Monday, September 7

A Late Summer Walk

It's Labor Day weekend and the dew point has been over 70 percent all week long with temperatures in the 80's. It's felt like a rain forest outside, and we're in Michigan, where we've already had nights in the 50's in August. Earlier in the week I took a walk around our ten acres, which oddly, is a a mixture of wet, very dry, sandy and finally, some fairly fertile soil. This summer has been rainy with a weird range of temperatures. It cools off and we have a beautiful breeze, then it turns very hot, rainy and humid. This has made a big difference in which kinds of  herbs, flowers, grasses, wildflowers and weeds have flourished.



We have a lot of Autumn Olive on our property, which is extremely invasive, but it does add visual interest in the fall with its bright red berries. I've been doing research for a blog post later in the month. 


I know Dandelions are considered weeds, but I love them . Their bright yellow flowers had my grandson running all over the yard in the spring yelling "Flowers!", and the seed heads still fascinate me. Watching children blow on the fluffy seed head is something I never tire of during the summer.



My hibiscus are in bloom, which is always lovely. I had thought the Japanese Beetles weren't attacking the plants with their usual aggressiveness, but they have been busy munching on the hibiscus, and the plants aren't faring that well this year. 


The Trumpet Vine is growing like mad, obviously enjoying the extra rain and heat. Sadly, I haven't noticed any hummingbirds near the blooms because the vines out near the road, where they can grow unhindered on a rustic piece of fencing. I need to do a little pruning and control next time around.


I was looking for a bird nest in one of our large pines and this walking stick landed on a branch near my head, and cooperated for this cool picture.


Thistles are tough, and when I'm weeding the flower beds, they are the bane of my existence. When I'm in nature mode on my walks, I can't help but love them in all their variety. This is a small thistle in our wet area that is only about a half inch wide. 


This is a wild sunflower, or more specifically, Western sunflower (Helianthis occidentalis). We don't have many of this wildflower on our property, mostly I find the blooms on the roadside.

I love walking on our property and taking note of the differences from year to year. I'll share more throughout the autumn. 

I hope you all have a lovely Labor Day Weekend.
~Brenda

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