Orange you glad it's Summer? #phenology

While out cutting grass (and weeds) today we saw what we think is the first monarch of the year. It may have been a viceroy, all we caught was a quick glimpse as we ducked some tree branches to avoid getting knocked off the tractor. We've got lot's of milkweed on the property, most about knee high and starting to develop flower buds. We're also pretty sure we're not near the Northern edge of the monarch's range, so we're a little confused about the relationship(s) between local appearances and milkweed development. The Better Half claims to have seen one or more monarchs within the past week or so, but we don't believe those sightings were local.

monarch butterfly on Northern Plains  Blazing-star

Photo by J. Harrington

There's a patch of boneset and some other wildflowers at the North edge of the back yard, being encroached on by our feral oregano. (What, other than humans, eats oregano? Chickens? The Better Half wants chickens. Here's a potential use for the oregano that's trying to take over the planet from our yard.)

roadside daylilies

Photo by J. Harrington

Day lilies are beginning to flower. We have some wild strawberries and raspberries that we're trying to avoid mowing or pulling in hopes we'll be able to harvest some fruits.

The male Baltimore oriole shows up at the grape feeder. Hummingbirds are using all three feeders, joined on occasion by orioles and downy woodpeckers.

Blueflag (wild iris) and swamp milkweed, plants we started a few years ago around the back yard "wet spot," and thought had been lost, are now blooming (flag) and coming into flower (milkweed).

“Wild Strawberries”

- Shel Silverstein

Are Wild Strawberries really wild?
Will they scratch an adult, will they snap at a child?
Should you pet them, or let them run free where they roam?
Could they ever relax in a steam heated home?
Can they be trained to not growl at the guests?
Will a litterbox work or would they leave a mess?
Can we make them a Cowberry, herding the cows,
Or maybe a Muleberry pulling the plows,
Or maybe a Huntberry chasing the grouse,
Or maybe a Watchberry guarding the house,
And though they may curl up at your feet oh so sweetly,
Can you ever feel that you trust them completely?
Or should we make a pet out of something less scary,
Like the Domestic Prune, or the Imported Cherry,
Anyhow, you’ve been warned and I will not be blamed
If your Wild Strawberry cannot be tamed.

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