On our vacation to Puerto Rico this past February, we had the pleasure of hiking up to the cloud forest in the El Yunque National Forest. We came across this cute little guy about halfway through our climb. I love seeing new critters and looking them up when I get home. Especially when they are as cool as this one. While it isn't found in the continental U.S., I still wanted to share it with you. This is Gaeotis flavolineata, the Puerto … [Read more...]
What are all these trees dropping on the ground in Spring?
It’s springtime! The sun is shining, the flowers are starting to bloom, and pollen is coating everything, including our cars. Even the trees are getting in on the action. We have been finding all sort of tree seeds and tree reproductive parts laying on the ground around our neighborhood. From the brown stringy stuff to the tiny helicopters and funny little worm-shaped things, spring tree droppings are clogging the gutters of our streets. The … [Read more...]
5 Fun Things to Do in Your Backyard During Social Distancing
Our daily lives are very different than they were just a few weeks ago. We have added new terms like “social distancing“ and “flatten the curve” into our daily lexicon. For many of us, it has been two weeks or more since we left our homes. As a result, you might feel like the walls are starting to close in just a little. Getting outdoors to enjoy some fresh air, to get a little exercise, and to find something beautiful in nature that makes … [Read more...]
Take a Peek Inside the San Juan Botanical Garden of Puerto Rico
The San Juan Botanical Garden covers nearly 290 acres and includes 30,000 plants. The garden features an orchid house, an aquatic garden, lowland moist forest, a heliconia garden, a Monet garden, a palm tree section, a Taíno garden, a bamboo chapel, and an herbarium. The garden includes two Sculpture Gardens with large sculptures. Our Visit to the Jardín Botánico of the Universidad de Puerto Rico After a day of solid rain in the mountains, … [Read more...]
The 5 Best Valentine’s Day Plants For Your Gardener
Give a living plant this year for long-term beauty It's almost Valentine's Day and you might be thinking of sending your loved one cut flowers - but wouldn't it be nice if you got the beauty of flowers but they lasted longer? There are several potted plants available at this time of year that would make a great Valentine's Day gift, especially if your loved one is a gardener :) 1. Cyclamen I love the looks of a cyclamen, but they can be … [Read more...]
Give Birds Water Not Ice in Winter: Unfreeze Your Bird Bath
Winter is here and the birds in your backyard are thirsty. Sure, they can get liquid from snow, but in order to process it, they have to warm it up. Birds have to expend precious calories and use the warmth of their bodies to melt the snow. When the temperature drops below freezing, how do you keep your bird bath from freezing over? Birds need fresh water even in the winter. Use these tips to keep your bird bath filled with water in liquid … [Read more...]
Yellow fungus in potting soil – the yellow houseplant mushroom
Have you ever seen a yellow fungus growing from the soil of one of your potted plants? You might be surprised to know that these yellow mushrooms aren’t uncommon. They won’t hurt your plant and they aren’t harmful to you. They’re just a small part of the ecosystem doing their job in a pot of soil that happens to be in your house (or in my case, in a plant on the front porch). The yellow houseplant mushroom (Leucocoprinus birnbaumii) is a … [Read more...]
My Favorite Plant-It-And-Forget-It Flower: Black-eyed Susan
If you're looking for a plant-it-and-forget-it type of plant that still produces lots of flowers AND attracts pollinators, then look no further than the black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta). This easy-to-grow wildflower is found throughout North America where you can find it alongside roads, in grassy openings and prairies, and even along the edge of forests. They bloom in mid to late summer through fall and vary in height from one foot to … [Read more...]
How to Help a Turtle Cross the Road
If you drive down a country road or through neighborhood street in the spring, you’re likely to see at least one turtle trying to cross the road and maybe even some that didn’t make it across the road. Sometimes you’ll even see them on big four-lane roads. It’s hard to see a turtle with his head and tail pulled back into his shell while cars go speeding past him. Several years back, I saw one such tiny turtle making slow progress across a … [Read more...]
Do you lichen me? Circle one (yes!)
In the fall and winter, I like to go lichen-hunting. The trees have lost their leaves and there isn’t much undergrowth, so it’s a lot easier to spot these frilly, hairy, fuzzy, and crusty organisms. There are so many shapes, textures, and colors of lichens to look at, it can take me hours to get down a trail. I once had a bicyclist whizz past me on a trail, only to come back a few seconds later, stop his bike, and say, “I have to know, what … [Read more...]
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