Author: Barb

Posted on by — 16 Comments

Front Yard Remodel: Removing the Lawn – Spring Season

Last year we decided to relandscape the frontyard to get rid of the lawn. Our city raised the water and sewer rates extremely high (over double) and it just didn’t seem right to keep that green lawn year-round anymore. I had myself convinced long ago to make the change to a less water thirsty landscape but my husband loved his green grass. He changed his mind after the first $$$ water bill we received.

Here is what our yard looked like in August 2010.

Front Yard Summer 2010

At first we were just going to slowly remove parts of the lawn and plant natives and drought resistant shrubs. This was the first attempt at our remodel, planting more lavender and sage.

8 29 10 Excavator Work

Soon though, my husband got motivated and decided to excavate some terraces with a friend’s heavy equipment. This meant building a block wall and then eventually a walkway made with pavers. This was a huge learning experience and we didn’t always enjoy the process but we did like the way it looked. It meant removing a messy magnolia tree from the yard but we replaced it with a dogwood. This was late August 2010.

Frontyard remodel 9 4 10

The planting part is always fun and makes it feel like you are making progress.I don’t know how we would have accomplished this huge project without the help of all the children. My daughter is the paver expert and came to help us make all the curves and cuts just right. The boys were lots of help in moving plants around, helping to find just the right arrangement. This was September 4, 2010.

10 4 10 (2)

This was on October 4, 2010. Amanda and her dad are building the upper walkway that goes around to the side of our house. I use this walkway now to come from the backyard to the front when I fill the birdfeeders.

Front yard remodel 11 5 10 (3)

We had a mild autumn so we were able to finish most of our plans before the bad weather hit. This was taken November 5, 2010. We were installing a birdfeeding station…a total and complete success and the birds have been visiting every day since then.

3 28 11 Front Yard (2)

This was taken on March 28, 2011. The yellow daffodils really perked up the yard and we decided that we made a great choice in paver color.

We did have to totally replace our front deck in the process because of rotted wood. This was the only part of the project that we hired someone to help us with since it meant removing the entrance to our house and reworking the stairs. My husband’s friend is a contractor and he had the job done in a day.

3 28 11 Front Yard (5)

The grasses we planted in the autumn did not make it through the winter. We decided to replace them with yarrow. You can see the dogwood tree here in this image..we are eagerly waiting for it to bloom and get some leaves. My dear husband gathered some granite boulders from a friend’s land and brought them home for some added interest to the front walk. I am hoping to get one more big one if the opportunity arises.

4 26 11 frontyard remodel (1)

Here we are today on April 26, 2011. The daffodils are done and the lavender is coming alive with purple. My favorite part of the yard right now is the California lilac that is blooming on either side of the deck stairs.

4 26 11 frontyard (6)

You can see it better in this image.

We have put a lot of hard work into this project and it continues to evolve as the seasons go by. We are anxious to see how it looks as the plants grow and the trees get leaves.

One last quick change we are making is to paint the shutters on the front of the house brown. You can see in the images above that we have one set painted. We were thinking we wanted them to be red but they ended up looking pink instead. My husband then found this brown and I think it is going to be a good match to tie into the deck and the yard. (They were white and blended in too much to the yellow of our house.) I am not sure about the front door color now…it is a nice shade of green but it may end up painted a nice brown as well.

We are now totally drought resistant in the frontyard. I am hoping we can get by with one really good watering a week, depending on the weather.

List of plants:
California lilac
Moonshine yarrow
Spanish and English lavender
Smoke tree
Dogwood tree
California poppies (not blooming yet)
Red Hot Poker
Sage – can’t remember the varieties
Day lilies – Stella Oro (these are planted amongst the daffodils)
Butterfly bush – purple and white
Forsythia
Blackberry vines – left these since they grow between our house and the neighbors
Crepe myrtles – two colors
Agapanthus (left from previous landscaping-waiting to see how they grow with little watering)
Heavenly bamboo (left from previous landscaping-also seeing how this goes)
Adding a redbud (have a coupon that I will use this weekend)



Jami’s Tuesday Garden Party meme is open from Tuesday to Thursday so there is still time for you to jump in and participate!

Posted on by — 7 Comments

Wildflowers – Sierra Spring 2011 (Part 1)

4 23 11 Red Shack wildflowers Blue Dicks

Blue dicks are the purplest purple of the spring in our world. I am thinking that the wildflowers on our usual trail are almost a full month behind their usual bloom schedule. I love knowing the rhythm of the growing things in our part of the world and being able to anticipate the blooming sequence.

