# Post your spring 2011 photos here!



## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Most of us Kindle Boarders in the northern hemisphere are thoroughly sick of winter and more than ready for spring. As a Kindle Boarder in the southern part of the northern hemisphere, I might be one of the first to sight harbingers--and I did, on March 1st. Be of good cheer! Spring has begun!

(To those Kindle Boarders in the southern hemisphere, may your winter be less horrible than ours was.)

Here are some signs of early spring in my yard as of yesterday. If only you could have been there and heard the bees buzzing....

Huisache daisies:









The first bluebonnet (state flower of Texas):









An eager monarch (I think)


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## John Hamilton (May 6, 2010)

Nice shots!  I'm afraid up here in MN we have a few more weeks of winter to endure before we can post anything warm-looking.


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

I am so jealous. EVERY night (I'm serious - every single night) I dream about spring coming and running outside with my camera. It's currently 13F here and snowing. I want it to warm up sooo badly. I feel like it's never going to come.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

I know, I know. I feel your chillblains. Daughter #2 flew down from Detroit last weekened. The plane had to be de-iced before it could leave. But waiting on the curb at the San Antonio airport, she had to strip off her heavy socks so as not to swelter. It was 80º the day she headed back, and it snowed the next day. Our "hard" winter was short and mild by comparison; I should be embarrassed to complain. 

We did this spring photo thing at Kindle Boards last year too. Once it got rolling you could see the flowers and thaws moving north day by day. We should end up carpeted with wildflowers which will dry up and go to seed by the time spring really sets in up north. Kinda neat!

Hang in there, guys.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Here's one of our first Indian paintbrushes (or Indian pinks, as some call them). They were thick last spring, but I'm not sure we've had enough rain over the winter to bring up a thick carpet of them. Stay tuned. A friend 120 miles north has reported sighting a few wildflowers. It could happen!


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

This is a cross-post, but it embodies the end of winter and approach of spring where I live.

A friend's daughter took this photo of geese taking off from water near our wildlife refuge. I've lived here almost 40 years, and have never seen as many geese in one place as I have in the past couple of weeks. (I apologize in advance for the size of the photos, but wanted you to see both the distant view and an enlarged photo.) Check this out:










Here it is large enough that you can actually see the geese:


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Yikes! Each one weighs what, 20 pounds? That's like a herd of elephants flying through the air! Stunning!


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

BrassMan said:


> Yikes! Each one weighs what, 20 pounds? That's like a herd of elephants flying through the air! Stunning!


That was my thinking, too. You'd think I'd be used to geese after living here all these years, but I have never seen anything like this. (Our little town used to have the nickname "Home of the Honkers." As thrilled as I am that no one calls it that any longer, I can certainly see where the nickname got its start.)


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Cindy416 said:


> That was my thinking, too. You'd think I'd be used to geese after living here all these years, but I have never seen anything like this. (Our little town used to have the nickname "Home of the Honkers." As thrilled as I am that no one calls it that any longer, I can certainly see where the nickname got its start.)


I just had lunch with an ornithologist friend. He said geese are mostly feathers, and might weigh four pounds or so. Still, that's an elephant or two up there.


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

BrassMan said:


> I just had lunch with an ornithologist friend. He said geese are mostly feathers, and might weigh four pounds or so. Still, that's an elephant or two up there.


I didn't actually think they weighed 20 lbs., as my husband has shot a few over the years, and I remember that goose breasts don't weigh a lot, but with all of those birds up there at once, there surely had to be the equivalent of a couple of pachyderms up there.


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## William Meikle (Apr 19, 2010)

Nope - no spring here. Still a foot of snow in the yard, and it's snowing again now.

Willie, in Newfoundland


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## Amy Corwin (Jan 3, 2011)

Spring has sprung here and the first wave of daffodils is already over!
I'm just waiting, now, for the crabapples and other trees to bloom!


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

WOW, that geese photo is amazing! I've never seen anything like that.


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

Jessica Billings said:


> WOW, that geese photo is amazing! I've never seen anything like that.


My husband has been out of town, and I showed him the photo as soon as he unpacked. He looked at it, shrugged, and said that we see that many geese often and can't understand why I am so impressed with it. That got me to thinking, and I realized that I probably have seen that many at once, but it's always been in relationship to a wide-open sky above the geese. This photo, having nothing but thousands of geese, makes the scene much more dramatic than it is in "the wild." Even with that said, I still love the photo, and am glad that my friend chose to share it.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Here's a mountain laurel, a small, hardy native tree. The blooms smell like grape bubble gum, though the moth might think differently. The yuccas are slow to bloom--not enough winter rain--but they'll come out fast.


