Always trying to identify

Earlier this summer we had been pleased to see these pretty yellow flowering shrubs thriving in our backyard and wondered what they are. 

The plant in question is in the center of the above photo, to the left of our new drainage system. The others are past their prime but this one is still blooming profusely. Here's a closer photo of the blossoms.

While in the Native Plants part of the Duke Gardens last week, I took this photo identifying one of the Endangered Species. (click on the photo to read more about the Broadleaf Tickseed and notice the small range, including our part of the mountains!)

And here are a couple of  crops from the photo taken in our yard.  I think we have it!

We don't know how they arrived in our backyard, but we're happy to host them.

In the Fauna side of the natural world, this morning, a bird much larger than our usual goldfinches showed up on top of the hummingbird feeder - sorry the photo was taken from across the room in the morning light. As I approached, the bird flew away.

Norris remarked it looked a lot like the goldfinches.  For a size comparison, here's a photo of two goldfinches on the same type perch - this new visiting bird really dwarfs them!

The artistic image at this link clearly shows the female Purple Finch I was thinking this could be. They do winter in this part of the world and are among the larger finches. It does have the shape and beak of a finch, and only the female Purple Finch seem to have that distinctive white stripe over the eye and along the chin line.  She may be too large to use the new seed feeder we hung last weekend.  (We don't have a photo of the goldfinches using it... we'll have to work on that!)

Jack in the Pulpit

Yesterday, Norris went on a fire fighting mission. While there, one of the other RCFD members commented on the Jack-in-the-Pulpit he saw at the home, saying they are native but not all that common. At the mention, Cheryl remembered seeing one earlier in the day in our yard. If you click for the closer view, you can see "Jack" inside the pulpit in this photo.

 Not too certain about the lighting, we took another shot from above - in this one you can see what looks like the three leaves of a smaller Jack-in-the-Pulpit just below the leaves of the plant we pictured above.

 

These are located just on the edge of the wildflower meadow, more or less hidden behind the shrubs planted last fall along the curved stairway.

A small survival story

Last spring, we posted photos of a small native Flame Azalea that bloomed near our bird feeder.  That was prior to the screened porch expansion project, which also required the removal of the tree just in front of the baby shrub - see photos from last year at this link.

The tree came down in pieces, dropped from on-high.  Because the tree-remover was working with the house and landscaping on one side, the pieces were being dropped from 40 feet up, right on top of the azalea. I was sad to lose this pretty shrub, but between the house and the azalea, the azalea was going to be the loser.  Then we had the landscaper come in to add the new stone retaining wall, ferns and winter-blooming jasmine, working right on top of the azalea's area. Finally, this winter our deck stairs were removed and there was a lot of trampling about to add in the dry stream bed and water retention area.

But we have good news!  This week we have yellow-orange azalea blossoms between and behind the bird bath and tree stump.

 

Yesterday was the first day that two of the three buds were fully opened - a good three weeks behind last year's two-flower showing.  

Last Good Week for the Wildflowers??

Our wildflower meadow is still peaking, but usually by the first week in July the weeds start to take over.  Cheryl was trimming the flowers on the edge of our steps, so Norris took a few pictures while the flowers are still holding their own against the weeds.  The cut flowers ended up in a bouquet in our kitchen.  Click on the pictures for a bigger view.

Cheryl smiles for the cameraman...

The weather station is still higher than the surrounding flowers in this shot, but only because we have trimmed the tallest flowers that tried to swallow it up.

This shot shows the raised bed garden on the left.  You can see how the zucchini are overflowing their territory.  To the right you can see the new bench at the end of the path.

Spotted behind the bird feeder

As we finished our Sunday evening meal and the light was fading, Cheryl looked out in the direction of the bird feeders and noticed a brilliant orange glow. Was it a trick of the sunset?


So grabbing the camera before the light was gone, we made an investigation and found blossoms!


A baby Flame Azalea has emerged where there was no Flame Azalea before, on that bare patch behind the feeder, to brighten up our woodsy landscape like no other plant does!


We had learned these are tricky plants to propagate, and the ones you buy are hybrids, so not quite the same as what grows naturally. The older larger ones we have growing on the far side of the property from our house have buds but no blossoms yet, so this was a real surprise.

Flowers

We've been trying to solve the mystery of why we have so many more hummingbirds than usual - which was always a lot. Perhaps it has something to with our wildflower meadow.


These are not the kinds of flowers that attract hummingbirds.


But maybe they attract insects the hummers feed on? (this photo is taken looking down the slope - note the wood steps on the right.)

This photo shows the vegetable garden, a prominent feature just a month ago, almost hidden by the lush growth.



