Our Giving Tree

When I first starting thinking about this blog post, I thought the story was going to be about white-tailed deer.

Specifically, about the white-tailed deer which have been eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner in our yard lately (and most likely some mid-night snacks!)

Doe eating apples for breakfast

Young buck eating lunch

The more I thought about it though, I decided the story really should be about what is drawing them to this spot... the apple tree.

It's been here 'forever' as far as I'm concerned.   Thirty-six years -- the number of years I've been living in this beautiful spot, and who knows how many years before that.  Maybe it grew from a seed from an apple that someone who lived in the long-gone farmhouse tossed there.

Over those years, our apple tree's strength has held up a hammock for our family; and its shade made it a comfortable spot to spend a relaxing afternoon.

Ruby even enjoyed it back in her pup days before she became a Phd.  If you missed the story about Ruby's Phd, you can click here.

My girls enjoyed swinging in the hammock as kids and still did after they grew into adults!

Even though it didn't even get to be in the photos with the hammock it supported, it has been a backdrop for many family photos over the years.

Including this one that was taken of me in a snowstorm to send to our Compassion kids in the tropics. I wanted to show them what snow looks like, how we dress for it, and the snowshoes I wear to go for a walk when it gets deep!

Our apple tree has provided shelter for birds and their nests in spring, as well as a stop-over on their way to our feeders in winter.

Male and female cardinals

 I don't have any idea how many containers of applesauce I've made over the years from its early yellow-transparent type apples.  And, apple pies....  delicious!  (one is sitting on my kitchen counter right now - the second one I've made recently, because my husband and I ate the first one in less than 24 hours!) 

The apple tree has survived many storms, including the one in September 2010 that knocked many leaves off but didn't bring any of its limbs down.

Yes, that's hail on the ground with all the leaves it tore off the trees!

 Which is pretty amazing, really, because even though on this side its trunk looks fine...

 the back side of it reveals a different situation:

 A look directly down shows how hollow it is!

That apple fell in there all by itself!

Shel Silverstein's children's book, 'The Giving Tree' always makes me cry and I have a feeling that someday, if our giving tree topples over, I might shed a few tears as well.  Meanwhile, I'll be thankful for it and enjoy the things it provides.  I think, so will the deer!

"These apples are the BEST!" (talking with his mouth full!)

 

Dr. Ruby's Research Method

Today Dr. Ruby would like to share her method for exploring God's beautiful creation.  She says, "It's all in the nose".  You might think with her wonderful, long ears that it would be more about hearing, but you would be wrong.  It's definitely her sense of smell that wins out.

 It's also not her vision, which might be pretty good, it's just that at her lowly vantage point there can be problems!

It might look like she saw the rabbit in the next photo... but she didn't have a clue until she walked over there after it ran away and smelled its' trail.

 She didn't see the white-tailed deer in this photo either:

In the photo it might be hard to see the deer (it's in the tall grass at the top of the path) but in person it was pretty obvious.  To me, at least, if not to Ruby.

 In the previous photo, Ruby was just pausing to wait for me.  Then the deer realized we were there and ran away.

"Ruby, there was a deer!  Oh? Maybe next time I'll see it Grammy."

Some times Ruby follows animal trails that I can see...

but mostly not.  Her nose is always alert and quivering though, so I know when she is onto something.  The only way to show you is in a video...

So even though she missed seeing this flock of bobolinks on our walk this morning--

 I'm sure Ruby smelled more things than I can even imagine.

Here's another short video of her sniffing skills in the woods! 

Ruby and I hope you enjoy seeing her skills in action.

Royalty... my exclusive report

It's a girl!  Her name is Queen Anne.

Isn't she lovely?
Her full name is Queen Anne's Lace (Daucus carota).
Royals do tend to have long names.
This queen does not live in a castle though.  She prefers the common life along roadsides and similar dry poor soils.

 She is not a native to this land, but she has done very well here.  She has even produced our vegetable plant, the carrot.  One of her other names is Wild Carrot.  She comes from the Parsley family.
Here are some carrot plants...

You can see how similar their leaves are in the next photo.

Queen Anne's Lace leaf on the right,  Carrot on the left

There are several legends about Queen Anne's Lace.  They say the flower was named after Queen Anne who was excellent at making lace, but pricked her finger with the needle and that is why some of the flowers have a single dark floret in the middle (it's a drop of her blood).  Here's a link to a website that tells in more detail some of the legends of Queen Anne's Lace.

You can see the 'drop of blood' in the center of this one.  It's also a special pinkish flower.  Out of many, many Queen Anne's Lace flowers, there will be just a few that are pink.

