Posted in Indoor Musings, Plants

What is it? Part 2

Courtesy Notice: This did get a bit more rambly than planned, but I don’t have time to try to knock it down because I have a promise to keep today.


It finally opened!  The other one also suddenly has a second bud forming.  So I had to take some pictures.  I want to point out that last year I have no photo evidence of anything like that in that bed.

Here’s what’s odd.  When I look at my 2018 Plantings notes, I wrote that I planted “Black eyed susans – porch – June 8”. From pictures I’ve looked at, this is a fairly likely candidate but the “porch” designation is supposed to mean something else. Continue reading “What is it? Part 2”

Updated the Plant Progress yesterday

I updated the 2018 Plantings page.

We’ve had another casualty, but some success as well (one noted by image yesterday).  We also ate our first blueberries and raspberries of the season (red and black).  It was still a bit soon for the blueberries we taste tested.  The strawberries keep getting raided by the critters before we get a chance.  To be fair, we have a lot more raspberry canes than we do fruiting strawberry plants so far.

2018 plantings list update

I made a decision about how to mark the survivors of this year’s planting.  I’m also trying to keep track of how many grew from how many seeds (when I can recall).

Posted in Bookworming, Creatures

Encouraging beneficial insects

Looking at it always makes me think of box kites.
A common whitetail or long-tailed skimmer (Plathemis lydia) in our backyard, one of many dragonflies that oft visited us last year.

I forget when I found this book, but I have a copy of Good Bugs for Your Garden [Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, 1995], written by Allison Mia Starcher.

It has lovely illustrations, and contains downright sensible and needed information for those who want to at least lower their reliance on chemical pesticides even if they are not willing to go full out organic with pest control.

It’s also a small, almost pocket sized book.  Easy to tuck into a backpack, tote or handbag.  Also one that won’t take up much space if you are the sort to keep reading materials in your bathroom.
Continue reading “Encouraging beneficial insects”