Harvestman, take two

From this angle, his body looks a little lobster-like, doesn’t it?

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

 

Harvestmen (Phalangium opilio)

Harvestmen (Phalangium opilio), also known as daddy-long-legs, resemble spiders but they only two eyes and their bodies are in just one segment. They also do not spin threads or build webs and cannot produce venom. I think this particular specimen could be a “Red Harvestman,” because of its orange-reddish brown coloring and dark legs.

At Green Spring Gardens this afternoon, my eyes were first drawn to these bright purple petals against the chartreuse-colored sweet potato vine leaves in the background. After I got the tripod set up to get my first shots, I saw a stick poking out the right side of the flower. It turns out it wasn’t a stick—it was an appendage. The critter eventually made his way around the front of the flower (See there? Sometime wishing really hard does make it so!) and I pursued him like the horticultural paparazzi that I am. I’m not sure what the flower is—perhaps some kind of Aster? I’ll do some research and update this post later.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Fall in Virginia

Since I haven’t been able to get my bounty of fall photos this year, I’ve made a collage of my favorite images from the past three years. These were all shot in various parts of Virginia, including my own neighborhood. Enjoy!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Re-post: Japanese Anemone ‘Honorine Jobert’

Previously published August 31, 2008

…otherwise known as a “Japanese anemone.” The common name for this plant is “windflower,” and if you have ever tried to photograph this plant when there is a breeze, you’ll find windflower an appropriate name! Another common name is thimbleweed.

‘Honorine Jobert’ is a vigorous, mounding, compact Japanese anemone hybrid best grown in zones 4-8. It was discovered in Verdun, France in 1858. This herbaceous perennial from the Ranunculaceae family reaches 3-4 feet high and spreads 1.5 to 2 feet. The beautiful 2″ snow white flowers bloom from August through September and the plant likes full sun to part shade. Low maintenance and easily grown in average, well-drained soil, ‘Honorine Jobert’ does best in part shade to protect it from wind. Once established, the suckering shoots will spread, so plant it where it has room to grow. Divide in early spring or autumn or take root cuttings in the spring.

Summer for thee, grant I may be

Summer for thee, grant I may be
When Summer days are flown!
Thy music still, when Whipporwill
And Oriole—are done!

For thee to bloom, I’ll skip the tomb
And row my blossoms o’er!
Pray gather me—
Aenome—
Thy flower—forevermore!

—Emily Dickinson

Photos © Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Japanese Anemone ‘Honorine Jobert’

Anemone x hybrida ‘Honorine Jobert’ (Japanese Anemone) photographed at Green Spring Gardens. This old garden hybrid was discovered in Messier Jobert’s garden in Verdun, France in 1858. Jobert propagated it and named it for his daughter, Honorine. The name “anemone” comes from Greek mythology—Anemone was the “daughter of the wind.” And boy, was it ever windy at Green Spring Gardens when I photographed this flower—I got four in-focus shots out of about 25 total before I conceded to the wind. Gotta love the challenge, though!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Chrysanthemum ‘Single Apricot’

Chrysanthemum ‘Single Apricot’ photographed at Green Spring Gardens

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Sinonome Toad Lily

Herbaceous perennial Sinonome Toad Lily (Tricyrtis x ‘Sinonome’), photographed at Green Spring Gardens. A very old cultivar grown as a cut flower in Japan, this exotic perennial blooms in late summer/early fall and prefers moist to wet well-drained soil in partial to full shade. It grows 2-3 feet tall, spreads 12-18 inches and is hardy in Zone 5-8.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Goodbye, my beloved muse

I will miss your terradactyl gurgle, your incessant appetite for chicken, your yearning to be outdoors rolling in the catnip and catmint, you sitting in my lap (rarely but so welcomed) and only when you initiated it, your endless expressions and patience every time I grabbed my camera to capture you, the way your eyes lit up when I called your name or rattled your furry rat toys or brought out the metal tape measure, the pitiful meow when you wanted ZenaB to play with you and she went into hiding, leading me into the kitchen whenever you had the munchies, peeping through the stair railings at me down below, sitting in the middle of my fabric when I wanted to sew, and jumping into the window whenever I moved the plants—as if I prepared it just for you (I confess I often did just that).

Nine years was just not enough—there could never be enough time with you, my beloved Jasper (a.k.a. Mr. Twitchy, Stripey Joe, Dapper Jasper, Jasperamadamadingdong, Handsome Smamsome, and Mama’s Boy). Go keep Homer, Jessie, Ben, Pogo Diablo, Lucky Fred Chewy Rattatouille, Dorrie, Nemo, and Calico Jo company on Rainbow Bridge where I’m sure there’s an endless supply of catnip and chicken. I will miss you fiercely.

