exchange with the hen too (she was not as nice as the frog) and by the time it was over, she had a few ruffled feathers. I got the hint...she is quite determined.

I ask you, is this not the face of a "Moody Broody"?

attention to tension

Tension is a word that a fiber artist uses a lot. Knitting requires an even tension. A Spinning Wheel has a tensioning device to tighten or loosen -depending on the type of fiber and twist needed. Sewing machines have a dial to set the tension of the thread for the fabric that will be sewn together...and I am now discovering weaving requires the right combination of tension distributed across the heddles and the warp and woof.

I warped the Inkle loom with the help of a nice little tutorial by Ruth that I found on YouTube (with some great piano music btw). I am working on my edges and will try doing a few pick up patterns when I can master the correct amount of tension I need to make a decent edge. Grace taught me how to do the pick up patterns on the Double Hole Tape loom that Fred made. You should go and take a look at these beautiful patterns that she has woven on her tapes. I am almost finished with my first one, but I have a long way to go before I can find my "tension zone". When I look at the entire length of tape that I have woven, I can see areas that have too much tension (skinny)...and those with not enough (wide).

There is another kind of tension in my life these days, it is of a stressful nature...(you know the type, we all do)...and I am trying my best to manage it...It is not as easy as managing the tension in my knitting, spinning or weaving.... Too much tension in our lives is definitely not a good thing. The key is learning how to relax. I relax by doing fiber arts. Sometimes my tension from real life, spills over into what I'm working on, and the article I'm working on contains the tension. It makes it visible to the eyes...I can see it in the bands that I have been weaving. I strive to maintain an even tension, it takes practice.

walk with me wednesday...Crepuscular or?

Today was a busy day...full of worldly things...a "take care of business" day ...a day that didn't allow time to walk, or pause and notice the spring slowly enveloping the wood.

Days like this are hard for me. I need walking in my life..or sitting by the river... or just some time for noticing. The woods are important to me. I need to see and listen to the woods.

My walk today was no more than a trip to take the garbage out.....oh and then I carted the chicken feed from the car trunk to the storage bins near the coop.

I didn't think you would want to see pictures of THAT...so I did notice the snowdrops.

They always hang their heads...I stop and try to cheer them up. One always has to get down on the ground to see the snow drops properly...

In another week or two they will be gone already. I'm glad I stopped and spent some time with them. They are always the first flower to open around here. They are brave and stoic, blooming in the snow and cold of early spring.

They caught the last fews rays of sun as it was heading over the mountain.

So did I.

april fool

It has been a tradition in my family, to play an April foolery on unsuspecting members, that in some fashion, involves a frog.

There have been (false) frog news stories, plastic frogs (strategically placed), freak frogs, funny frogs, frogs in beer, frogs in boots (and strangely enough), frogs with beards.

As the years pass, it becomes more challenging. The mere mention of the word "frog" this early in the spring is a heads up....or two! April Fool!