Day 19.206: Garden update

Exile #2 has been busy. Here are some updates:

Also, salad leaves, berries, flowers, zucchini, …

Day 19.204: What’s that? Goldenrod?

We noticed several plants that looked like these on our walk at California Fields yesterday. It took us some time to realize how important wasn’t an unfamiliar plant, but just some goldenrod.

We have now discovered what was going on - can you guess (if you don’t know)?

It was the first time we’d observed this phenomenon - amazing what you can miss if you’re not paying attention.

Day 19.203: Very dry in California ... Fields

After the extremely wet week we've had, we were surprised at just how desiccated the landscape was at California Fields Wildlife Area when Exile #2 and I visited this afternoon.

So dry

We saw quite a few monarchs on the Queen Anne's lace

There was quite a bit of common mullein - this was one of the more impressive flower stems

There were lots of Carolina grasshoppers flashing their dark banded wings as they flew and then almost disappearing when they landed

Even if I saw where they landed, they were hard to pick out

A little less dry once we were into the partial shade

This oak sapling had enormous leaves. Maybe black oak?

Morrow's honeysuckle

We heard more birds than we saw: indigo buntings most prominently. We did catch glimpses of eastern towhees and goldfinches and a sparrow (likely a song sparrow). Our best sightings were of cedar waxwings.

This one was having a good "hair" day 

Day 19.195: Weekend; chicory

It’s the weekend. Here’s a chicory flower:

And - as a bonus - the silvery leaves of autumn olive:

Day 19.158: Saddleback sights

Here are some non-bird photos from our Saddleback hike:

Bunchberry (aka creeping dogwood)

Bluebead lily

The plants on the summit are quite different from those even a short distance down the trails. Like this Diapensia lapponica.

...and this cottongrass (Eriocaulon aquaticum)

This bog is where the cottongrass is growing

Rhodora

Blue lupine

Columbine

Eastern tiger swallowtail. We saw one looking a little cold on the summit. On the way down, we saw some happier ones like this on the dandelions

American lady

I think this is a St. Lawrence tiger moth caterpillar. It was 

Some threatening weather to the southeast

We went prepared for rain, but only felt a couple of drops until we were basically back at the car.

Day 19.137: Memorial Day outing (part 2)

After our soggy outing first thing on Monday morning, we had resigned ourselves to an indoor day, but the sun came out in the early afternoon, and we decided to go out again to the same area. This time, Exile #4 joined us.

We saw some birds, but here are some of the other things we saw:

The beach steaming in the surprise sunshine

A few hardy beach visitors

Sea pea

Some impressive waves

Northern crescent

Apple blossom

Some Irish moss and a piece of (red pine?) bark

Some very orange wood (we think it's a piece of pine root)