Nessus Sphinx caterpillar?

After over an hour of research, I have concluded that this might be a Nessus Sphinx (Amphion floridensis) caterpillar. I photographed it in my parent’s front yard in San Antonio, Texas. I’m concluding from my research that the caterpillar is about 3-4 weeks old and is looking for a place to pupate. If I’m correct on my identification, the moth will emerge from its larvae pupae looking like this one here. I photographed it last night with my camera phone (you can just imagine how not stellar those images were). My dad charged the battery in his Nikon D40x overnight and I was able to use that this afternoon to capture this (much better) image!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Ethereal

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

A few more from Green Spring Gardens…

It seems like everything I photographed at Green Spring Gardens earlier this week was purple or pink!

Photo 1: Spotted Cucumber Beetle laying eggs
on a ‘Country Girl’ Chrysanthemum
Photo 2: Asters (unknown variety)
Photo 3: Japanese Anemone

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Updated Green Spring Gardens portfolio

Take a look! http://cindydyer.zenfolio.com/p787446313

Japanese Toad Lily (Tricyrtis Hirta ‘Miyasaki’)

This hardy perennial from Japan produces exotic, star-shaped blooms with purple markings. The flowers resemble orchids and will grow in part or full shade. Learn more about this plant here. Photographed at Green Spring Gardens, Alexandria, Virginia

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Yin and Yang

Japanese Anemone (hybrid unknown), photographed at Green Spring Gardens, Alexandria, Virginia

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Fiery Skipper Butterfly

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Green Bottle Fly (Phaenicia sericata)

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Clematis

Photographed at Green Spring Gardens, Alexandria, Virginia

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Egg laying time

Top photo: Spotted Cucumber Beetle / Bottom photo: unidentified insect / photographed at Green Spring Gardens

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Male Fiery Skipper on Chrysanthemum

Skipper butterflies are very common in Virginia. I was able to identify this one with the help of Richard K. Walton’s “Skippers of the Northeast” website here. Click on the photos and you’ll see excellent videos, filmed by Walton, to help you identify different types of skippers. I photographed this one dining in a huge bank of ‘Country Girl’ Chrysanthemums at Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria, Virginia.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

White Anemone

I think this might be the ‘Honorine Jobert’ hybrid; photographed at Green Spring Gardens, Alexandria, Virginia

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Pink Anemone

Hybrid unknown, photographed at Green Spring Gardens, Alexandria, Virginia

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Kilroy was here

Spotted Cucumber Beetle on ‘Country Girl’ Chrysanthemum flower, Green Spring Gardens, Alexandria, Virginia

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Farewell to Pat Bryan, cat (and fish) sitter extraordinare

Our beloved cat (and fish) sitter, Pat Bryan, passed away very suddenly on 9.22.2010, at the age of 58. He started his pet-sitting business, Cat and House, about a decade ago. He had been caring for our cats Jasper and ZenaB, Spot the pleco, and various goldfish for the past four years. He came very highly recommended by my friend Regina. Pat was as concerned for his client’s pets as he was his own (11 at the time of his death). The amazing people at Kingstowne Cat Clinic (where we take our cats) are arranging for foster and permanent placements of his cats. He took care of many of our neighbor’s cats as well. Last winter Michael and I were out of town and hired Pat to take care of the pets. While away, our area had a record 30+ inches of snowfall. The roads were inaccessible, so Pat walked miles through the snow to take care of our pets and others in the neighborhood. Now that is dedication! Even when I would warn him that one of the goldfish might not make it (suffering from one various malady or another), he still felt bad if it expired on his watch. Before each pet-sitting gig, he would ask, “no fish are gonna die on me this time, are they?” He also threw in garden watering and houseplant watering when we were gone longer than a few days. Everything living in our house thrived in his care.

I was out of town this week, so I couldn’t attend the outdoor memorial that Kingstowne Cat Clinic arranged this past Wednesday. My good friend Jeff was there and reported the following:

“It was a very nice event. The first hour or so was largely taken up by people telling stories about Pat, many cat-related, of course, but also all the other ways he touched their lives. My contribution was telling the story about how when Regina and I were trying to settle on a pet sitter, we had one that didn’t work out and met one or two who just didn’t give us the right vibe, but that when we met Pat we instantly were taken by what a nice guy he is and when Dusty walked up to check him out I said “if he licks you, you’re hired” (or something to that effect) and that moments later Dusty did just that, and we had a new pet sitter. I also mentioned that when I learned the lengths Pat went to get to places to take care of Lilly and other cats during the blizzards that I was not at all surprised and that I knew I had one kick-ass pet sitter (after that line I turned and apologized to the priest who was there for the service—that got a good chuckle from the crowd, one of many as there were a lot of very good, very funny stories that were told).

