Nature walks in Vermont

My Dad and stepmom just built a new home in Woodstock Vermont. It's in the middle of nowhere and will be a land trust as soon as he cons one of his neighbors into letting him buy a couple more acres. We have always taken extensive family hikes, walks, adventures, so of couse, Ben and I were taken on an intensive exploration of the property line (and a lot in between).

We found a bunch of these mushrooms growing on rotting tree stumps - my guess is "Coral" Clavariaceae mushroom family. Danger: some are edible, some are NOT!


The above fern is a mini! growing out of the steps of the "Love Shack" on the property (it's an old hunting/camping structure with a heart shaped window in the door). I don't know exact species on this one... however...

Below is a killer stand of Maiden Hair Fern "Adiantim pictatum" I love I love I love this fern.





Above: Actaea pachypoda (Doll's-eyes, White Baneberry) finding these undisturbed native colonies is like pirate booty!


Someone (Ben!) knocked some lichen off a log, so I decided to transplant it somewhere else in the woods... I do not know if this is really something that can be done by simply placing the lichen on another stump... But I'd like to think it is that way! Grow lichen grow!

Happy Winter Solstice!

In my pagen heart I am all for celebrating the days getting longer! YAY! Darkness at 4:30 can be a bit much... It's also that amazing sense that everything is constantly changing and that's just how it is - and I love that - no control. The only constant is change.

"the sun rules the day,
and the moon rules the night,
and the stars bring light to the darkness"
Something I borrowed from Luke from Miss Lulu's myspace page...



Invierno (winter), 1573 
Giuseppe Arcimboldo 
Musee du Louvre

"Winter Solstice marks the longest night of the year. It is from this point that the days begin slowly to become longer and longer. The sun is at its most southeastern point over the Tropic of Capricorn in the northern hemisphere and has no apparent northward or southward motion. In the time of the ancient tribes this was a time of celebration, for it meant the turning point of winter and the eventual return of spring."

Snow in the garden

Sorry I've been so slow to write lately... work and life have been taking their tolls. I am looking forward to my last week of work until March, my company goes on unemployment and those of us who have been busting our asses get to travel, indulge, get some sleep...! I had taken everything down in the garden except for this echinacea who would just not stop blooming!



We do a lot of evergreen arrangements this time of year so our clients have something to look at other than pots of dirt and bare branches! These boughs are sprayed with an anti-dessicant to keep them from drying out.

Surprise!

While cleaning out a closet recently, I came upon my Amaryllis stash... blooming! I was a little bit startled because at first I didn't recognize what it was, since it was completely chlorotic ("The yellowing or whitening of normally green plant tissue because of a decreased amount of chlorophyll, often as a result of disease or nutrient deficiency.") having been put away in a cool, dark place as is the norm for forcing these bulbs... It was creepy!

Rock gardens on a rooftop

I came across an interesting collection of rock plants on a rooftop on the Upper West Side recently... This is a co-op's community roof and it seems one of the residents is a rock gardener! Great containers!





Especially nice with this view of the park in the background!

Jon's bench

My friend Jon is an amazing artist. He can take a completely empty space and turn it into something stunning. He is a wiz with found materials... Last summer when we planted his yard in Williamsburg, he built this amazing bench out of timber *borrowed* from some street repairs... I love it! Jon is so creative, he really makes me think twice... And the bowling alley bar he built isn't so bad either...

Angelica archangelica

This Angelica was planted last year at my boyfriend's brewery, and then, as a biennial, was just a really pretty, leafy specimen... This year it bloomed! In complete shade none-the-less!


Angelica is used to flavor liquors and is taken as an herbal immune stimulant. I'll have to collect those seeds! In this picture is also Abutilon "flowering maple" on the left and Coleus "Inky Fingers" on the right...



Zinnia self seeded from last year! I think they can't help but grow at the brewery because Shane loves them so much!