Enjoying A Working Summer

We've had beautiful weather, though I am including lots of rain in my definition of beautiful. It's kept the plants growing nicely. The cherry tree is producing fruit that is already edible, at least the darkest red ones, and I grab one whenever I pass beneath the tree on the riding mower:

The Elderberry plants had a tough winter and some died, but those which survived are beginning to bloom. Mostly they just have buds now, but some flower heads are open:

The new Magic Carpet Spirea surprised me by blooming. They are not the big, gaudy sorts of flowers which people will admire from the road, but I like them:

 Lots of wildflowers are blooming also, such as these Maiden Pinks. Those in the lawn are short, but out in the pasture they are about 12" tall:

The two little Ninebarks I planted are changing colors. Their dark burgundy color is turning a brilliant gold. They are also growing well, getting taller each time I check on them:

I moved the herd across the road to the north field so that I could spray the fence line of the south field. This must be done once each year to suppress the weeds from shorting out the fence:


Alas, there is also the problem of trees falling on the fence. I had to cut this one with a chainsaw:

Northern Bedstraw and Cow Vetch make a wonderful combination - and one which is nearly everywhere I look these days:

Red Clover is too big to grow in the lawn, but it sure does well in the pasture. Indeed, it's been a very nice summer so far:

 I have a few Musk Mallows growing in the south field. They come in both pink and white, though all I've seen this year are pink:

 The Musk Mallow is a member of the Hibiscus family, and very showy:

Summertime Around The Farm

I had just finished doing chores one morning when I saw a bird on a gate post, singing. He stayed there, singing a fancy, flute-like song, so I got out my camera. By then I had seen enough to recognize it as a Bobolink. This was only the second time in my life I've seen a Bobolink, the first time I've heard and recognized its song:

The five baby chicks were growing rapidly and I had to fix them up a bigger brooder after only two weeks. Introducing them to the rest of the flock will be tricky as I don't want them to be attacked, but I'll figure something out:

And speaking of the rest of the flock, they are doing well, ranging far and wide over the property. They travel across the lawns and into the hay field and pasture. In fact, they go everywhere and are especially fond of going inside the barn. All I need to do is leave a door open for a minute:

The old fashioned Peonies have bloomed:

And a yellow Day-Lily appeared in the middle of one clump of Peonies:

And the Mock Orange produced perhaps the most beautiful display of all times:

This variety doesn't have much aroma, but I can't imagine a more beautiful or bountiful blossoming:

The Mock Orange bush has grown to a large size and sits close to the old fashioned rose I saved:

 My "lawn" is filled with wildflowers, so I took a few photos while mowing. This is Hawkweed, species unknown:

 Maiden Pink. It was really prettier than the photo would indicate:

 Least Hop Clover:

White Clover. My camera seldom gets useable pictures of white or yellow flowers, so I was happy when this one turned out. It may be a common flower, but that doesn't mean it isn't something special:

St. Lawrence County Reforestation Area Number 12

I'd arrived at the farm on Sunday afternoon and gotten settled. On Monday morning I took the four younger dogs hiking up Azure Mountain. We'd done our hiking early in the morning and were back on the road by lunchtime. I stopped at a convenience store in St. Regis Falls and bought a couple of sandwiches and sports drinks. When we arrived back at the farm, I took a nap.

Well, that was all very nice, but the day was still young and the sun was shining. I decided to drive back to the White Hill Wild Forest and hike in from the opposite direction from last time. But the road to the trail head became totally impassable and I had to abandon that project. But on the way home I passed the St. Lawrence County Reforestation Area Number 12. Not only is my farm surrounded by State Forests, there's also many County Forests (and that's not to mention the Adirondack Park only 3 miles from my door):

So I pulled the car off the road and parked. Little Clover led the way down the sandy hill into the forest. The sun was hot and both the deer flies and mosquitoes were biting fiercely:

But the dogs were happy and having a wonderful time:

I passed by large Honeysuckle bushes full of red berries. I've searched my Peterson's Field Guide and decided this must have been Fly-Honeysuckle, Lonicera canadensis, a native flowering shrub:

And blooming profusely in the sandy trail were multitudes of short Maiden Pinks, Dianthus deltoides, an alien species but beautiful nonetheless:

And of course there were ripe raspberries. I helped myself:

The dogs ran up and down the trails, thoroughly enjoying this hike in spite of the heat. It looked to me like the deer flies and mosquitoes were concentrating on me and leaving the dogs mostly alone:

And, of course, Lowbush Blueberries. Again, I helped myself:

The heat was becoming oppressive. I led the dogs through the woods toward what appeared to be a pond, but it turned out to be only an impenetrable swamp. So we turned around and began trekking back toward our parked car - Me, the dogs and billions of deer flies:

Always in the lead, Daphne and Clover arrived first at the car. There are so many State and County Forests to explore that I will be kept busy for a long time: