
Vegan Witches (from https://www.facebook.com/EndlesslyOrganic)
Posted in Misc, tagged happy halloween, vegan witches on October 30, 2013| 2 Comments »
Vegan Witches (from https://www.facebook.com/EndlesslyOrganic)
Posted in Animal life, Birds, tagged Red Fox, waiting for mail, Wild Turkey on October 29, 2013| 2 Comments »
As I was returning home along a country road, I could see something across the road ahead. As I drew closer, I realized the obstruction was a sting of Wild Turkeys. I stopped the car and took a photograph of the flock.
They seemed to be waiting for the mailman. I think they must have been expecting a cheque today.
They were reluctant to leave, but as I crept closer, they took off in a flurry of wings.
Closer to home, I spotted this handsome red fox. Seems like everyone was out enjoying the beautiful day.
Posted in Garden, tagged first frost, frost on flowers, frost on leaves, horse in frosty field, October frost on October 29, 2013| 2 Comments »
We’ve had frost already, but today was the first morning when water was sealed with ice and the coating of frost silvering the plants resisted the morning sun until well into the day.
In spite of the frost, the morning felt welcoming, absolutely still, with no cool breeze diminishing the warmth of the late October sun. I walked out and visited with the horses.
Then I strolled through the field and garden and recorded the beauty of frost on leaves. Here are some examples of Jack Frost’s handiwork.
Posted in Sunday Snapshot, tagged sunset over trent river, trent river, Trenton Ontario on October 27, 2013| 8 Comments »
Sunset Over the Trent River
Posted in Cats, tagged cat under covers, half siamese cat, Moey on October 24, 2013| 5 Comments »
Here’s little Moey. She’s one of our senior cats. Moey and her half-Siamese brother Tonka, and jet-black Tut are all 15 years old. Moey prefers to go her own way and avoid the sometimes-rough company of her larger male peers. They’re not above amusing themselves at her expense. She usually spends her days curled up on the bed in one of the bedrooms. See her? No?
When the temperature begins to drop off after the heat of summer, Moey disappears.
Here she is!
Posted in Garden, Plant, tagged Chasmanthium latifolium, fountain grass moudry, garden grasses, Little Bluestem, miscanthus giganteus, miscanthus sinensis, panicum virgatum thundercloud, pennisetum alopecuroides, perennial grasses for the garden, schizachyrium scoparium Prairie Blues, shenandoah panicum virgatum, shenandoah switchgrass, varigated sea oats River Mist on October 22, 2013| 5 Comments »
During much of the summer, grasses form a backdrop for dazzling flowering plants, but come autumn, it’s their turn to shine. This is a Shenandoah Switchgrass or Panicgrass (Panicum virgatum ‘Shenandoah’), a hybrid of a native grass. The seedhead stalks form an airy cloud of fine tracery. When the stems are beaded with morning dew and lit by the sun, panicum is as beautiful as any garden plant.
Here’s a taller switchgrass, Panicum virgatum ‘Thundercloud’, which reaches about six feet.
Another native hybrid is Schizachyrium scoparium ‘Prairie Blues’, or Little Bluestem. It forms a low-growing clump about 2 to 3 feet tall.
The non-native miscanthus varieties, sometimes called Maiden Grass, are among the showiest grasses in the garden with their eye-catching plumes. This is miscanthus sinensis.
The tallest perennial in the garden is Miscanthus giganteus. It towers over the garden at 10 to 12 feet tall. According to Wikipedia, it is a hybrid of Miscanthus sinensis and Miscanthus sacchariflorus and is currently used in the European Union as a commercial energy crop, as a source of heat and electricity, or converted into biofuel products such as ethanol, being more efficient than corn grown for that purpose.
I am content just to enjoy mine as a garden spectacle. Its tall stalks typically stay upright all winter until I cut them down in the spring.
I’m especially fond of the pennisetums, or fountain grasses. This is Pennisetum Alopecuroides ‘Moudry’, or Black-flowering Fountain Grass. It was at its best back in September, when I took this photo. As their name implies, the fountain grasses form a gracefully arching clump.
Finally, here are the distinctive seedheads of sea oats displayed on Chasmanthium latifolium ‘River Mist’, a variegated version of this North American native. River Mist was new to the garden this summer, but I’ve grown the green-leafed variety for some time. This grass is quite tolerant of shade and can make an interesting addition to a gloomy corner.
The plants shown here are all hardy perennials. There are also some very attractive grasses grown as annuals, but I haven’t tried any of them yet. Whether your garden is big or small, grasses can be worthy additions.
Posted in Misc, tagged evening rainbow, fall colors and rainbow, rainbow on October 18, 2013| 3 Comments »
As I was in the barn this evening, preparing to bring the horses in for their supper, I heard the spatter of rain on the roof. A little rain shower was passing through. I hurried outside to look, and sure enough, there was a brilliant rainbow lighting up the evening sky.
Autumn rainbows seem particularly beautiful, adding another dimension to the darkening sky and fall leaves. What a lovely way to end the day!