4 23 11 Red Shack wildflowers Meadow with poppies and blue dicks

There are meadows and trail edges filled with Blue dicks along with orange California poppies. Those two colors together are a feast for the eyes.

4 23 11 Red Shack wildflowers Chinese Purple houses

The other amazing purple flowers blooming right now are the Purple Chinese Houses. They are just starting to bloom and in the next few weeks they will bring the trailsides alive with color.

4 23 11 Red Shack wildflowers Indian Pinks

These are Indian Pinks….not very pink but rather a deep reddish orange. There are more of these blooming than usual.

4 23 11 Red Shack wildflowers Sweet Fennel

The fennel is not as striking as some of the other wildflowers but it has a really nice shape.

4 23 11 Red Shack wildflowers Miner's Lettuce

Here is another kind of Miner’s Lettuce. You can really see how it grows in a rosette shape and then has delicate flowers at the ends.

4 23 11 Red Shack wildflowers Pretty Face

Here is the first of the Pretty Faces. They are a really soft yellow and I like the way they look as they begin to open up. Maybe this one should go into my nature journal…

4 23 11 Red Shack wildflowers Hairy Fringepod

I almost missed this one! This is Hairy Fringepod and it makes me happy. There is just something about this plant that seems so special and unique. It will eventually bloom.

4 23 11 Red Shack wildflowers Woodland Star

Here is a new wildflower for our list. I think it is a Woodland Star. It is in the saxifrage family which I am beginning to be able to pick out when I am identifying flowers.

4 23 11 Red Shack wildflowers Hang Fly

This is certainly not a lovely wildflower but a really interesting insect that I learned about a few years ago….it is a Green Stigma Hangingfly. You can click on the image and go over to Flickr to see the largest size to really get a good look at this amazing insect.

I took quite a few more photos but this entry is getting really long so I will save some for another entry later this week. Hope you enjoyed seeing some of the colorful flowers from our part of the country (Northern California).

If you are interested in seeing more of my wildflower studies…you can click over to my Yosemite Wildflower blog and see some from past years.

Posted on by — 2 Comments

I Talk To The Clouds

4 19 11 yard and walking trail (22)

“You must not blame me if I do talk to the clouds.”
Henry David Thoreau

Look up and enjoy your clouds too.

Posted on by — 7 Comments

2011 Spring Series – Spring Bird Observations

“The springtime belongs to the birds and me…..The birds and I get acquainted all over again every spring. They have seen strange lands in the winter, and all the brooks and woods have been covered with snow. So we run and romp together, and find all the nooks and crannies which we had half forgotten since October.”
Liberty Hyde Bailey. The Birds and I, 1898

There has been a definite change in our yard’s bird population since our bird count in February and our winter observations of birds. Our feeders are not so crowded and I hear different birds in the early morning hours. This is a time for spring birds like robins and geese flying overhead, making their return to our part of the world. I sincerely hope that this bird challenge encourages your family to spend a little time outside this week to look for some birds in your world. It will be a great excuse to get outside and have a reason to look around for some feathered friends.

For this week’s challenge we will be making our Spring 2011 Bird Observations – Click over to read more about the spring bird challenge. The focus can be on bird song or any other aspect of birds that your family is interested in learning about. Check the Handbook of Nature Study for more information.

Don’t miss this website!
Songs, Calls, Bird Identification

Here are specific challenges from the Handbook of Nature Study for different bird topics if you are interested in learning more:

Follow up your outdoor bird observing with some looking at field guides and perhaps a nature journal or notebook page. The notebook page is included in the Spring Series ebook.

You may also be interested in my Spring Nature Study Ebooks!

Spring Series Cover

Posted on by — 6 Comments

Our Spring Tree Has Leaves: White Birch Limbs and Leaves

This post is part of our on-going series of Year-Long Tree Studies, Spring Challenge. You can see our previous studies here: Autumn and Winter.  If you haven’t started your own family’s Year-Long Tree Study, I encourage you to jump in now and start with a spring observation. I guarantee you will learn a lot!

