Pictures from the Morning Hike

My yard is a bit unusual, lying in three counties and two time zones, and having over 800 feet of elevation change from bottom to top. This makes it hard to see it all on the morning survey.

Spring rewards the observant, not only with the opportunity to witness the transformation of a drab little olive brown bird into the stunning goldfinch, but with an ever changing array of wildflowers.

This week I have been amazed at how complicated the flowers on buckeyes are.


This plant grows as a shrub and a tree, though finding a buckeye big enough to make bread bowls, like mountain folks used to do, is rare these days. Most of the buckeye bowls I see are antiques.

Another little beauty, whether it is blooming or not, is the round lobed hepatica. I feel like I found an easter egg, everytime I spot a new one growing somewhere.

In looking at the pictures I was surprised to see something like pollen floating in the air above the center of this plant. It took me a while to see the tiny spider that had built the delicate web that anchored on a leaf near the center of this plant.

Every place and thing is a community.

Peace,

Steve