Wednesday, October 31, 2012

The Fulcrum.........


My dad made this wheelbarrow to use as a planter. It it all wood and heavy so I really can't use it to transport leaves. I didn't want to send it to the landfill just yet and I think I should be able to get a few good years from it.

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Sedum Shot.........


My sedum really never recovered from our summer weather.  I had a batch of red sedum that never turned red.  Instead they looked like they were going to turn to the color of red,  then turned to the color of brown.  The four simple blooms give off a meager expression on a plant that should be so robust.



Monday, October 29, 2012

The Last One.........


I pulled the entire patch and two of the plants were still blooming.  They were late bloomers but it was time to get them out of the ground.




They didn't last very long in the house but I got a good shot of them in the kitchen window.

Sunday, October 28, 2012

Red Bud Tree.....


I trimmed the lower branches of this red bud as it was blocking the view out of the window.  I took a lot of it off of the bottom and it still looks good.  The leaves are now mostly gone on the top of this tree and just a few leaves staying on the branches around the bottom. The photo was taken on a sunny day and it really did increase the contrast between the branches and leaves.

Saturday, October 27, 2012

Saturday's Red......


The branch that looks more red than most is shown above.  I have two burning bushes planted with a dwarf mugo pine between them.  It works well except the bushes need to be trimmed back a little as they are crowding the pine.

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Ignoring the Freeze........


The morning glory refuses to die.  I bet Thursday night will be it's last night. 

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Wednesday.........


The garden gate roof is set off by the yellow leaves of the redbud tree.  

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

A Survivor......


While all the other stems of the zinnia plants have frozen and shriveled up I have two zinnia plants still alive.   I have never had a yellow zinnia all summer but this one is a small yellow bloom.


I see by the forecast that Thursday night we will have a hard freeze. This plant too will be gone.

Monday, October 22, 2012

In Case You Had Missed Me......

I am back!

Someone had figured out a way to get into my favorites list and add there blogs into my list.  I could not delete them because I had never selected them. They were not in my main menu of my account. Anyway, right after I had done my blogs this morning, blogspot shut me down. They had recognize that an outsider was working in my account unauthorized.

I had to give them a cell number that would call my voice mail and they gave me a verification number to reset my blogs.  They promised that they would not give out the number but I am not ever going to be sure about that. It was disheartening to read that I had been deleted but fortunately they have a great memory storage area as all is back as it was.

I am glad to be back!

Taking A Nap..........


As I needed more shots for blogging I was out and about looking for something to shoot.  I was struggling with the camera as the batteries were getting low.  I could shut the camera down then turn it on to get one quick shot before it would shut itself back down.  Our rechargeable battery device either is going bad or the rechargeables are wearing out.  I still have to solve that problem.

I was going to take shots of the mums one more time.  I was startled seeing something moving among the garden area and redtwig dogwood.  One of the neighbors feral cats, semi tame, was having a nap.  She was all curled up keeping nice and warm and really didn't want me to bother her.  

I know that I could not have petted her and I really didn't want to disturb her so I just shot a couple of pictures and walked away.  I call it my wildlife photo for the day.

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Sweep the Floor..........


The dogs continually bring in leaves to the house through the kitchen and into the living room.  One could sweep three times a day as the leaves cling to the dog while they are out in the backyard and fall off inside.

When you view Chinese paintings you see long swaying branches with the leaves individually painted on them with single brush strokes.  The birch tree in my front yard reminds me of those paintings as the leaves cling to the branches as if they had each been placed there showing great pattern and good design.



Those leaves in the photo are not on the branches anymore.  I will let things dry out and then I will need to mow and mulch in the next two weeks.

Friday, October 19, 2012

Barberry Colors......


The barberry really does have the look of an abstract painting.  The leaves turn so many different colors before they fall from their branches.  The little red berries seem to be overwhelmed by the multicolor leaves.



Thursday, October 18, 2012

Silver Maple Soars......


The tree is getting to be too big for our house's own good.  I need to take it down.  I have been a diehard activist to keep the very old trees.  The house is 108 years old and the silver maples are old too.  The trees are a part of the history of the town and of the property.

The tallest branch you see standing has withstood 70-80 mile an hour winds  from the west in 1987.  The tornado winds from the southwest didn't seem to phase it six years ago.  The two 20 year old pine trees were snapped off at their bases.  Trees are unpredictable and just when I think we are safe it will come down on our art studio.  Maybe next spring I can come to part with it.



Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Seeing Through........


The chokecherry tree has glowing leaves as the sun shines through them.  My dads windmill, no blades, seems to be leaning a little as we see it setting under the pear tree.

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

More Leaves.........


It is a good photo but I know that they are getting to be very over done in my selection of photos.  I came home to take photos after we were on an errand and it was dark.  So I have no new shots for today.


