Martha's Backyard Blog

Remember when we were counting the moments till Spring reared her gorgeous head? Now we are seeing the wonderful colors of May. In the title shot, we see the weeping Redbud on the front of the house. The little picture on the right is of a rosy plant whose name I couldn't recall until I looked in iNaturalist.org observations. I know it comes in reddish and white. This would be the reddish one, which I referred to as the pink one last year. It is called Honesty, with formal name Lunaria annua. It was pinker last year. (Or maybe whiter!) It is a funny pink - I have to go into edit mode and up the saturation to get closer to the amazing deep pink of the original!

Here is a Yellow Violet. It is actually a Smooth Yellow Violet. Next to it are a pale blue and a white Violet.

I always associate the light colors with Spring. Here is a tiny stack of Forget-me-nots. Then a clump of Epimedium, or "Bishop's Hats" as Catherine Lamb said when she gave them to me. Third are a batch of Virginia Bluebells.

I believe these very geometrical pieces of art are called Bedstraws. Today this picture was identified on iNat as Catchweed Bedstraw, Galium aparine.

One year I had several colors of this Primrose, but this year only the red one. I went to Family Fare and bought this Ivy Geranium to help satisfy my lust for reddish!

Here is some Solomon's Seal that I got from Miriam Daly one year. It would be the first chance to see some hummingbirds (they love those delectable-looking hanging baubles) if one were hiding indoors for a week or two. Next is Epimedium or Bishop's Hat (referring I think to the shape of the leaves). This is something that Catherine Lamb gave me one year back in the 1980's.

In the front garden, it is sunny enough that I can count on some plants to come up with no encouragement from me. For example, these Grape Hyacinths were outrageous this year! And they are still blooming out there! Another outrage was being committed by the Poppy buds next to it. They should be a variant of Orange when they bloom. Still another was seen in the May Apples, which are taking over the territory.

Now it's time for the more common flowers, like this Wild Geranium, and the Golden (Celadine) Poppies in this picture backing up the stone monster. Also for the Virginia Bluebells.

Here are a couple of (Green) Frogs. Can you tell the boy from the girl? I told you my theory last week about the different aspects of the two sexes' mouth arrangements. Do you remember it? If not, you must stay after school and clean the erasers.

I'm not very good at identifying birds, but I did see a few interesting ones yesterday. I have an old kitty-litter pan about 2 inches deep and a yard square. Last year it was a treat for the Blue Jays and other birds of similar size. They would get in there and splash and splash. Yesterday we were treated to views of a small Cardinal (probably immature) sitting on the lid of the pan, trying to decide whether or not to take the plunge. Last I was watching, she still hadn't decided to go for it. But I'll keep waiting! By the way, when I first spotted her yesterday, I mistook the bright red beak for a facial feature! The Blue Jay is waiting from the comfort of a small tree.

Just so that you can see how hard it is to tell one Ant from another, here is a selection of pictures taken at different times!

Well, that was a cross-section of the life out there. See you next week! Keep your eyes out for any wild life in your neighborhood and try to picture Nature as it was meant to be - wild and wonderful! Love, Martha