Living at 7,100 feet at the base of the Rocky Mountains, I sometimes complain about our cold winters, especially as they stretch into March and April. But imagine spending the winter on top of the Rockies, at 11,000 feet or higher. At these elevations, winter lasts from October to May. The wind howls, blizzards come without warning, and the snow that doesn’t blow away piles deeply over the tundra.
Many species that summer on top of the mountains migrate vertically to lower, more sheltered wintering grounds. Of the few that remain all year, most hibernate. But amazingly, there’s one small mammal—six inches long, weighing a mere six inches—that chooses mountaintop scree slopes as its home: the pika.
Type “baking soda garden” into your web browser and you get over a million hits. Not surprisingly, most are something along the lines of “17 Smart Baking Soda Tips,” and “7 Natural Uses for Baking Soda.” Depending on which list you read, it sweetens tomatoes, increases the blooms on geraniums, begonias, and hydrangeas, prevents black spot on roses, cures powdery mildew, discourages soil gnats, and kills slugs and other harmful insects “
You can’t go to Australia and skip the beach. It would be unthinkable! That’s why, after spending a wonderful week in the Blue Mountains, we decided to drive north along the coast to Brisbane. Determined to allow plenty of time for birds and beach stops, we allocated three whole days. We could easily have spent a lot longer.
For an avid gardener, January can be a difficult time of year. Sure, we can dream. The seed catalogs that have been arriving for a month now are filled with post-it notes, dog-eared corners, and bright yellow highlights. At the same time, I’ve decided and re-decided (at least a dozen times) where I’m going to plant each seedling once the weather warms. I love the optimism of dreaming, but sometimes I just want to get my fingers into some soil—even if the “soil” came out of a bag of potting mix.
The president of our local Audubon chapter, Risë Foster-Bruder, wrote a little article on carpool etiquette for our chapter newsletter. That started both of us thinking about all the aggravations that are associated with carpooling, as well as some helpful hints. I added them to what Risë wrote. The result this post.
Last November I took you on a virtual tour of the Royal Botanic Garden in Sydney, Australia. Today we’re going to visit the Singapore Botanic Gardens. According to Wikipedia, “It is one of three gardens, and the only tropical garden, to be honored as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.” One visit, and it’s easy to see why.
Just as each month is associated with a particular birthstone (January’s being a garnet), so is each month paired with a particular flower. According to folklore, each of these flowers symbolized specific characteristics, which were in turn assigned to those born during that month. While some claim this custom arose with the Roman empire, I suspect that the florist industry might also have had something to do with it.
Mountain Plover 