Last year I removed an ecologically useless boxwood which left a bare patch. I threw seeds and compost there over a period. In the spring when things started to grow there I made a very crude stick fence to keep the deer out which mostly worked. There will be some Helianthus tuberosa in there to harvest after everything dies.
Like these two hummingbirds here. Probably Archilochus colubris. Fence keeps the deer out. Rabbits not so much. We trade beans and kale for rabbit meat sometimes.
North Americans, let's hear your attitudes towards this non-native bee. Do you treat them as an honored guest, as an invasive species best eliminated, or somewhere in between?
This is a little cluster I found growing under Autumn Olive. I did not pick it. I've never had puffball. Please share useful knowledge you may have about finding/harvesting/consuming puffball.
The angle of the light made this feature particularly noticeable and I wonder about its significance.
Deer everywhere, invasive plants, ticks, and so much beauty.
Eastern species that looks very similar to the very similar but probably better-known Thimbleberry. Didn't get the opportunity to taste this one. Does anyone here have the good fortune of being able to browse this species regularly? I have only seen it in a wilderness area.
These can shelter beneficial insects and preserve the ecological integrity of your food garden.
Baccilus thuringiensis is essential for preventing cabbage worms from eating the apical meristem.
Gorgeous plant I'm lucky enough to have naturally in abundance. Looks similar to common milkweed but slimmer and more fibrous.
The lettuce needs a good bath after I harvest to get all the slugs out. Kind of cool that my food garden is such great habitat, but I'm not trying to eat these guys.
Presumed to be Camponotus pennsylvanicus. Lots of queens. Not sure where the drones are.
Wish me luck untangling the roots
Make good habitat and they will come.
Not confident enough to ID species, but it's a Smilax. Very much preferred over English Ivy or Japanese Honeysuckle.
Especially if you pee on it. They want sodium and other elements and molecules found in soil, dung, and compost. This type of forage behavior is called "puddling".