All Things "Natural"

Back on June 27th I posted that I was going to stitch "Banded Bee Skep" by Arachne's Silken Web.  Well, what with one thing or another, I didn't start working on this until the beginning of August.  And now I don't know why I waited.  I LOVE IT!  Each band is a different stitch and it had been so much fun.  I need to stitch the year (between the two bees), the entrance to the skep, and then the grass.  It has been a blast and I've enjoyed working with Pearsell's and Gloriana silks. 

The weather has cooled down a bit to the mid-80's.  Much more comfortable than this past weekend.  So no excuses, let's take a stroll.  I think in the heat of August a leisurely stroll is best!

 

This is Wooly Mullein (Verbascum thapsus).  It's considered a pesky weed and is often found growing in the hard dirt along the side of roads.  My Mom brought one home, and now I fight an on-going war against a Mullein explosion.   The seeds, the size of grains of pepper, can lie dormant in the soil for decades.  I do usually keep 4 or 5 plants - the woodpeckers love the seeds - and they make great roosts for them while they wait at the suet feeder.

I found some Chamomile (Matricaria recutita) growing in a pile of loam.The name originates from a Greek word which means “ground apple” which refers to the apple smell of Chamomile plant. It is a native to Asia and Europe.  

And here is this week's Mystery Plant.  It too was situated in the pile of loam we are slowly using to fill in a flowerbed. It's a pretty low growing plant - shiny green leaves, bright red stems, and these pretty pink cascades of blossoms. 

The wild Iris have produced scads of seedpods.

Here's a close up of a pod.  The pod has split open and you can see the chocolate brown seeds.

The Canada Thistle has also gone to seed.

Here are the tiny berries of Star Flowered False Solomon's Seal (Maianthemum stellatum). The berries will turn blue-black as they age.

We have a couple of patches of Scouring Rush (Equisetum hyemale).  Scouring rush does not produce flowers or seeds. Instead it develops a brown, cone-shaped, spore-producing strobilus at the tip of fertile stems, which are shorter than the infertile stems. The spores themselves are microscopic. Scouring rush also spreads by shallow rhizomes.

I could not resist a photo of this grass.  It grows along part of our Big Creek.  The grass is tall - probably 6 feet or more - and has these lovely long seed heads. 

The Field Mint (Mentha arvensis) has been in bloom the past month or so.  It thrives in a damp ditch along our driveway near the Big Creek in the company of the Rushes. 

I'm watching these seed pods closely.  They are the pods of the Columbia Lily and I'm hoping to snag some seeds and plant them closer to our house.

This plant looks a bit like a dandelion, but more delicate.  It is Scouler's Hawkweed (Hieracium scouleri). A Oregon native plant, it grows in open shrubby or wooded places.

I'm all strolled out.  It's time to sit on the Front Porch and watch the world go by.