“A person who has not had an intimate, friendly acquaintance with some special tree has missed something from life.”
Anna Botsford Comstock, A Study of a Tree

It has been with eagerness that we watched our white birch tree for signs of new leaves. This past week they seemed to appear overnight, gracefully blowing in the breezes that have come in the afternoon hours. Here is a video (you may need to click over to the blog to view it) that shows how the limbs are so fluid and dance in the wind. It isn’t very long…about half a minute.

We decided to focus on the limbs of the tree and see how they make that movement in the wind. It might have something to do with the shape and arrangement of the limbs. The limbs bend down towards the ground and are not stiff like the oak tree growing just a few feet away.

4 18 11 Birch tree limbs

They sort of spiral up the trunk….isn’t it pretty?

4 18 11 Birch Leaves and catkins

It could have something to do with the leaves as well so we took a look at the arrangement and shape as part of our spring study. The leaves point down and the petiole is long and slender. The leaves catch the slightest breeze just like the sail on a sailboat. They shake and sway and remind me of Robert Frost’s poem, Birches. We decided to include a part of the poem in our nature journal.

I’d like to go by climbing a birch tree,
And climb black branches up a snow-white trunk
Toward heaven, till the tree could bear no more,
But dipped its top and set me down again.
That would be good both going and coming back.
One could do worse than be a swinger of birches.

(Excerpt)

4 5 11 Birch Catkins

“Catkins form on the trees in summer, remaining tight, smooth, and closed throughout the winter. They begin to expand in early spring, with most flowering before the leaves appear, or at least before the leaves get too large. As catkins rely on wind to spread their pollen, this arrangement prevents the leaves from interfering with fertilization. After the female flowers are fertilized, the male catkins wither and drop.”
Read more at Suite101: Catkins in Spring.

Birch Nature Journal
So another season is beginning for our tree and we will look forward to observing it closely as the days tick by. There is always something new to learn and think about in this great nature study project.

Posted on by — 16 Comments

Creating a Bee Habitat Garden – Suggestions and Ideas

We are starting to build our new garden area to replace a huge portion of our backyard lawn area. It has been a dream of mine to take the water-hungry lawn out and replace it with color and attractive plants for birds, bees, and butterflies. My husband and I finally agreed on a plan and we started a week or so ago to build the first two garden boxes from recycled blocks that came out of our frontyard remodel last fall. We are on a limited budget for this project so we are reusing materials we have on hand and it is going to be a long range plan to add more as we have time and money. We did end up purchasing and hauling in a yard of garden soil that we added some of our homemade compost to so we could fill up our boxes. We didn’t use the complete yard of soil in the boxes but used the balance to top off our vegetable garden boxes and fill two pots for patio tomatoes.

4 18 11 New Lavender
Here is the first square which will anchor the whole project. We found some lavender on sale at Home Depot and we added four plants…..bees no extra charge. I am not exaggerating when I tell you that there are bees on these blossoms every day, at all times of the day.

4 11 Dandelions
We also have loads of bees in the dandelions over on the other end of the yard. I counted quite a number of bees in the yellow blossoms as I sat and enjoyed their cheerfulness one afternoon. My husband is not convinced to keep the dandelions and wants to pull them up. I asked him to wait a bit and then he can mow them over.

4 11 New Boxes with Lawn
Mr. B is my garden helper these days and we enjoy spending time outdoors together.

The larger box is going to hold my sunflowers and zinnias. I am including the Lemon Sunflowers in this box as part of the Great Sunflower Project. I was reading on their website about their change this year and they have added quite a number of other flowers to the project so you can count bees in your area.

If you want to check it out, click over and read on their website but it looks like you can count bees on include Bee balm, Cosmos, Rosemary, Tickseed, and Purple coneflower.

The two brown piles of leaf compost that you can see in the image above are going to become part of another bee garden that we may get to this year. The link will take you to Renee’s Garden where she has collaborated with the Great Sunflower Project on a list of bee attractive plants for your garden.

The only other part we are planning on planting this spring is the Three Sisters Garden that will be a long row parallel to the sidewalk just behind where my son is working in the image above. The Three Sisters are pumpkins, corn, and beans that you plant as companions. I am excited just thinking about this part of the garden!!!

I am anxious to add in a few things as we have time and the weather warms up. My husband keeps telling me he doesn’t see my vision for the yard but I told him to have faith and see what evolves. At the bottom of the post are the seeds that I am planting in the new larger box if you are interested.

That is what we accomplished this week in our new garden project but here are a few of our on-going bee/butterfly/hummingbird habitat garden projects that are a work in progress.

