We had some beautiful sunny days in Plymouth this past week and my courtyard came alive. Last Thursday my fence was lined with robins. They hung out on the fence, my outdoor fireplace and the roof of my neighbor's home just long enough for me to take some photos. I heard a ruckus at the end of the courtyard so I went around through the garage to investigate. The birds were disturbed by my presence but I saw the aftermath of their feast. The end of my courtyard is bordered by two hetzi columnar juniper trees which had been laden with dark blue juniper berries.They must have knocked...

The last week in September, I stayed at my mother’s timeshare in Provincetown. It is a small unit but beautifully situated right on the beach with a  spectacular view. I love having the time to observe and savor each moment when there are no distractions.The week usually falls around the jewish high holidays so it is also a time of self reflection. This year I was recovering from shingles and lyme disease which had invaded my body at the same time.I was still low energy and it was painful to hold my camera for long periods of time so I dedicated the week to writing. It was a good...

On June 17th I noticed tented painted lady caterpillars on my licorice plant (helichrysum petrolatum).The licorice plant is a larval plant for the painted lady butterfly.The painted lady is one of the most widespread butterflies in the world.It can be found in North and South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa. Butterflies always have particular larval plants that they feed on such as milkweed for the monarch butterfly. They instinctively lay their eggs on plants that the caterpillars will eat.The painted lady is not as particular as most and it has several host plants including  thistle, mallow,...

        It has been a beautiful fall with many glorious days in the courtyard. When I have no motivation or energy to tackle even the simplest of chores, I retreat to the garden. It is my haven. I am drawn to it by the dreamy sound of the bubbling waterfall and the allure of new buds and flowers each day. I feel Dick's spirit there and it fills my heart. I love the sunlight streaming into the courtyard, providing me with a special hot spot where I can watch a parade of visitors from my chair. October was a mild month and I enjoyed a variety of visitors that I didn't expect. The monarch...

      I was thrilled to have some butterfly visitors this summer. Most of the larval plants, which the butterflies seek out to lay their eggs on, are weeds so I chose not to introduce them into my new garden. I did, however, plant a large pot of parsley and dill in the hopes of attracting the eastern black swallowtail. On July 19th, I spotted a black swallowtail flying in the courtyard. I grabbed my camera and got some photos of the butterfly ovipositing on the parsley plant. I found this greenish-yellow egg on the parsley after she flew away. The caterpillar chews it's way out of the egg in about...

We moved into our new home in July 2013 and our courtyard remained a sand pit til the late fall. Susannah Davis of Davis Land Design in Marion designed the courtyard and it was worth waiting for. We had definite ideas of what we wanted including a small pond, a fireplace, and butterfly and bird attracting plants and shrubs. Susannah and her team were able to achieve them all. We took one of our bird houses from our Lakeville backyard and placed it in the courtyard. It was like one of those “build it and they will come” miracles. The chickadees appeared around May 10th and together, Dick...

With the beginning of spring and all the exciting life and growth in the garden, I felt inspired to blog again. My mind races ahead and I want to share our backyard adventures, but practicality sets in and most of them remain just a memory or a story or photo for another time. I wanted to be true to this blog as I originally envisioned it with a focus on nature and photography, centered on my favorite place to photograph-our own backyard. As my husband's illness has progressed, I have prioritized  spending time with and caring  for him and writing on a more personal level on his lotsahelpinghands...

The swallowtail family of butterflies are my favorite.Their large wings, graceful shape, and colorful markings lure me into the garden. The butterflies are lured into the garden by various larval plants, each specific to their species.The eastern black swallowtail favors parsley, dill or fennel as its host plant and we have had caterpillars on all three.A few years ago the Tripps from Windy Hill Farm gave me some bronze fennel plants from their garden. They are very sturdy plants which reach 3 feet in height.  Probably due to their prominance in the garden,  I now find most of the black swallowtails...

On these crisp, sunny, fall days we have had a dozen or more monarch butterflies hangin' out in our backyard .They prefer to cluster on the purple buddleia bushes, which this late in the season are more like  trees. We have really been enjoying the dance of the monarchs as they flutter overhead before they head off on their miraculous journey! Through the years we have participated in tagging the monarchs in the fall season through the Monarch Watch program sponsored by the University of Kansas. Researchers use these tags  to track the butterflies migration to Mexico. We've also raised monarch...

There are a flock of wild turkeys which roam our neighborhood.Last fall when a section of our fence came down in the hurricane, they visited our backyard.We recently found them on our front lawn, followed them to the neighbors yard, and made sure they all successfully crossed the street!   We have a family of chipmunks who live in the stone wall by the garden and entertain us with their antics!       This is one of the largest spider webs I have ever seen! Look who took over the wren's house!