That priest did a very good job, and I liked how his sermon worked in themes about how people who deeply connect with animals tend to always be the really good people out there, and mentioning more than once that the best way to honor Pat is to take those things that were good about him into our lives and make ourselves better people, and as a result, be a real part of Pat’s legacy. He wasn’t too dogmatic or preachy, which I think we all appreciated.

Good turn out. And a ton of kudos to Kingstowne Cat Clinic for bringing it off wonderfully. Pat’s aunt mentioned that she arrived, she was bewildered and barely functional, and told how the Kingstowne folks, especially Randi, embraced her and helped in so many ways. They really went above and beyond.

I definitely got a bit verklempt during the proceedings and was very glad I could make it.”

On a memorial board to Pat, one of his friends posted this beautiful Native American Prayer:

I give you this one thought to keep,
I am with you still, I do not sleep,
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow,
I am the sunlight on ripened grain,
I am the gentle Autumn rain.

When you awaken in the morning hush,
I am the swift, uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.

Do not think of me as gone—
I am with you still—in each new dawn.

Pat was infinitely dependable, endlessly compassionate, a supreme lover of animals, funny and a truly sweet person. I feel privileged to have known him and so very grateful that he loved our pets as much as we do. We love and miss you, Pat—Cindy, Michael, Jasper, ZenaB, Spot, and Goldilocks

“With Basil then I will begin, Whose scent is wondrous pleasing”

Re-post from 10.13.2008

…from Michael Drayton’s 1612 topographical poem, “Polyolbion,” describing England and Wales. Drayton was an Elizabethan poet and one of Shakespeare’s contemporaries.

Yesterday Karen and Gina and I made far more pesto than we really needed. My basil harvest was fairly skimpy this year (enough for about 4 cups total). Gina’s harvest was about the same. Enter Karen—that’s her in the first photo, arriving with a bountiful harvest of both Genovese and Purple Basil that she and I planted in late spring in her memorial garden honoring her mother.

In the second photo, you’ll see all the ingredients necessary for a “Pesto Preparation Party.” Ample basil, olive oil, pine nuts, cheese, garlic, a food processor, salt and pepper, and plastic containers for freezing. The soda and brownie bites are simply fuel for the cooks (but every bit as essential).

Gina and I have made pesto from our homegrown basil for the past two gardening seasons. This year Karen joined us (thankfully—otherwise, our final product would have been far more skimpy!). Having never made pesto, Karen was an eager and willing assistant. We told her our basic recipe, but after watching us “tweak” the recipe batch after batch, no doubt she is now confused on exactly how much of each ingredient we really used. Gina, as usual, served as the quality control inspector, sampling each batch on a bit of bread, then announcing, “needs more garlic,” “tastes too green and/or basil-y,” “add more salt,” and “cheese, must have more cheese!” Each batch was a little different from the previous one, so we ultimately just combined all the batches into one. Please don’t ask me for our final recipe. We have no idea what it is. We just make it from a basic recipe similar to the one here, (or see recipe below) then tweak to perfection as we go along.

Basil Pesto Recipe

Ingredients:
2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan-Reggiano or Romano cheese
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup pine nuts (or walnuts)
3 medium sized garlic cloves, minced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1. Combine the basil in with the pine nuts, pulse a few times in a food processor. If you are using walnuts instead and they are not already chopped, pulse them a few times first before adding the basil. Add the garlic then pulse a few more times.

2. Slowly add the olive oil in a steady stream while the food processor is on. Stop to scrape down the sides of the food processor with a spatula. Add grated cheese and pulse again until blended. Add a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Makes 1 cup. Serve with pasta, over baked potatoes, or spread over toasted baguettes.

We ended up with SIXTEEN containers of pesto. When Gina and I prepare pesto with our meager harvest, we max out at about seven containers. Muchas gracias to Karen and her contribution this year!

SIDEBAR: Every year Gina and I make pesto in preparation for the much-anticipated annual Pesto Fest that Michael and I host in our neighborhood. This year’s event was slated for Sept. 27, but had to be cancelled due to the constant rain we had that week, including the day of the event. We thought rescheduling for one of the next two weekends would put us into too-cool-to-have-it-outdoors scenario, but that was not the case. The past two weekends have been glorious. Sigh….take a look at last year’s festivities here. There’s always next year!

P.S. Gina and I made “Sage Pesto” the first year and strongly advise that you avoid it at all costs. Ewww.

Click here for the “How to Make Pesto like an Italian Grandmother” recipe.

Click here for a slew of pesto-based recipes.

Click here for more recipes, folklore, and growing tips.

Click here to learn more about growing, harvesting, and cooking with basil.

And finally, click here to read about basil in literature and art at the site for The Herb Society of America.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.