My curmudgeonly tendency got away from me again. I set out for a walk downtown getting ready to write one of my autumnal rants against leaf blowers. I headed for the county courthouse where a large amount of gasoline-burning machinery comes out of hiding once a week to ruin the view in the name of improving it. I refer to the practice of blowing the fallen leaves into piles then vacuuming them up and transporting them to some out-of-sight, out-of-mind place. I got to the lawn in time to see a few beautiful leaves of Sweetgum and Maple on the ground of which the above photo is but a sample.
I headed down Jackson Street, destination undecided, and found a beautiful Hollyhock in someone's front yard just West of the school district office. I generally don't bother with cultivated flowers in my writing and photography, but there are a couple of species that got into my blood as a child and Hollyhocks are one of them.
The seed packets seem well-designed, even though they were not designed. Click on the photo for a close-up in case you've never looked at one of these little packages. I've often popped them open and taken a few seeds with the intention of planting them. I've done this off and on my whole life, but never have actually planted one. I've put quite a few through the laundry in my pockets, though.
Asters are among the blooming flowers still hanging on despite a few frosty mornings. On this hot afternoon, a Skipper is enjoying this one as a landing pad and probably a meal. Skippers are a kind of cross between butterflies and moths.
Klamathweed also hangs on well into fall. And here a honey bee is managing to get a little nourishment even though the plant is mostly dried up.
I spent a little time on the western end of Jackson, poking around the remaining blooms of Tansy, hoping to find some Ambush Bugs, Crab Spiders, or Grasshoppers. The only bug I found was this little Jumping Spider. Each flower head is only about 1/4" in diameter, so you can see the spider is only about half that. I'm not positive it was a jumping spider as it jumped the instant I clicked the shutter.
All in all, an enjoyable walk, and I will post a few other photos from it later. I've kind of lost the urge to finish writing the rant. However, the next time I see all that machinery blasting away the beautiful leaves, I'll be ready.
Joe,
ReplyDeleteAnd sad it is that things like hollyhocks and lilac bushes have earned the onus of being much too "grandmother-ish" and have fallen out of fashion. Perhaps they are too stinky for modern fans of the cultivated yard. Or perhaps the moderns don't like the penchant these two share of not needing much of the human hand after they pop up. Idaho's abandoned farmhouses are always host to giant lilacs and random hollyhocks, usually smack up against a weathered chicken coop with a near terminal lean to the leeward.
I think many humans have a similar view of children. Can't stand the ones who seem to be able to get along fine without adult guidance (i. e., continual control). To me, weeds are role models of self-sufficiency. Lilacs and Hollyhocks share that trait with weeds.
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