Many years of neglect have rendered my flower beds a gigantic mess. Now that I have given myself permission to get more time "off" I have been trying to beat back the briars, nettles and poison ivy. Yes, one of my favorite little beds has a healthy crop of it. Long sleeves and great care are necessary to uproot these trespassers. I wasn't so lucky in the past and did manage to get some nasty rashes. One even took a trip to the dr to get a course of prednisone to get it under control. No fun!
The pics are not of my flower garden. It wasn't quite that bad! This is out along a trail on our property and it's a good place to avoid because it is loaded with poison ivy.
Here is a happier pic of the glory of summer! Getting my many areas prepped for some new plantings. Future plans for peonies, irises and day lilies that need some TLC.
The summer has been drying up our backwater slough. Winnie has a ball running through the shallow water. Swimming in deeper water is so much work! The low water is pretty sad because there are a lot of little creatures who are in peril. Hope they can go under the mud and wait it out until it gets wetter out there.
Happy as a clam? Maybe not right now. This one would be a tasty treat for an eagle or raccoon in the shallow water. Windsor and I have walked across the creek several times and on one expedition I spied an empty clam shell tented on the sand. I picked it up and found THREE little bronze leopard frogs were seeking shelter under it! Two jumped off and one stayed as I replaced the tent shelter over him. What a will to survive and make do. I felt bad I disrupted their day.
The brilliant red cardinal flower is unmistakable and such a happy find. The bottom lands are blessed with little patches here and there. They are well hidden in the big picture because they are shaded by taller plants, but easy to see when up close and personal. The swamp milkweed is blooming and at first I thought it was Joe Pye Weed until I studied it further. Many plants have look-alikes so it's handy to have some good reference books to sort it out.
The swamp milkweed is so pretty and made a lovely photo in the early morning light.
This place is an absolute herbal pharmacy. The study of the native plants was introduced to me by Susan Yerigen who had an herbal tincture business. She first supplied Don with teasel to help him with the effects of Lyme disease. She has made scores of tinctures and works closely with Matthew Wood who is a world renowned herbalist who, we are happy to say, lives in our area.
His book "The Book of Herbal Wisdom" is packed full of the history of medicinal plants and uses for healing. He has many other books but this is the one I've been working on for the past couple years. So much to absorb and many are right outside.
I'm a very beginner, however it has given me great joy to be able to walk through our woods and know the faces and names of those lovelies who have lived here for centuries. Especially that one named Ivy.
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