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

I've heard of mountain laurel, but have never seen it. It's beautiful and looks very much like spring.


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Cute moth! It's still snowing here.  27 degrees, oh joy. I just hope I can move somewhere warm in a couple months when I'm done with school!


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Spring is thoroughly sprung in south Texas. Here's the wisteria over the patio coming on strong, and then some huisache daisies, which are plentiful this year if not thick. Someone send rain!


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

So beautiful! Still snowing here. It's not even supposed to get out of the teens today. I heard about an amazing meadow for taking insect pictures, so I'm really really hoping spring hits before I have to leave here!


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

Beautiful photos, Al! The close-up of the wisteria is gorgeous, and I'm amazed at the size of that wisteria growing over the archway. It's lovely! (The daisies are very "springy," too.)


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Cindy416 said:


> Beautiful photos, Al! The close-up of the wisteria is gorgeous, and I'm amazed at the size of that wisteria growing over the archway. It's lovely! (The daisies are very "springy," too.)


That's actually 8 or 10 wisterias, in two rows, to cover the patio and shade the front of the house. We had acres of daisies last spring, but only patches this spring. Here's another patch.

Our DD in Michigan had a spring snowstorm yesterday. She said it was 25º this morning. Brrr!


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Well, spring has pretty much sprung here, I'm sorry to say. It didn't last long (no rain). Re the wisteria in post #17 above, this is what we had Tuesday:










On the other hand, DD#1 reported driving home through snow the same day (in PA). The good news is that most of you in the rest of the U.S. still have spring to look forward to, or at least I hope so. Some pictures would be nice!


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## BlueEyedMum (Nov 26, 2009)

Still waiting for Spring here...I can see the grass is starting to turn green though so hopefully soon.


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Well, it's been in the 40s and sunny the past few days, so I thought spring was finally here, but the weather decided to pull one last trick on me and dump a bunch of snow today. Unfortunately, it looks like I wasn't the only one that got caught unaware!










I just hope they don't freeze overnight!


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## Amy Corwin (Jan 3, 2011)

Our daffodils have come and gone and now it's azalea time!








Wisteria, too!


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## geoffthomas (Feb 27, 2009)

My hyacinths are not as robust as usual.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

geoffthomas said:


> My hyacinths are not as robust as usual.


Yeah, here too our wildflowers have only put in a token appearance. We've had to help spring along with our own stuff.


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## Jeff (Oct 28, 2008)

Here's one from last spring to hold my place.










If the wind ever stops blowing I'll go out and take some new ones.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Jeff said:


> Here's one from last spring to hold my place.
> 
> If the wind ever stops blowing I'll go out and take some new ones.


A place holder! Good idea! Last weekend we drove up north a bit, to Schulenburg, and the wildflowers looked a lot better. Must've had more rain. Maybe up where you are, Jeff, they're better still. If so, please post some!


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## CocoaDragonfly (Apr 4, 2011)

Tulips at the edge of our woods. I forget what these are. I got the bulbs on clearance at Menards 3 years ago. They don't last long and stay close to the ground.


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## Tippy (Dec 8, 2008)

Beautiful photos.  Brassman, your flowers are amazing.  The geese, stunning.  I was at my mother's this weekend.  There are no flowers, but the trees are beginning to get buds.  The blackbirds are back, singing in their gypsy chorus.  I saw a blue heron and sandhill cranes.  They always say the sandhill cranes precede a storm.  Thursday and Friday 6-8 inches of snow are predicted with nasty winds.  I am soooooo sick of winter, snow and being cold.  Come quickly spring, and bring your glorious colors.  I long for the scent of lilacs in the air.


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## Carol (was Dara) (Feb 19, 2011)

Wow, these flower pics are all so beautiful I'm tempted (almost) to try my hand at gardening again.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Happy cattle is another sign of spring. If it doesn't rain soon, though, these cattle won't be so happy--they'll be waiting for someone to bring them some hay. The leaves overhead are from a mesquite tree. The mesquites are always late to come out; they mean spring is basically finished. Sigh. But it's good news for those of you to the north.


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

BrassMan said:


> Happy cattle is another sign of spring. If it doesn't rain soon, though, these cattle won't be so happy--they'll be waiting for someone to bring them some hay. The leaves overhead are from a mesquite tree. The mesquites are always late to come out; they mean spring is basically finished. Sigh. But it's good news for those of you to the north.


Spring is finished It only arrived 3 weeks or so ago. Say it isn't so. (I live up north a bit, but I want spring.) I do have to say that the trees and shrubs are beginning to be beautiful. If we can go another week or two without high winds and/or hard winds, we should be able to keep the beauty around a bit longer.