Monday, October 15, 2012

Leaning.........


I rarely if ever turn my camera to a 45 degrees to take a photo.  I guess I was wanting to get as much of the trunk as possible.  It does play with your balancing sense somewhat as you view it trying to make sense of what is there.  My maple tree is beautiful this fall and the trunk and branches add to that beauty.

Saturday, October 13, 2012

Saturday's Structure.....


It is the last of the vines for the fall.  The cold has taken them out leaving empty grids of wood.


Friday, October 12, 2012

The Fall Glow......


The nursing home has been closed for years but the area around it has been kept up with trees and shrubs looking great.  It is for sale as you can see by the sign under the tree.  The tornado took out the houses across the street a few years back but the nursing home stood strong and sound.

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Floating on Leaves.....


The concrete swan sits in the yard waiting for the snow.  I brought this him from my mom's front steps.  I do not know anything about it. She must have bought it at a garage sale or a friend pushed it her way.  It is unusual as it is so heavy and is difficult to move around.  I may move it under the shed roof to give it a little protection but I will not be carrying it to the basement.

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

A Day to Reflect.........



I looked down at the pond and saw the ash tree creating a great pattern in the water.  I have removed all of the fish getting the pond ready for winter.  Have a great Wednesday.

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

An Iowa Ditch............


While visiting friends north of where we live a few miles, we were able to take a hike around their property.  They have built a compact home and an artist studio on 14 acres of land that is near the Des Moines River area. They planted a prairie on a farm field right next to their house.

This photo shows the diversity of our landforms in Iowa. This is a ditch or large ravine that cuts through the back of their property. It cuts through the whole length of their property.  The deer love to live back in here.  When it rains the overflow will travel down the ravine but on a normal day their is no spring to feed the stream bed.


The glacier movement that formed Iowa cut many deep areas in our land.  We have a lot of flat land but it is broken up with these kind of areas near our rivers.  If you remember from a past photo, of a few years back, southern Iowa has rolling hills and deep ditches. The photo above shows those landforms.  I always like to drive by this area on the interstate as there are always cows grazing on the hills.

Monday, October 8, 2012

Front Steps.......


The hydrangea that had turned green is white again as it ages for it's final showing.  I can't believe how one stray sprig of this plant has spred and become tall and overgrown on the right side of my porch.  I need to trim it back so that the entrance to the front door won't be blocked.

As a footnote, at  the house in which I dug my one stray sprig of hydrangea, the owners have now removed all of their bushes from the front of their porch and replaced them with conifer shrubs and lots of red mulch.  There is not a sight of hydrangea at that house anymore. The house is for sale again.



Sunday, October 7, 2012

A Fallen Beauty.........


The leaves are starting to fall and this one has tried to blend in with the sidewalk.  After I took the shot I noticed the textures on the leaf itself made it look transparent as if one could see through it.


Saturday, October 6, 2012

Pin Oak in the Fall


It is a gentle turn of color as the pin oak leaves start to redden their outer edges, 

Friday, October 5, 2012

Autumn Sky.........


The silver maple has started to turn color getting ready for its fall showing.  It will take it a long time to turn completely yellow.  It will be the last tree to drop it's leaves in early November. Our sky color gets to be a deeper blue in the fall as the earth tilts away from the sun.  We had a cold night last night and it will be colder tonight.

Thursday, October 4, 2012

Petunia Patterns


The fall has helped these flowers to perk up and put out fresh color.  The darker pink ones didn't bloom most of the summer. They will be glad to have our light sprinkles this morning. Colder weather is on our way and I will have to bring this in for a few days to keep them going.

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Wild Rose.........


The wild rose doesn't bloom for a very long time period but it does keep putting out different colors all three seasons.  The summer green is great but by fall I get these great yellow leaves with red specks.  Then the stems eventually turn red for the winter.
One small item as a center of interest isn't always the best for a good composition and yet in this case it so unusual that there is just one rose hip.  It makes it into a photo of interest because of it being so isolated.

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Across the Street.......


We will have the colors of fall this year.  We have not had this kind of color for a couple of years. It will be a welcomed change.  This is my neighbor's maple that has changed color in the past few days.

Monday, October 1, 2012

Staying Alive.......


The oxalis that I planted outside early this summer seemed to have disappeared. It had died down and looked like I had lost the planting.  With a few small rains weeks ago I see that it did survive the weather.  Leaves and blooms shot up and it looks healthy. I need to get it planted back into it's pot and bring it in for it's winter vacation.

Blurry Blue Cup Day.....

 It is Monday and I am a little blurry eyed today. It is fitting then my blue cup is blurred a little because it is in low light. I was too ...