4 18 11 Butterfly Garden with notes
We have been working on this section of the garden for a few years now and it is filling in and growing more beautiful with each passing season.

4 18 11 New Moonshine Yarrow
In our front yard we added some Moonshine Yarrow….this has become another favorite of the bees this spring. I am anxious to see how it grows over the summer since it says it needs very little water.

New Yard Art - Metal Butterfly and Rocks

I have to share my new yard art piece that my dear husband found for me. It is a metal butterfly balanced on top of a pole with river rocks stacked. It is the perfect piece for our front yard. I love the way it moves in the slightest breeze and is a great addition to the look of the front yard. I decided it is all about movement…the grasses, the forsythia, the butterfly bushes, and now the sculpture.

I have enjoyed reading all the entries over on Jami’s blog An Oregon Cottage as part of her Tuesday Garden Party. Welcome to all who have clicked over to read my entry!
I welcome all readers to subscribe to my blog…see the sidebar for a place to enter your email.



Jami’s Tuesday Garden Party meme is open from Tuesday to Thursday so there is still time for you to jump in and participate!

Posted on by — 6 Comments

Fungus – Beautiful Polypores and Jelly and the Outdoor Hour Challenges Featuring Mushrooms

3 16 11 Fungus

We always enjoy finding a beautiful fungus when we hike….yes, I said beautiful. They come in such interesting shapes and colors. There is no denying that the bracket fungus above is beautiful in its design.

3 16 11 Witches Jelly

Now identifying fungus with a specific name is not always easy for me so when I do learn a name it usually sticks. This fungus is called Witches’ Butter.

If you live in California, this is a good website to bookmark:
California Fungus-Simple Key.

3 28 11 Fungus on stump

This one was truly unusual and I don’t think we have seen it before on our hikes. It only lasted a few days and I am really glad we stopped to take some photos so we can remember the way it grows.

3 28 11 Fungus

Here it is on another stump. At the bottom of the image you can see that something has knocked part of it off the stump and you can take a good look at the gills.

3 28 11 mushrooms

This one was just an interesting shape….don’t have any idea what it is exactly but I can still appreciate the way it is part of the habitat and that it is just fun to look at as we stopped to observe it along our trail.

Here is a link to another fungus entry I wrote last year: The Joy of Fungus. In this entry I share some of notebook pages and a couple of interesting links for you to check out.

Also, you can check out two of the Outdoor Hour Challenges featuring mushrooms in the Handbook of Nature Study:

Autumn Series #9 Mushrooms

Posted on by — 6 Comments

2011 Spring Series – Spring Tree Observations

Year+Long+Tree+Study+Spring+@handbookofnaturestudy.blogspot.com.jpg

Here’s the challenge for this week:  
Spring Tree Observations.
(click over to read the specifics)
This is the post from last year and in it you will find the pages in the Handbook of Nature Study to read in preparation and then some ideas for learning more about your tree that you picked to observe last autumn or winter.

We have been watching our tree get its leaves over the last few weeks. What a transformation! I hope you are able to revisit your family’s tree and get to see its spring beauty.  If you are new to the Outdoor Hour Challenge, please feel free to jump in with this season’s observations and get started on your own Year-Long Tree Study!

Here are the suggestions for a general tree study:

1. Pick a tree in your yard or on your street and look for its new leaves and blossoms if appropriate.
2. Is it just beginning to show leaves? Can you tell if your tree has all of its leaves yet?
3. Can you see any insects or birds in your tree?
4. Collect a few leaves to use for leaf rubbings in your nature journal. You could also make a leaf bouquet.
5. Compare two leaves from the same tree. Are they exactly alike?
6. Use your nature journal to record a sketch of the leaf and any blossoms.
7. How has the tree changed since autumn? Winter?

You may also be interested in my Spring Nature Study Ebooks!

Spring Series Cover

Posted on by — 1 Comment

Spring Giveaway: Sharing Your Observations

Tulips

This has been a great experience for me to read all the different comments sharing how spring looks in your area and when you truly know it is spring! Before I announce the winner of Weather Lapbook from Hearts and Trees, I would love to share a list of some of the signs of true spring shared in comments from readers. I want to thank everyone who left a comment sharing your springtime goodness. We will have to do this again in another season because I enjoyed it so much!