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## Jeff (Oct 28, 2008)

Well, I went out with a camera this morning but the usual fields were very sparse so I'll post a few that I took last year.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Super lovely!

There are pages of archival ones from last spring on the Boards here: http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,21422.0.html.

Makes it obvious how sad it is this spring....


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## Jeff (Oct 28, 2008)

BrassMan said:


> Makes it obvious how sad it is this spring....


I've had my head down all spring trying to complete some work in progress and was very disappointed at how poor the wildflower showing is this year. Let's hope the early summer flowers make a better showing.


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## CocoaDragonfly (Apr 4, 2011)

Thanks Jeff for the Indian Paintbrush and Bluebonnets  I lived in Yoakum TX for a few years as a kid and just loved them. Too bad they won't grow here in Indiana!


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

The wildlife is finally returning here! A little muskrat (I think) came out of the water to greet me today.


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

Figured I'd post this here, too. (I originally posted it in my R.I.P. Noggin thread.) It's one of the two dogwood trees in my yard.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Glorious!


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## Tippy (Dec 8, 2008)

BrassMan said:


> Happy cattle is another sign of spring. If it doesn't rain soon, though, these cattle won't be so happy--they'll be waiting for someone to bring them some hay. The leaves overhead are from a mesquite tree. The mesquites are always late to come out; they mean spring is basically finished. Sigh. But it's good news for those of you to the north.


My husband is finished calving, finally. The calves are so cute. He has a pair of twins. They have the longest eyelashes. Last weekend I saw a colt laying in the pasture sunning itself. I love the babies.


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

I went out and took some more pictures today. Spring is coming very slowly to the midwest!


















Chipping Sparrow


















Swallow in flight


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Love 'em, Jessica! Neat birds. I must try to shoot one out of the sky myself some day.


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## hodad66 (May 9, 2011)




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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

hodad66 said:


>


Lovely! Depth of field is right on!

Here are some springy barn swallows, first unzoomed, and then zoomed.


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## hodad66 (May 9, 2011)

love those birds.... wish that we had them here


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

hodad66 said:


> love those birds.... wish that we had them here


Some people don't like the mud nests under their eaves. We don't mind. We have bird feeders but these guys eat insects, which is just fine with us. I should have posted the in between zoom. Thanks again to R. Doug, who recommended the camera (a shirt pocket-size model).


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

I went hiking with my dad yesterday at Catherine Creek in Washington. Here are a few pics I took.


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## Someone Nameless (Jul 12, 2009)

Amateur here, but first shots with the new camera today.


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## drenfrow (Jan 27, 2010)

Unfortunately, this is a sign of Spring around my house. I put my foot 6 inches away from this guy last night. First one I've seen this year.


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

drenfrow said:


> Unfortunately, this is a sign of Spring around my house. I put my foot 6 inches away from this guy last night. First one I've seen this year.


Yikes! Did you hear him rattle? I'd have had a heart attack!


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## drenfrow (Jan 27, 2010)

He never rattled.  He was actually asleep as I walked by him.  We would never shoot a snake away from the house, but if they get into the house territory we kill them.  This was a few feet from the front door.  Of course my husband was out of town and I am a terrible shot.   My dogs were three feet behind me and were traumatized by the gunshots.  They both spent the night on the bed with me. (55 and 70 lbs.!)  I am always watching out for rattlesnakes but it is truly frightening seeing one.  I didn't get to sleep for awhile!


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

drenfrow said:


> He never rattled. He was actually asleep as I walked by him. We would never shoot a snake away from the house, but if they get into the house territory we kill them. This was a few feet from the front door. Of course my husband was out of town and I am a terrible shot.  My dogs were three feet behind me and were traumatized by the gunshots. They both spent the night on the bed with me. (55 and 70 lbs.!) I am always watching out for rattlesnakes but it is truly frightening seeing one. I didn't get to sleep for awhile!


I'm sure it was extremely unnerving. I find snakes to be fascinating, but I don't want them anywhere around where I walk or live. (My brother is a herpetologist, and he traumatized me beyond belief when we were growing up. We even had a Gaboon viper in a wire-reinforced cage in our basement when we were in high school and college.) I love to watch snakes in zoos, and seldom miss tv shows dealing with them, but as much as I love the southwest part of the U.S. (I'm assuming that's where you live, but I know I could be wrong), I'd be scared silly if I lived there. I'd also would have had a terrible time letting my daughters play outside when they were little. Stay safe, carry a gun, and drag your dogs along with you at all times.


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Well it's not quite summer yet, so I'll post a few more pictures I took today!

