Tag: frostweed

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11/20/2022 frostweed!

With every freeze I’ve checked our frostweed. This morning, a low of 20F was enough to freeze beneath our still-fully-leafed red oak.
A close up of the left stem.
A close up of the right stem.
Another nearby plant.

The oak tree has been protecting the Texas mallow from freezing too, so once it gets above freezing today , we’ll see if that finally got “got” too.

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04/23 checking on the backyard

Blackberry has started blooming.
Native currant continues blooming.
Probably non native oxalis that was here already.
Maybe baby Salvia coccinea by the oak.
No idea.
Lyre leaf sage has just started blooming.
Giant ragweed baby (self seeded from last year’s volunteer).
Not sure who this friend is on the other side of dividing fence.
Frostweed is coming back.
The extra Maximilian sunflower we planted seems to be thriving.
A type of Solanaceae, I forget which one, but native. A volunteer.
A pokeweed coming up! Always good for the birds.
The right half of the clump is goldenrod that was already here.  The left half is something non native but I forget what.
The fancy something is going to bloom though I guess. I remember it’s not native anyways. So eventually it will probably go.
New Clematis is surviving.
New from yesterday Cleome (Rocky mountain bee plant) is still alive.
Rattlebox from yesterday settling in fine. Wild onions from home in front.

I’m becoming convinced this is the New Jersey tea I put out last year. Ironweed leaves around it.
Showy evening primroses are starting!
Frog fruit I transferred from prairie area to east of the patio appears to have taken root.
A seedling that probably got transplanted from home. 🤷🤞🤞
I seeded a native lawn mix in this area and I believe this is the buffalo grass.
The other item in the mix was blue grama grass; hopefully this is it.
The fragrant sumac was starting to wilt again so I gave it some water in a pot to leak out slightly slower.
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Last week Nov. 12 hike, no dogs

Gracie needed a rest so Mom and I went out to the Grasslands sans dogs last Friday.  My home ecosystem! You can see Mom’s photos on her blog in two parts (posts start Nov. 14 and then there is a second one after).

This Escobaria vivipara cactus is surrounded by babies!!
Without my silly human finger.
Escobaria missouriensis has red fruit.
Native white honeysuckle bush has red fruit too!
Great Spreadwings have big yellow stripes on the thorax.  This set of ravines and seeps has always been a reliable place to find them.
Looking up out of the ravine at the surrounding red oaks.
Mom showed me her exciting find of this 6+ foot tall waterfall with travertine stalactites, maidenhair ferns (zoom in to find), and frostweed (at front edge of picture).
On the way back up the ravine I saw this tiny pokey spider.  Gasteracantha cancriformis.
It was steep!
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Holiday Sunday

An outdoor dinner. Garden basil and oregano.
Moved the chives and garlic chives that Judy gave me last year. Maybe they’ll like this spot better.
Uzbek golden, little, and New Kuroda carrots.
Gram helps me get seeds out.
Fall seeds planted of cabbage, mizuna, greens, and cauliflower. Tomatoes and peppers for overwintering. And a few pots of Roman chamomile for the front yard ground cover.
This is where I shall attempt peppers and tomatoes over the winter.
This goldenrod was already here and is doing very nicely.
A giant 1″+ horsefly on a backyard window sill.
Never going outside again.
I lied. Outside again. Chiltepin peppers.
Frostweed doing alright after it died back earlier in summer.
A little spider got this Eastern Tailed-Blue on the englemann daisy.
Texas mallow blooming!
The non native clematis. I’ll clean it out over the winter.
Okra flower
A bumblebee on the okra!
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Corn on the cob, third time’s the charm?

Yesterday morning I picked half a dozen sweet corns and Wes buttered them up and roasted them in foil. The front one we threw out because of too few kernels from incomplete pollination.
Steak and corn.
While taking the husks out to the compost pile, I was relieved to see that my mysteriously dying frostweed is resprouting at the base.
Steak, a roll, a baked potato, and corn. Very classic.
Everything buttered up extra. It was pretty good but nothing to write home about. First year I picked way too late (hard and rubbery), last year didn’t pollinate, so I’m counting this as a win.
After dinner, the Chef found this fine friend on the porch.
The stealthy bagworm (a moth caterpillar). So invisible in its natural habitat of Rubbermaid tub lid!
Here it was walking so you can see its head.