The Hummingbird

You may need to click on these photos I took to see the little guy properly. I went out to the historical conservation land of Monson yesterday and found a small tree behind the flower gardens. Near this tree was a hummingbird feeder; he who owns the tree shalt own the nectar. :)




This one hummingbird fought valiantly to defend the nectar against a formidable gang of three other hummingbirds. It was amusing to watch these tiny birds, no more than 2 inches long, in an epic battle over sugar water! In between bouts of high pitched squeals and fencing matches with teensy beaks, my little hero rested in the tree I sat near and I was able to get these cool photos. Never before have I watched a hummingbird resting in a tree in the wild.




So that's pretty much the whole story here. I hope you like them anyway. The photo of him flying is very blurry, but I thought it was interesting enough to put up here anyway. :)

Warm Tones of Summer

This post is just as simplistic as the last because I have a few good pics and pretty much no tale to tell. All these photos were taken at Beaver Brook's Maple Farm Gardens. The above is a lovely lily from the "Shade Garden" - the bee was an unintentional interloper to the photo. :)

The next flower came from the "Magic Garden". I've heard of this herb before, but never have I seen it in bloom. This is bee balm and it looks extraterrestrial to me! It comprised of tall green stalks about 5 feet high with these red crowns tipping each stalk.


The tree is a Japanese Maple from the Shade Garden that caught the light just right and merited a photograph.

And lastly we have a lily I have dubbed the "Creamsicle Lily". I'm actually not a huge fan of lilies, but they photograph so well and grow everywhere!

Whimsical Weekend Pics

Thanks to the break in the incessant rain this past weekend, I was able to take some more pictures. The above is a newcomer to my balcony garden - a very tenacious gray squirrel. In this picture, s/he is desperately trying to get into the goldfinch.

The next 2 pictures are taken from the "Kibby's Climb" trail at Beaver Brook, my favorite haunt. :) It's a growth on a pine tree that looks remarkebly like the Green Man to me. The brighter picture shows it better, but is not as good quality as the darker. It was dark in the forest, so it was tough to get these shots.









And the last picture is one of my personal faves. This large statue was guarding the herbal gardens of Maple Farm.

The Tree Spirit, the Fairy and the Mouse

The Hand Oak - This Tree Guards the Entrance to Sheldrick Forest

No, this blog post is not a folktale, but I could adapt it someday. I took advantage of the first day of sun in weeks to take a long overdue walk. Today: Sheldrick Forest, Wilton. This forest is an "old growth" forest, meaning most of the land has never been forested, harvested, cultivated. Many of the trees (Mostly Beech, Birch and Oak) are well over a few hundred years old.

These are some shots I took today. The tree to the right is a beech tree over 300 years old (which is a long time by New England standards where 90% of the forests were mowed down for pastures back when it was colonized). I may be looking too much into this and maybe I was a bit dehydrated at the time, but this picture looks like a woman holding her arms up to the sky to me. The sway in the trunk makes me think her a dancer. She was a happy tree today. :)
The mouse you see really made my week! This lil guy hopped across my trail and I thought "Oh! A frog! .... A gray frog! ... A furry gray...frog?" Nope! This is a whitefooted deermouse! This is the second year in a row I've come in direct contact with these guys. This one played with me a while. It scurried about and I caught it a few times then he would get away - but he wouldn't go far. A few times he climbed up my pantleg! Eventually, I lost him in some brambles. All in all, I was cracking up with laughter in the forest. :D

And lastly, there is a ridge that curves at the back of the forest that always reminds me of fairies. I picture King Paralda of the East Winds holding court there... long story. Anyway! Much to my surprise, I'm not the only one that must feel this way because on the trail today I found a "fairy home". These were popular a few years back when a children's story was published about them. This is the first I've ever seen on my travels. You can't see it in the picture, but there are sticks spelling the word "FAIRY" in the ground at the base of the house. This must have been built today as the rain would have been cruel to this little establishment.