June 30, 2024

Welcome to a new week!   The yard is really getting going. As the temperature increases,  the creatures in it are evolving.  Again, the Water Lilies  that I planted last year (2023) have finally decided to show their colors.  Last summer hardly a one bloomed.  Now, that one was a brilliant one in shades of Pink.  We have already seen that one this year, maybe in the last  (June 16) issue.  Yes, that's the one.  This year we actually got a picture of this lily with this sweet little Green Frog sitting regally in it.  Well, last week another one "hatched", this one a very pale yellowish one.  

Here are a few pictures of the new Water Lilies.  Let me see if I can't find one with the real yellow showing up.  It is a very subtle yellow, but at least it isn't white.  Picture 2 shows the two lilies in the early morning before they have really stretched their arms Good Morning!  This one little Green Frog seems to agree with that salutation!

 Meanwhile, life goes on in Toad Country as well.  A couple of weeks ago, we saw Toads mating happily and then a few days later, we noticed (in the lower right of picture 2) what seemed to be a display of Toad Eggs.  Then a few days later these little black wiggly things appeared in the pond:  The black things at the left are what a lot of people (and I've been converted to their cause) call "Toadpoles" (short for Toad Tadpoles).  

Now you'll be glad to know that the Toads have gone through all these forms (eggs and tiny Toadpoles)  to  tiny Toadlets (above).  I missed the stages at which they lost their tails and grew their arms and legs, but we saw the most important stages.  I happened to be sitting by the pond and inspecting a tiny bit of muck and suddenly saw it move.  HA!  This really is one of the time-stages at which Spring gives way to Summer.  Now that the baby Toadlets (or at least the one we just saw moving ever so slightly) are out of the water. they will wander away from the Pond and grow and grow and live in the woods for the rest of their lives (several years) until one day Nature calls out to them that it's time to come home to the water and make a new generation.  This may entail several years - I'm not quite sure how long, but I do know that one day we'll be hearing the trilling of a new set of adults looking for partners for a new adventure.

It isn't just little semi-aquatic creatures that develop into the next generation.  One of the big treats of every summer is watching the Black Raspberries grow from tiny green to reddish to black and become genuine Black Raspberries fit for eating by ones, then by handfuls.  Finally I have to make sure that enough of the little black beauties find their way into the freezer for making into pie or cobbler one day when human memory stirs and we get hungry for one of these fantastic pastries!   Sorry to say, I don't know how to un-freeze one of the berries - if you want that lovely taste you have got to grab it from the vine.  I still remember days when we lived in Potsdam and had to find our way to one of the Raspberry patches that seemed to be open for visitors to scavenge!  These days we are usually lucky enough to be able to find handfuls like in picture 2 that make the "job" of picking so easy.  I tell you, this year's crop of Black Raspberries has been wonderful.  One handful just won't do it!  

Usually the Pond is the most interesting place to get colorful photos, this week other plants that seem to mark the change from Spring to Summer (we did have two or three days of hot weather but now it has reverted to coolish or at least comfortable) have begun to bloom.  These Spiderworts began as bluish-purple about 10 years ago when I ordered a few from a plant company but now can be seen in some interesting other colors.

The Trumpetvine just burst forth about a week ago.  Can you guess where it got its name? 

Some of the insects these days are just lovely.  Here is a male Ebony Jewelwing  (Calopteryx maculata ).and a couple of other Damselflies.  Actually I believe the last two are opposite sexes from each other.

Here is a dragonfly (Common whitetail).  Next is a sprig of Goldenrod buds.  From now on, you can expect to see many old and new favorite critters on this prolific plant.  

Let's look at some of the other insects of the week or two past.  This first one turns out to be an old friend, the leafhopper Pediopsoides distinctus.   The second may be a Long-legged Fly (Family Dolichopodidae ).  And the third is definitely a Quadrate Snipe Fly, (Chrysopilus quadratus). 

This pretty little Deptford Pink was originally from seed sent to me by Mary-Ann Cateforis of Potsdam, New York.   It is really just about this tiny!  The Common Yellow Day Lilies bloom every year.  This year there were so many I could pick a bunch for a shut-in friend!  Third is what remains of a new one with a fancy color that I ordered from somewhere that advertises everywhere, after my great neighbor who likes to keep my yard mowed to the right height but didn't realize this was a Plant, not grass.  Now I just try to keep it alive with frequent dousing with tap water. 

This first Beetle is Mordellistena vera, a member of Tumbling Flower Beetles (Family Mordellidae).  Next is a Hover Fly, Toxomerus geminatus.  Third is a Bathroom Moth Fly (looks like a moth, but it's a Fly!).

Here are some of the larger bits of the environment.  First, a humongous Maple Tree that stands to the north of me - don't look if you don't want to see that huge broken branch.  I personally can't take my eyes off of it!

Well, that may be the end of this assortment - Summer is bringing in as much gusto as it can and I try to show it to you with love, not fear!  See you next time!