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This week it’s rhododendrons.
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I’ve planted red and white but for some reason only the pink survives.
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I’d like a little color variation but the bumblebees don’t seem to mind.
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My stone wall bed is looking a little bare. Proof that no matter how many flowers you buy, it’s never enough.
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Out back, it’s Japanese iris time.
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They’re such a vibrant color it’s a shame they don’t last longer.
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Peonies are budding in the background and will be popping shortly.
😊
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Hidden in the lilac bush, an annual spring visitor.
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The brightly colored Baltimore Oriole.
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I make sure to put out the special feeder containing orange halves and grape jelly when I spot my first flash of orange. Keep them happy and they’ll stay about a month before heading farther north.
😊
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Buffet buddies.
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Momma chuck and the mallard pair seem perfectly content to share.
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Even if they do bump into each other on occasion.
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Lord knows the birds drop enough seed, nuts and fruit from the feeders they’ll never run out of snacks.
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Our beautiful fox stopped by for a little fallen bird seed snack recently.
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It was early evening …
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So another frequent visitor dropped by as well.
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That’s one brave duck.
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I love this time of year in Maine. It’s warm but not hot, we have ample rain and things are blooming everywhere you look.
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Pansies are always the first things I plant in pots. They’re frost tolerant and because that can still happen at the end of May here … they’re a safe bet.
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Lilacs!
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We have two massive bushes that reach for the sky… taller than our roof. It’s fabulous!
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One white, one dark purple. I wish WordPress had Smell o Vision…. because trust me peeps, it is seriously fragrant up in here.
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I planted my annual marigold rotation in front of the mini barn last week.
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And some color coordinated geraniums next to the bulkhead doors.
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There was a little of both at Chez River recently… but not the kind you might think.
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The blowing was in the form of a new window air conditioner we bought to replace our previous old as dirt unit. $500 and a broken back later it was installed and ready for summer. Someday someone will explain to me why these things have to weigh as much as an African elephant.
While this new a/c is more powerful and quieter than the last, I admit I was not happy with the left handed cord placement. I’m an inveterate cord hider and this monster is one inch too short to plug behind the antique radio to the left and two inches too short to swing around the corner behind the arm chair on the right … so this is the horror I must live with for the next few months.
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Sigh.
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Even Lord Dudley disapproves.
As for the sucking…
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Yesterday morning heralded the arrival of the poop truck.
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And it’s extremely long, highly suspect caca hose.
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The less said about this process the better.
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More butt shots from my ongoing adventures in cat walking.
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There seriously isn’t a bush or plant on the property that he doesn’t have to crawl under.
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And when he can’t find a shrub?
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The weirdo just plonks himself down and stares at the wall.
🥴
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Lord Dudley Mountcatten enjoys his outdoor time, though he’s still restricted to the leash. Our walking excursions usually consist of me standing and him sitting, but fresh air is fresh air and now that the weather is warming up he’s constantly howling to be taken into the great outdoors. Does he avidly explore his environs?
No…
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He face plants on the lawn and stays that way. His Lordship is an odd bird, what can I say?
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Walking a cat can be challenging, predominately because they don’t actually want to walk.
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They want to crawl under things and sit which leaves me with a plethora of butt shots.
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I didn’t pee on my garden before I read this, but rest assured I shall be passing it along to my husband who has been known to relieve himself off the barn porch.
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I have never in my life urinated on a lawn and I don’t plan to start now. But men can be very dog like when it comes to marking their territory as evidenced by this photo of a conspicuous patch of dead lawn adjacent to the barn porch.
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Apparently that goes for grass as well.
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(Title should be sung to Lesley Gore’s ‘It’s My Party’ melody for full effect)
This is a scraggly flowering plum tree my husband transplanted to our backyard a few years ago.
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It’s hanging on to life but isn’t nearly as full as it used to be…. so when I saw a brown tail moth web in one of the top branches, I carefully gloved up, cut it out and burned it.
If you’ve never heard of these evil little bastards, read on…
The browntail moth caterpillar has tiny poisonous hairs that cause dermatitis similar to poison ivy on sensitive individuals. People may develop dermatitis from direct contact with the caterpillar or indirectly from contact with airborne hairs. The hairs become airborne from either being dislodged from the living or dead caterpillar or they come from cast skins with the caterpillar molts. Most people affected by the hairs develop a localized rash that will last for a few hours up to several days but on some sensitive individuals the rash can be severe and last for several weeks. The rash results from both a chemical reaction to a toxin in the hairs and a physical irritation as the barbed hairs become embedded in the skin. Respiratory distress from inhaling the hairs can be serious.
The browntail moth is an invasive species found only on the coast of Maine and Cape Cod. This moth is an insect of both forest and human health concern.
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I’ve been covered in their nasty rash multiple times before and trust me it is beyond awful. No amount of Benadryl, cortisone or calamine lotion can relieve the itch. It’s like poison ivy times 50 and makes you want to take a wire brush to your skin. So when I say I was careful? I was careful. Gloves, long sleeves, limited contact and proper destruction.
But still….
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I got a mild dose and am completely miserable.
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Both my arms, stomach and back are speckled with rash because once those little microscopic hairs find you and you take a shower? You’ll gladly take sandpaper to every inch of your flesh.
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River's world..... 