This little visitor, spotted on the neighbors' driveway this morning, shows up in our yard outside the deck near the vegetable garden nearly every day. Lu is fascinated, but certainly this critter is not responsible for the bird population explosion. If we say "Hello, kitty" - he or she stops, turns and looks, then runs quickly away.


We complain about the Multiflora Rose being so invasive, but we also have these Japanese Spirea proliferating around the neighborhood. Like the rose, it can be pretty, but it doesn't belong and crowds out the plants that do.

On the other hand, several of Cheryl's family would probably enjoy a walk through the neighborhood in the coming weeks because of these -

You can find berries any place that has not been tamed by the homeowners.


Finally, Cheryl took this blurry photo of the sun shining off the bark of an oak that was inexplicably spared when the cove was logged some 20-40 years ago. This one may not survive the building of a house on this lot, on the cul de sac just next to our driveway. The driveway for a new house was staked just to the right of the trunk.

work on the landscape finishing up

Today's photo update: We have a single broad step leading over the dry stream bed.



A view up through the rhododendron -


This photo, taken from even further back, shows how our new raised bed looks from the mailbox -

Tomorrow or this weekend, we'll post photos of the finishing details.

This next photo shows a native flower now in bloom that our neighbor is coveting. She calls it a "Fairy Wand" - its real name must be Chamaelirium luteum. We're referring to the small white blooms in the foreground, found at the edge of the road cut.



Now we have a few photos from the rest of the neighborhood - first these beautiful white blooming shrubs -

We don't have any we can see on our property (this is down the street) -


... but that's because they may be beautiful, but they are treacherous invasives. These are the Multiflora Rose that we are constantly waging battles against, with their nasty thorns on spreading branches. They are easily noticed now, but when the blooms are gone, they are just waiting to reach out and tear your skin and clothing.


A far more welcomed sight is this Flame Azalea, spotted by a neighbor who knows Cheryl walks through the area every day. She called to make sure we didn't miss it.

End of a native azalea

Possibly unique in our neighborhood, we had three of the native deciduous Flame Azalea growing near the pine trees we put in a few years ago. Unlike the Flame Azalea our nursery provided which has mere buds for leaves and flowers here at the end of April, the natives are leafed out and have been blooming vigorously this week. Cheryl went to take their photo this morning after last night's big wind and rain, and sadly saw that one had snapped off at the base. She twisted it free and has brought it to the house for us to enjoy while the blooms last.


We looked into trying to root this, but from what we read, propagation of these native azaleas from cuttings is best left to professionals.

The azalea was not the only orange flowering plant to suffer with the winds - there are plenty of Tulip Poplar parts strewn all over the roads.


This is an updated view of our former mulch-desert of a back yard. The ferns seem very happy with the rain, and the azalea at the far end have been a beautiful spot of color. In a few years, they should be spectacular. The hydrangeas and Virginia Creeper are finally starting to make an impression of green on the stark rock wall.



Cheryl noticed this large and interesting wildflower in front of a nearby home while out surveying the damage.

backyard hike

We have not been up to the top of our property for a long time. Sunday was beautiful so instead of a walk in the neighborhood or trip to the gym, we decided to see what was growing on the mountain.

The only flowers in bloom were small -

We have never managed to be up on the ridge when the massive rhododendron were in flower - everything green in back of Cheryl is rhododendron.


At the top of the ridge, the violets came in a second color -


We also saw this little flower, but only at the top. It was windy up there, so a little assistance was needed to keep the bloom in focus.

Of course we wanted to check up on the old chestnut. Norris posed beside some of the sprouts from the roots, just starting to show leaves.

Here's a closeup of the leaves - the little teeth of Castanea Dentata already evident. These were only a couple of inches long - they get to be more like 8 to 10 inches.

We were sad to see the chestnut log itself is finally giving up to decay.


Not everything we came across was natural. This barbed wire at the top of the ridge grabbed Cheryl's pants and ripped them near the hem.

But we don't want to leave you with that ugliness - it was a gorgeous day to take in the sights and sounds - here's the view to the other side that we don't see very often.

more blossoms -

Pictures from the garden -
This is our Flame Azalea - it has exactly three sets of these blossoms. Only one had a bright green bug. We hope the plant will be a little showier in a year or two. It was placed in a prominent location in the landscape for its special color.



The first blooms are showing up on our two Oak Leaf Hydrangeas. These are also not too impressive but there's promise in those little green buds at least.



This glorious little flower is blooming wild in the woods behind our house - I haven't noticed them anywhere else as we travel around. Small but definitely catches your eye -



And last is a closeup of a quilt recently returned to Dorry. She bought the top at a fundraiser-auction and had Cheryl quilt it. Someone at Cheryl's mother's church donated some vintage quilt designs that wound up in the quilt, which features reproduction 1930's fabrics. The design was modified to fit to the small blocks of the quilt - it was a delightful project to work on.