Translate

Monday, July 29, 2013

Nature Notes: Summer Flying By

The large crepe myrtle blossoms that were knocked off the tree by the rain separated into little pieces that nestled into the ground.
 naturenotesDSCN0204
We are continuing to have lots of rain.
naturenotesDSCN0195
The female cardinal still has her immature beak.
naturenotesDSCN0186
Her feathers blend into the deck.
naturenotesDSCN0178
Almost looks like a different bird standing up tall.
naturenotesDSCN0173
Below is a male house finch at one of my deck bird baths.
naturenotesDSCN0169
The rest of the shots are ones I took at Grace Garden in Durham, NC.
naturenotesDSCN0113
The frequent rainfall is keeping everything very green.
naturenotesDSCN0111
Usually by this time of the summer, heat has started burning and browning my world.
naturenotesDSCN0099
This year the rain and cooler temperatures have resulted in a much greener fresh looking environment.
naturenotesDSCN0084
Although there were some flowers in the garden I focused on the green shots.
naturenotesDSCN0082

Saturday, July 27, 2013

Today's flowers and weekend flowers: late July


Hard to believe that July is almost over.
todayflowDSCN0100
I took the shot above and below in Grace Garden (downtown Durham,NC) this week.
 todayflowDSCN0102
The next shot is of my backyard crepe myrtle tree which I photographed one afternoon this week.
todayflowDSCN0133
The last shot is one I photographed in the morning of my front yard crepe myrtle tree. The lighting makes the two trees look like their blossoms color is different but they are the same color. The difference is in the morning and afternoon light.
todayflowDSCN0161

Friday, July 26, 2013

Photohunters: Planter at Home


When I saw that the photohunters themes this week were at home and planter, I knew what I'd use to combine them.
PHplanthmIMG_9531a
All of the shots in this post are of the planters taken at home in my garden. The first 4 shots are five and six years old.
PHplanterhmIMG_9683
I used to start vegetables early in the spring and continue growing them late in the fall, using the covers to trap the sun and heat during cold nights.
 PHplanterhm2IMG_7941
In addition to the four square planters in the first two shots, I have planters around my daughters old swingset.
PHhomeplant2IMG_9093
The last two shots were taken this week of my home garden planters.
PHhomeplantDSCN0140
I don't have the energy to garden anymore and I've let my yard turn into a jungle which has started to eat the home garden planters.
PHhomeplantDSCN0148

Monday, July 22, 2013

Nature Notes: Birds, a bee, a flower and trees

The summer continues to have a lot of rain and humidity.
naturenotesDSCN0078
It's still not as hot as most NC summers but the humidity makes it feel pretty warm.
naturenotesDSCN0052
The bluejays hop in and out of the bath pretty fast.
naturenotesDSCN0034
The American Robins spend a lot more time on their baths and primping.
naturenotesDSCN0014
I seem to get more shot of the adult robins this year although I've seen some juveniles.
naturenotesDSCN0008
The catbird blends into the deck.
naturenotesDSCN9997
The juvenile cardinals are frequently at the bird baths.
naturenotesDSCN9983
I love the way they look with the patches of color.
naturenotesDSCN9981
 I like the way they constantly move their head.
naturenotesDSCN9978
The mourning dove was under the rocker and it blended in so well I almost didn't see it.
naturenotesDSCN0003
The American Robin looked like it had something to say.
naturenotesDSCN9927
I think the next bird is a young brown thrasher. Their beaks are longer as adults but other than a smaller beak it looks like a brown thrasher.
naturenotesDSCN9917
The female cardinal still has a bit of dusky color in its beak so I don't think it's fully grown yet.
naturenotesDSCN9915

Saturday, July 20, 2013

Today's Flowers and Weekend Flowers: Usual Suspects


This week I've been photographing flowers on some of the same plants in my yard I've used before.
todays flowersDSCN9777
The echinacea (coneflower) above and coriopsis below are flowers I enjoy in the summer at my house.
todayflowersDSCN9918
Rose of Sharon (hisbiscus syriacus) below is another summer flower that is prolific in my yard.
todayflowersDSCN9906
The gardenia below is on my neighbor's bush but it grows over into my yard too so I consider it partly mine.
todayflowersDSCN9901
I like to shoot into the center of flowers like the pink rose of sharon below.
todayflowersDSCN9877
The bee below was burrowing deep into the rose of sharon.
todayflowersDSCN9786n

Friday, July 19, 2013

Photohunters: Really and Favorite Household Appliance


This week the two photohunter themes are easily melded since one is really and the other is: What is your favorite Household Appliance?
photohreallyappDSCN9944
My initial thoughts as to what is really my favorite household appliance was to consider my kitchen but then I thought about having central air and heat regulated by the Farenheit thermostat below.
photohreallyappDSCN9940
Then I thought about how much I like having a laundry room with a washer and dryer so perhaps they are really my favorite household appliances.
photohreallyappDSCN9948
After a little more thought I decided that my favorite household appliance is in the bathroom since I really wouldn't like having to relieve myself in the bushes or even in an outhouse.
photohreallyappDSCN9957