After the Solstice

 Prairie Phlox and American Vetch

(Phlox pilosa and Vicia americana)

 

Summer is truly here to stay and so much is going on that I'd like to run some where and hide for 3 months!  Way too much to see yet so many conflicts and little time to take advantage of things on the prairie.  I'm very fortunate to have some native pasture here to walk through at almost a moments notice...that is my "sanity buffer" I guess!

Our Prairie Phlox is nearly finished here; with the warm (hot) weather, things seem to progress faster. I like it for it's early stark contrast of color against the grasses.  We've never had a lot and that's something I need to work on.  (I'll put it on that very long to-do list.)

 Common Milkweed

(Asclepias syriaca)

One thing we do have plenty of (and so does everyone in the neighborhood) is Common Milkweed.  But I like it.  Although I will thin larger stands, I do not eradicate it because it is a good host plant for Monarchs and Milkweed Tiger Moths.  Last year one evening I also discovered that the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds even feed from the plant's flowers!  Never seen that before so was very surprised!  All the Asclepias family (milkweeds) have amazing flowers...get up close and see for yourself!

Let's see...what's next on that list...?

Muck!

Haven't had many visitors to the studio or farm lately...but then I don't think they'd make it in unless they were driving 4X4's. It's really hard to tell from the photo how bad things are, but they've raised the road by about 18-24 inches and totally scraped out and lowered/widened the ditches, and repositioned all the culverts. Then it rained.

If the road hadn't had big "Road Closed to Thru Traffic" signs placed at each end I'm sure someone would've looked at it and thought it was just "a little" muddy, but it became a sucking slurry that only a slow moving 4X4 could traverse...and that's only if you stuck to the middle.

We got real lucky yesterday and all the rain missed us! Never thought that'd make me happy (we're behind in our moisture) but it gave the road some chance to dry out a little...today the county is back to work on it and have been adding and packing more gravel. It's actually driveable today...the entrance to our place is still not up to par but at least visitors shouldn't get stuck there today.

If we miss rain the rest of the week we'll be in better shape but I don't think we'll miss what's brewing...feels just like summer now! Heat and humidity...no more of that cool nonsense we've had since winter ended. (Did like those sunny cool days though!)


Been checking the prairie pasture here and another forb has been blooming. Prairie Phlox...it's a real stand-out when there is a lot of it but we've only got a small number blooming...maybe that's one we need to encourage. A beautiful magenta blossom...but the deer here really appreciate it too (salad?), that's why we don't seem to have enough. Unfortunately when the plant is browsed back it does not bloom.

I don't want to discourage visitors! Just give us a week or two, weather permitting we'll be dry and ready for art and prairie lovers! Stay cool!