I walked out to the wetland this evening, between rainstorms. The light was beautiful – sun was setting between the clouds and shining on the new green on the trees. Continue reading
Category Archives: 2007
Journal for April 20, 2007
Last week we still had a trace of winter left – 6 inches of snow on Thursday morning. By Thursday afternoon it was melting from the fields, and there were only a few inches left on the driveway. Continue reading
First Flower of the Spring – April 20, 2007
This is the first blooming plant I’ve found this spring (other than trees). It’s called Common Whitlow-grass. It’s actually not a grass – it’s in the Mustard Family and the latin name is Draba reptans. It’s very small – the plant is one or two inches tall, and each flower is less than 1/2 inch across. Continue reading
Journal for April 7, 2007
We had almost a week of warm spring weather, and then it changed back into winter. Continue reading
Mourning Cloak Butterfly – March 28, 2007
Mourning Cloaks are one of the first butterflies to fly in the spring because they over winter as adults. They spend the winter in crevices behind bark or in log or brush piles. If the temperature warms to 55 degrees and the sun is shining, these butterflies will come out to bask in the sun in a sheltered place, even in the middle of winter. This one flew past me in the woods and landed on a branch right in front of my face. Continue reading
Journal for March 25, 2007
We’ve gone from winter to summer in less than a week. Continue reading
Oak Leaves with Hoarfrost – March 16, 2007
Hoarfrost forms on the edges of leaves and on twigs when the air is humid and the temperature is below freezing. If we have a warm day with lots of snow melting, and then a cold night, we often find hoarfrost on leaves and twigs the next morning.
Journal for March 15, 2007
I finally got all my seeds planted – just ahead of the spring thaw. I planted the last of the seeds on Monday, and today the fields are almost completely brown with just a little snow at the edges. Continue reading
Journal for March 2, 2007
More snow! We’ve had another big storm this week. This time the storm wasn’t as much of a blizzard – less wind – but still plenty of snow for Mike to plow. We got 19 inches of snow in last week’s blizzard, and another 10 or 11 inches this week, so he’s gotten to use all his toys. Continue reading
Journal for February 24, 2007
The past few weeks have been very cold but we had a few days last week that felt like spring. It got up to 50 degrees on Wednesday so most of the snow melted, especially on the bluff prairies and the south sides of the hills. Continue reading