Summertime blues
Sometimes I wonder what I’m a gonna do cause there ain’t enough time for all the summertime blues. And by blues I mean all those wonderful summer wildflowers that run the gamut from lavender to blue to violet and purple. Joe-pye, Eupatorium maculatum is raising his...
The un-hummingbird
Toni Mullany of Waynesville sent me an email the other day noting a guest scoping out her phlox. She described the critter thusly, “It is about the size of a large bumblebee. It is all black. It has furry head and a large proboscis. Its movements are rather slow. ...
Goats who stare at trees
They not only stare at them, they eat them. Well, maybe not all trees, but woody browse in general. Hopefully, this penchant for woody invasives like Canada blackberry will make goats the perfect organic weed-whacker for protecting the grassy balds of the Roan...
Bee balm
The girls love to surprise Mom with bouquets of wildflowers. The other day they came in with a handful of one of my favorites, bee balm. Monarda didyma, bee balm or Oswego tea, is a striking perennial wildflower common across much of the eastern U.S. It is in the mint...
A sure bet
I’m sure that if you belong to any environmental/conservation organization or if you have donated to causes in the past or perhaps simply visited a Website recently – you have received pleas for donations and/or instructions detailing ways you can assist the Gulf...
Still soaring after all these years
Eagle Lady Doris Mager enjoyed a “rock star” reception last Friday (6/18) at the Waynesville public library. But instead of overage adolescents flicking bics and shouting “Freebird,” Mager and her friend E.T. (Extra Terrific), a 27-year-old great-horned owl were...