Brenda is a certified Virginia Master Naturalist, a Habitat Defender for Shenandoah National Park, and a devoted fan of Mother Nature. She lives in a cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Shenandoah National Park, and hikes up to the higher elevations of her mountain often to see what nature is up to. Her constant hiking companion is a camera that captures nature as it unfolds through the seasons. It’s her goal to share the natural world around her through her photographs.
Pushing their leaves up through leaf litter. Leaf litter in which there could be many butterflies, moths and other insects waiting for winter to shake off its snow and let spring go on with her warmer weather.
Just a few weeks is all that is needed.
A few weeks, sunshine and maybe a little bit of warmth.
Three butterflies that overwinter as adults. Snuggled down in crevices of tree bark or in leaf litter. Perhaps the leaf litter in your gardens. That is IF you’ve left the leaf litter there in your yard as a potential sanctuary from the freezing cold of winter.
Eastern Comma (Polygonia comma)
Question Mark (Polygonia interrogationis)
Mourning Cloak (Nymphalis antiopa)
All three of these butterflies spend the winter as adults in a dormant state hiding from the chill of winter. Either under leaf litter, in a crevice of tree bark or some other place it might find to escape the cold. On any particularly warm day you might find one of these butterflies out enjoying the warmth only to return until winter has completed its progression through the calendar.
I’m a quilter, though I’ve ignored that part of me for quite some time. Photography has taken over the artistic inclinations that I have. Nature, Spanish and yoga have all filled in the other gaps. My studio has a gigantic closet that was designed just for all my “paints”. Here is just a tiny glimpse of all those colors.
And here is, “Senior Year”, reflecting all the conflict, confusion, uncertainty during that year. I started out thinking I’d do a black and white quilt with just a few spots of red but went to feel it needed more than just red for accents.
Once the top of “Senior Year” was completed, the real fun began, the quilting. Stitching messages of love for future generations to interpret for themselves.
A trip back in time, making me wonder if I can squeeze a bit more time out of my day – for making quilts again.
Not a strawberry waiting to be picked but buds of Hellebores (Helleborus) waiting for just the right day to celebrate the middle of winter. Can you imagine these opening up in midwinter? They’re native to Europe and Asia.
I seldom allow non-natives into my gardens these days but there are some special, sentimental exceptions. This one, introduced to me eons ago by a dear quilter friend and now hiker friend of mine, Granger, who told me about the “Hello Boris” plants.
Putty Root Orchid (Aplectrum hyemale) is native, usually in higher elevations, of eastern and central U.S., and Canada. Here in Virginia this tiny orchid is often found growing alongside Beech and Maple trees, in calcareous ravines.
It produces a single leaf, oval with pointed tip, in late November and lives on until March. That single leaf has thin white stripes set against broader rich green stripes, often with a rumpled texture. The other side which tends to face the ground is most often a purplish green or a dull purple.
That single leaf begins to wither away and finally vanishes as the plant produces a single stalk of 8 to 16 flowers, less than a foot tall in April, occasionally blooming in May and June. Often though that single leaf that survived through the winter does not produce a flower stalk. Leaving me and my camera, searching for native orchids to photograph, scratching our heads.
Snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis). Native to Europe and southwestern Asia. Blooming right now, adding unexpected charm to the otherwise dormant winter garden. I love them.
Last week was just perfect and winterlike. Mighty cold with some snow thrown in for extra drama. As you might imagine, I totally loved it. This week the weather gods have thrown the switch in the opposite direction. Quite warm and springlike.
This picture, above, captures my thoughts of what the weather was like this past week. Taken in the “low lands” maybe a mile from the yoga studio. March 29, 2023, with Red Maples (Acer rubrum), abloom.
Highs today: Washington, D.C., 80°, Charlottesville Airport, 80°, just a short distance away but higher up at my cabin, 76°.
Incredible.
This picture, above, captures my thoughts of what the weather was like this past week. Taken in the “low lands” maybe a mile from the yoga studio. March 29, 2023, with Red Maples (Acer rubrum), abloom.
Highs today: Washington, D.C., 80°, Charlottesville Airport, 80°, just a short distance away but higher up at my cabin, 76°.
An unusual sight in the mountains here around my cabin. As the snow falls upon the berries that remain, and the buds that are waiting for next spring on a Flowering Dogwood (Cornus florida), a Purple Finch (Haemorhous purpureus) enjoys the few berries that are still there.
I appreciate your patience. I had knee surgery last Friday the 19th and I’m looking forward to being back in a good state of mind, and able to hike to the highest parts of my mountains in short order.
Green Frogs (Rana clamitans) are solitary frogs, except when it is mating time around breeding ponds. This photo is from April 2010. Large to small, male Green Frogs waiting for females to come by. These frogs are usually between 3 and 5 inches in length at 4 to 5 years of age.
In 3 to 7 days eggs are hatched into tadpoles. It will take from 3 to 22 months to change into full grown frogs, depending in part on if they choose to go into metamorophosis before or after winter. Some will wait, some will not.
The Green Frog is not the first of the frogs to lay eggs in late winter or early spring. That would be the Wood Frog (Lithobates sylvaticus). The little one with the black bandit’s mask. The frog that announces his desire to mate with his all day long, all night long, clack, clack, clack sound which I totally enjoy hearing.
Stay tuned and I’ll let you know when I hear them. There is no confusing them with any other frogs!
There’s been several snows up here during the last week. Little snows with extremely cold temperatures. That makes the snow light and fluffy, and lots of wind too, blowing the snow out of the trees.
That’s a bummer, I love to have the snow decorating the trees. Oh well. Maybe later this winter.
