Ruby-Throated Hummingbirds & Orange Jewelweed

September 19, 2021

I’ve long appreciated the beautiful late summer blooms of Orange jewelweed—tangerine-orange chalices with tiny red polka dots on their insides—but as a weed I thought it was best left to grow on the moist margins of the woods, not a volunteer I should keep around in a flowerbed. But I’ve been changing my ways of late, paying more attention to native plants (Orange jewelweed is native to Maine) and their role in providing food and habitat resources for our insects, birds, mammals and more.

Orange jewelweed
we left unpulled last July,
hummingbirds’ fall feast

July Morning

July 30, 2021

One of the joys of a Maine summer is being able to eat breakfast outside on fair-weather mornings, and one of the best spots for that is near some morning glories with their blooms for the day just opened.

early bumble bee
tunnels deep into every
morning glory heart

Spring Rain Woods

April 30, 2021

I’ve been learning to pay more attention to the native plants around me, the old-time residents of the land. Often these turn out to be little favored in contemporary horticultural terms. They are said to be lacking in showy blooms and a sweet fragrance, or as too attractive to insects. But gradually, awareness of the value of native plants to the health of the environment is increasing.   And I think our ability to see the intrinsic beauty of many of these plants is growing too.

shadbush, chokecherry—
new leaves burning through spring rain,
russet, lemon green

The Pussy Willow Cosmos

March 29, 2021

We have full sun today.  The soft pussy willow buds shine from their spot at the edge of the spring woods.

Would that we could live
within a galaxy of
pussy willow buds

Pussy Willow Stars

March 27, 2021

In the overlap between the end of maple-sugaring time and the start of mud season the pussy willows (Salix discolor) bloom.  Pussy willow trees go largely unnoticed through most of the year, but right now they are the beloved stars of the woodland show.

Standing in snowmelt
I clear away last year’s vines
from pussy willows

Hard Snowpack in Brilliant Light

March 8, 2021

These past few days have been windy with below-freezing temperatures, but with clear skies and close to twelve hours of daylight.

Cloudless March morning—
beyond the bright, sun-warmed porch,
winter’s crusted snow

Snow that Rests on Trees

February 23

Last night’s storm passed through quickly, but the snowfall was heavy while it lasted…and transformative.

Miles of winter woods,
not a single twig left bare—
fresh snow at sunup

Benediction

February 19, 2021

I’m fortunate enough to have received the final dose of the Moderna Vaccine and so to have joined the still very small percentage of people to be fully vaccinated against COVID.

Some folks, myself included, experience side effects, especially from the second dose (a low fever, headache, fatigue). Others get away with just a sore arm, or nothing at all.  Either way, they say our bodies are building immunity.

Dozing on the couch
slowed by yesterday’s vaccine—
snow falls slow all day

Overwintering in the Pandemic

February 4, 2021

We are almost a year into the pandemic, regretfully habituated to a muted, distanced life with most social encounters occurring via the internet. Like others, I’ve learned to set my computer monitor in front of a sunny window; the light is cheering, especially in winter, and has the advantage of brightening my face so it’s more visible to others online. I also have some nonhuman company in my well-lit location.

Southerly window—
beside a sea of Zoom faces,
potted rosemary

After Nightfall, January 20

January 20, 2021

Today marked a momentous transition for the US.

Out the dark window
first quarter moon bright shining:
Inauguration Night.