Message from the Mountain

Today we celebrate our forefather’s decision to create the great American democratic experiment that is still evolving today. People celebrate with barbeques and fireworks. Many have come to the Whit…

Years ago I remember reading an expert gardener’s opinion of orange day lilies. He felt they did not deserve to be planted in a flower garden. Personally, I love to see this common flower growing alo…

Milkweed is now in bloom, and the butterflies and bees will be milking its nectar. I am reminded of an old phrase, “Milking it for the most”, that relates to how we try to get the most out of somethi…

With all the rainy days this past month, the landscape is very lush, and sometimes I think of it as the jungle of the north. I am also reminded of how people view the landscape of life. For some it i…

One of my favorite forms of music is the blues. It is the basis for rhythm and blues and early rock and roll. The music from the blue bellflowers may be silent to most, but their mind music plays on.…

I had noticed that our hosta plants were missing this year and recently discovered one of the reasons why. There in the middle of the afternoon was a deer munching its way across the lawn to the flow…

I remember an old song that was very popular when it first came out called, “A Daisy a Day”. Daisies make me smile, whether in the wild or in a flower garden. Some people also make me smile because t…

Nature is providing tiny sweet strawberries for the birds and animals that enjoy feasting on them as well as humans who have the ability to bend down and the patience to pick them, but people will ha…

The past few weeks we have enjoyed watching the blue birds and swallows as they created nests and raised their young in the bird houses in the Lupine Field. All are gone except one last swallow that …

One of my favorite summer flowers is now in bloom: foxgloves. These tall slender plants are a special treat for my eyes and for the insects that enjoy their nectar. Nature provides a lot of sweet nec…

Several different bear wander through the woods on the Mountain, including mothers and cubs, yearlings on their own for the first time and the big boys. We usually do not see them. Some people wander…

The tall slender white bell flowers are in bloom and playing a beautiful silent tune that people can only hear in their minds. I am reminded of people that go about their lives silently doing positiv…

Derek, our master gardener, has returned for five days of handwork with his magic hoe. His plan is really beginning to take shape. I am so grateful for his willingness to share his abilities as he is…

When we first bought our mountain property, our logger discovered a formation that reminded him of Vikings. We had the area around it protected and discovered that it had a center stone divider lined…

Queen Anne’s Lace is now in bloom in the Lupine Field and joined by buttercups, daisies and clover as we transition from the fading lupine into full summer mode. I will be discovering these beauties …

Standing on the top edge of the Lupine Field, I can watch the weather rolling across the mountain peaks. It may come my way or pass me by. We may not be able to influence the weather, but we can infl…

The early yellow daylilies are open, and they are a welcome sight. Now there will be a steady parade of different lily varieties throughout the summer and early fall. I look forward to each one as my…

TENDING THEIR FAMILY – The swallow couple were tending to their family shortly after my son had secured the bird house which was in peril of falling off its perch. We have noted that the young did su…

I thought I would take another look back at some of the lupine photos I took this past couple of weeks, thinking about the first year when we had a dozen blooms. They have spread like the positive ac…

There is a special stump at the edge of the Lupine Field where the fairies play, and every time we pass by it, there seems to be something new. I love to find the results of the fairies, no matter wh…