Friday, October 17, 2014

Still With Us

Our good friends, the Monarch Caterpillars have seemed rather scarce this year.  However, yesterday on the self-seeded swamp milkweed by our back door we found these two as well as a number of others. They are healthy looking and very active.



And for a shift to a another type of interesting fauna, these two guys strolled by our RV campsite one early morning last week.  I scrambled to get the camera but they seemed to be in no hurry.  


They are Egyptian Geese. A member of the duck, goose, and swan family Anatidae.  They are native to Africa south of the Sahara and the Nile Valley.  They were considered sacred by the ancient Egyptians and appeared in much of their artwork. These are feral in the Kerrville TX area.


Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Late September Surprise























This fine specimen appeared along our back fence a few days ago.. a bit later than suggested in the description just below.   A very interesting flower.. no foliage at all.  Just stem and blossom.

Surprise Lily of the South blooms in fall     

After a long hot summer in the deep South, the earth comes alive with color from these sleeping bulbs. The Red Spider Lily  Lycoris Radiata is a perennial bulb that blooms in late August or September. A single stem emerges out of the ground unexpectedly and within days reaches a foot tall. The bloom opens a spidery look with long filaments that leave the center of the bloom, dip a little, and come up again with distinctive anthers and surrounded by modified petals.

 And here she is "up close"










And here is a "clump"....but they are not ours.



















Our Gardenia jasminoides .. continues to do her thing as summer starts to cool a bit.
























We continue to be thankful for flowers, and gardens, and Master Gardners.

And if you would like to see the latest (in fact all) of the Norchester Garden Club Horticulture Reports, you will find the links HERE  Give it a minute to download and click on the one of your choice.