susansflowers

garden ponderings

Tag Archives: nature


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Red & White (no Blue today!)

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Five years ago, I talked a reluctant plant owner into letting me take a few starts of red Crocosmia.
I had this wild idea that they would look good next to white Shasta daisies, since both flowers bloom about the same time.
Unfortunately, I planted them in an unfenced area with no irrigation, so they were at the mercy of all of nature.

These scarlet blossoms are a real treat, as I thought the deer had eaten all my starts years ago.  You never know when a plant will surprise you and come back to life!


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Butterfly & Lily

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Just a quiet evening on the front deck before dinner, and look who came to visit!  We have been seeing more Monarch butterflies these last few weeks than I can ever remember.  I took a chance to run in the house for my camera, and this must have been a very hungry butterfly!

These golden wonders of nature are the pay-off for the hours spent in my flower garden.
I have been planting bee, butterfly and bird attracting plants, and here is living proof that it worked!
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Habitat View

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Habitat View

One more post about the North Bank Habitat Management Area.

This is the view of the North Umpqua River from the parking lot for horse trailers. It is a short walk (west) to a wide trail that fire trucks can drive on. Makes it easy to follow.
One of the botanists on the hike I went on, recently retired from BLM and this was one of the areas for which she was responsible. She was able to point out particular wildflowers that were reintroduced and areas that were fenced off for study. Did you know that “sedges have edges and rushes are round”? It’s funny how rhyming sayings can help one remember plant differences.

This area is a mere 5 miles up North Bank Road from Highway 99 (the old north/south road from Mexico to Canada in the West). It connects to the main road along the North Umpqua River near the town of Glide. The North Umpqua River has world-class steelhead fishing, catch-and-release-only as you go up-river. A hiking trail runs for a number of miles along the south bank of this River, east of Glide. One of the most beautiful drives one can take. There are waterfalls along the drive, one you don’t even have to get out of the car to see. Makes it a great place to take persons who cannot walk far, they get to see nature up close.
I could go on and on, but will restrain myself so it doesn’t get too crowded.