Eastern Tent Caterpillar:









Grasshopper:









Twelve-Spotted Skimmer Dragonfly (female):









Hoverfly:









Leafhopper:









I'm not 100% on all the identifications, so correct me if I'm wrong!!


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

A few more photos from today:

Summer Azure Butterfly:









Damselfly:









I think I'm going to have to find somewhere new to take pictures though, I keep getting bit by ticks.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Gorgeous photos! Better bitten by ticks than rattlesnakes....

How hot is it down south? A wee demo of osmotic pressure: morning, June 12, afternoon June 12, and morning, June 13:


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Cobbie said:


> Ahhh....so that's the scientific term as to why my flowers sometime look like jack-in-the-boxes.


I'd better insert a disclaimer: that was something I remembered from college biology, decades ago. Jessica is the credentialed scientist here....


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Haha yep, it's osmosis. Water moves pretty freely in and out of plant cells so when the cells lose their turgor pressure and get kind of spongey, the plants wilt. I love that word, turgor.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Jessica Billings said:


> Haha yep, it's osmosis. Water moves pretty freely in and out of plant cells so when the cells lose their turgor pressure and get kind of spongey, the plants wilt. I love that word, turgor.


Great word! The next question is where does the water go? Does it evaporate? Go back down the plant to be saved for later? The cactacae are famously tight with their water, but I bet Gerber daisies lose it to the air. If I didn't water that plant every couple days in this heat, it would surely shrivel up and die.


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

BrassMan said:


> Great word! The next question is where does the water go? Does it evaporate? Go back down the plant to be saved for later? The cactacae are famously tight with their water, but I bet Gerber daisies lose it to the air. If I didn't water that plant every couple days in this heat, it would surely shrivel up and die.


I'm really not much of a plant person, but I know they use some of it for photosynthesis, so it gets turned into glucose and oxygen. Some of it definitely evaporates too. I remember that there are several different types of photosynthesis and some of them are more water-conserving (the cactus) than others, but I can't tell you too much more than that, haha.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Jessica Billings said:


> I'm really not much of a plant person, but I know they use some of it for photosynthesis, so it gets turned into glucose and oxygen. Some of it definitely evaporates too. I remember that there are several different types of photosynthesis and some of them are more water-conserving (the cactus) than others, but I can't tell you too much more than that, haha.


Gak! The Kreb's citric acid cycle? I made a C in that dang class (but I did fine in English). 

OK. Back to spring....


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Okay, here are the pics from my daily walk! I actually nearly ran into some deer today. I was walking along, looking at the ground when I heard a loud snort. I glanced up and saw two deer run off. Might have gotten some cool pictures if I had been paying attention!

Forktail damselfly with mites, I believe:









Grass skipper feeding on a clover:


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Well I wasn't able to take any photos yesterday because it was raining and cloudy, but this evening was much nicer. 3 Dragonflies/damselflies for today:

Spreadwing Damselfly









Twelve-Spotted Skimmer Dragonfly (male)









Widow Skimmer Dragonfly (female)


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

Since Jessica is on a "bug" kick, I'll throw in a spider. I take spiders on an individual basis. Some, I hate, but I like jeweled garden spiders, which are good guys. These, from a wetter spring, stay around for weeks and weeks, and do their part to reduce the count of more irritating bugs. Cobbie, these were with my earlier camera.


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## lcook0825 (Jul 16, 2010)

I was going to put a photo here but can't figure out how to get it here.


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## lcook0825 (Jul 16, 2010)

My favorite tree in the spring.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)

lcook0825 said:


> My favorite tree in the spring.


I don't wonder. What kind of tree is that?


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Nice spiders!!

Is that a Japanese maple? We used to have one of those, but it was much, much smaller. That's really beautiful.


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## geoffthomas (Feb 27, 2009)

lcook0825 said:


> My favorite tree in the spring.


It looks like a weeping lace-leaf (or spiderleaf) japanese maple.
We used to have one a lot larger in front of the kitchen.
I will look around for some hard-copy pics and scan them.....Indeed they are lovely and this pic is very nice - thanks for sharing it with us.


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## lcook0825 (Jul 16, 2010)

Yes it is a Japanese maple. It gets fuller every year.


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## ◄ Jess ► (Apr 21, 2010)

Few more pics for today!

Thunderstorm rolling in yesterday:


















Eastern Tiger Swallowtail flying around:









Same guy feeding on some flowers:









And a little Peck's Skipper waiting patiently for me to take a bunch of pictures:









The Peck's Skipper pic is actually made up of 12 photos, stitched together so more of it is in focus than is possible with one picture.


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## BrassMan (Dec 8, 2008)




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