Flowering Bulbs
  • I am in SW Virginia and in this area, it’s the forsythia, the grape hyacinths, the violets, and the wind!!!
  • Here in the boondocks of Quebec, it’s when you can see the crocuses pushing through the last snow….
  • When I see the crocus come up that usually means spring to me….
  • Here in Oregon you know it is spring by the clumps of yellow all around from daffodils
 
Changes in Trees
  • …Southern middle Tennessee – we know that spring has sprung when the Bradford pear trees turn white as snow with blooms…
  • We know Spring is on the way in the Carolinas when the Bradford Pear trees bloom white all over town…
  • We know its spring here (Vancouver BC) when the cherry blossoms bloom.
  • In south Louisiana, it’s the pecan trees! They say you can’t fool the pecan trees, they won’t get leaves until after the last frost.
Dandelion and Bee
Green Grass
  • The grass has greened up, the streams are bulging and sap season is over.
  • Spring for me is the day after the first thunderstorm when the grass begins to turn green.
Return of Migratory Birds
  • This year, the signs of spring were the birds. Even though nothing else seemed to want to wake up, the birds came and started to sing.
  • The kids love it when the robins start coming back to the yard.
  • When the birds that fly south for the winter come back.
  • When the geese start to fly north again I know that the weather is getting nicer and we are (most likely) done with snow.
Rain and Mud!
  • Rain boots and mud tracks through the kitchen!
  • At our house in Rochester, NY, we know it’s spring by the reappearance of tracks.
  • Spring? Means Rain. Rain. Rain. Rain, with a chance of Rain.
Flowering Bushes
  • We know that Spring is on its way when the Daffodils, Red Buds, and Dogwoods bloom.
  • We are on the Gulf Coast and spring here is always heralded by the blooming of azaleas!!!
  • Hanging wisteria.
  • Ah Spring. Our spring actually happens when the lilac blooms

 

Spring Babies
  • The baby chicks and turkey poults arrived and our first baby goats of the season hit the ground.

 

The winner of the Weather Lapbook is…
Casey from Bumpin’ Along The Road Less Traveled. 

I would love for you all to hope over to Casey’s blog and see her beautiful images in this recent entry: Evening. You will feel like you have taken a trip to springtime. Lilacs! Wow! Wish I had some of those blooming in my yard right now! Thanks Casey for all your hard work on your blog and hope your family enjoys your Weather Lapbook.

Spring 2011 Kit
Sewing project, art print and projects, handicrafts, and a lapbook!

I also encourage all to pop over the Hearts and Trees and see Amanda’s latest art, handicraft, and nature study kit for spring. She did a great job pulling lots of interesting things together this time around!

Posted on by — 4 Comments

Spring Weather Observations 2011: Clouds and Sky and Green

4 11 Oaks and sky with clouds

The sky has been amazingly beautiful this past week. Although the temperatures are still a little cold, we have enjoyed bright sunshine every day except for last Friday when it snowed! Just a little. Today it hit 60 degrees on the thermometer with breezes from the south….just enough to stir up the pollen and drive me indoors. I really needed to get this Spring Weather Observation Challenge posted anyway.

4 11 Buttercups and oaks

We were able to do a little hiking this week in the afternoons where we noticed the buttercups are in full bloom. The hounds tongue and the shooting stars are still going strong as well.

Other things we noticed this week:

  • First mosquito
  • First hummingbird at the feeder
  • Dandelions!
  • Apple tree blossoming
  • Tulips blooming
  • Dew in the mornings and not frost
  • Longer daylight hours after dinner
  • Robins singing

4 12 11 Apple Blossoms

Look at the color of that apple blossom bud! This is on our tree that we planted last year so I am excited to see it growing. I need to research whether it is better to let the apples form on a new tree or if I should take the blossoms off for a year or two to allow the tree to grow. I am new to apple trees.

So is anyone else already suffering from spring allergies? It has hit me fast and hard this year so whatever is pollinating right now is killing me. With sniffling nose and itchy eyes, I spent three days in the yard working on clean-up, pruning, and getting garden boxes ready.

4 11 Garden
They are looking better than they did when I shared our garden progress a couple of weeks ago. We are adding pea gravel around the boxes as a way to keep the weeds down. We have a stockpile of gravel in another area of the garden so we are just moving it by wheelbarrow from one side of the yard to the other. More on the garden next week when I have my plans done and a few more things to share.



Jami’s Tuesday Garden Party meme is open from Tuesday to Thursday so there is still time for you to jump in and participate!