When I was a young girl, my first flower garden was for a 4-H club project.  One of the things 4-H projects teach you is to keep good records.  

  
I remember going with my mom to a greenhouse to pick out plants for my garden.  The greenhouse owner was all excited about some plants he had that were supposed to be Blue Queen Anne's Lace.  We bought some (5 according to my records!) and I planted them in my garden.  Here I am watering them in!

I did not usually dress like that to work in my garden... I was probably ready to go to church.  I think this must have been a posed photo for my 4-H book!

Here's a photo of my garden later that summer.  

Too bad we can't see the Blue Queen Anne's Lace better (they are the rather thin-looking plants in the back row).  Apparently they didn't catch on, as I've never seen them for sale again!

Queen Anne can artificially color her 'hair' though.  

 A little food coloring and a few hours is all it takes!
But I think she is gorgeous just the way God made her.

Even when her blossums start to dry and curl into a birds nest shape, she is still pretty.

Congratulations to the other Royal family in the news today; to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on the birth of their first child, who-- by the way, is a boy!  Just in case you haven't heard!


 

Heat Wave Haiku

Too hot for words
I’ll try something new

photos, Haiku

Creatures with wings
and creatures without
brighten hot days

Blue Dasher dragonfly

Glistening dragons
or are they damsels?
pause a moment

Shade beckons me
take a closer look
hop! tiny toad 

American Toad

Brilliant ‘sally’
not too far away
friends? not, I’d say

Red Eft Salamander

Garden surprise
where did you come from?
welcome to stay

Garter Snake

Summer colors
gracefully flutter
soon will be gone

Pearl Crescent

Breeze to ease
sultry days passing
too soon winter 

Cabbage White

Eastern Pondhawk

I'd like to thank my brother for his help with the identification of the butterflies and dragonflies!

And the winners for "Most Cheerful" are....

Mr. and Mrs. Goldie!!!

Male American Goldfinch (left) and female (right)

Their prize is all the sunflower seeds they can eat!

Lest you think this is only a beauty pageant,  let me tell you more about how these birds won "Most Cheerful" in this scholarship program.  Obviously, the most points in the cheerfulness category are for personality. 

The Goldfinches possess numerous qualifications to win this.  As singers they are quite merry, whether they are perched or flying.  Seeing our goldfinches flying along... rising and dipping thru the air while they sing "per-chic-o-ree" with each dip-- is a real lift to my spirit anytime I watch them.   You can listen to goldfinches singing here.

Another quality the judge admires is their contentment.  The Goldies don't mind our harsh winter.  They don't migrate south when the going gets tough.

January 17th - two Goldfinches and a House Finch

Flock of goldfinches on February 13th

They don't mind being part of a large flock and sharing the seeds!  This is a mixed flock of males and females.  The male only has his bright yellow color in the spring and summer (they molt twice a year in spring and fall).

Another personality trait which probably helps with their cheerfulness is that they just do things on their own timetable.  While the rest of the birds are frantically building their nests and raising their young in early spring....

Baltimore Orioles and nest

Baby Oriole learning that grape jelly is Mmmm, mmmmm good!

House Wren with food for the babies inside the box.

While the woodpeckers were trying to show their big babies how to eat suet...

Baby on the left, Mama on the right

...the Goldie family was just enjoying themselves and waiting for the right time to start their family.  They waited until they knew there was soft thistle down to line the nest, as well as that there would be plenty of ripe seeds to feed the babies when they were born.

July 10th, female Goldfinch on Canada Thistle, collecting nest material

Sorry for the fence in front of her! I waited in a better spot to try for more photos but she didn't come back.

Off she goes!  I've been looking for their nest but haven't found it so far.

Of course, no one is perfect, and the judge must say that Mrs. Goldie might be an over-achieving nest builder since she has read that the nest is built so tightly by Mama Goldie that it can actually hold water!

One of the qualities that God gave these lovely birds is how they help each other out as parents.  The male helps his mate find a great spot for their home.  He lets the female build the nest by herself (as a perfectionist she probably prefers it that way!).  But then as she sits on the eggs to incubate them, he serves her all her meals and also brings all the food for her and their babies for the first few days of their lives!  

"Birds at Home" by Marguerite Henry (left) and "A Field Guide to Birds' Nests (right)

If you would like to learn more about the "Most Cheerful" winners, you can read a great 'biography' of them by clicking here. 

Now for your pleasure here are a few more photos.

Male Goldfinch

Female Goldfinch

Do you agree with this judge with my pick for "Most Cheerful"?