I like saving electricity for lots of reasons beyond saving money. It's important, just like recycling. One of the easiest ways to reduce electricity consumption is to switch out incandescent and halogen bulbs for LED lights. We replaced the indoor lights we use the most often already but were … [Read more...]
Exploring for Mushrooms in Our Winter Lawn
Right now the snow is mostly gone, leaving grass and leaves and interesting mushrooms out for us to see. We had unusual mushrooms in our front yard this fall that I've not seen before. These oval ones all growing in a group remind me of mini loaves of bread. Each one has a crack in its … [Read more...]
Shore Birds on Lake Michigan Fall 2016
We camped by Muskegon in September where gulls and shorebirds were in and out of the water, swimming and walking and flying, busy searching for food. Gulls are smart and wait for people to discard pretzels that fall on the sand. This guy was persistent! (Yes, we gave him and his friends … [Read more...]
Enjoying the Path – Kleinstuck Preserve in Kalamazoo, Michigan
My dentist's office sits on a ridge above a deep wooded ravine. There is a trail at road end just before we park that I've wanted to walk but somehow something always got in the way - work, snow, rain, obligations - until today. The path leads to the Kleinstuck Preserve, a 50 acre woods with … [Read more...]
Canadian Geese Say Hello – Camping in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula
In the spring and fall big flocks of geese fly overhead in long V formations, going north, or south, or over to the next puddle of water to take a break or stay for the summer. We didn't see geese or ducks much when I was a kid; in fact we didn't have nearly the variety of birds at all that we get … [Read more...]
Watch Out! Little Green Frog in My Pool
A little green frog likes to sit on the top of our pool liner, right below the overhang. He's hard to see unless you are swimming. I notice him even without my glasses on because he is vivid green against the dark blue liner. He's tiny, about 2 inches long. The swimming pool is not a good … [Read more...]
Marked for Death: Pokeweed! Kill This Invasive Weed
Last summer I noticed a new, big weedy plant in sunny spots alongside the road we live on, pokeweed. When pokeweed has only a few leaves it looks like a 4 o'clock plant but it's obviously different once it grows a bit. Later flowers develop. They are white in pointed clusters, rather … [Read more...]
Volunteers In The Garden: The Good, The So-So And The Bad
Some of our annuals from last year volunteered seedlings this spring. Last summer's annual candytuft bloomed in blah colors, but the volunteers are blooming in pretty shades of purple and pink. I didn't need to plant the cosmos seeds we bought because my garden is full of seedlings. Our … [Read more...]
Spruce Tree Massacre
Our yard is narrow, only 200 feet across, but it feels secluded and private because of the big spruce trees planted all around the front and sides. This is what casual passersby see from the street: Spruce trees. Lots and lots of big beautiful spruce trees that the original owners planted 20 … [Read more...]
Heather So Tough and So Pretty – Blooming in Snow All Winter
One of the puzzling landscape features we inherited with this house is a big round garden-ish spot in the middle of the drive. It is divided in half, with black lava rocks on a mounded area and granite rocks on a flatter half. I suspect there used to be more plants as the ones there now are a bit … [Read more...]