Altivo

Spent the afternoon with another friend who has a big prairie restoration project on her land. She has just build a stand, rather like a deerhunters' stand, for viewing the prairie and watching for birds, butterflies, and animals. It's a small platform about seven feet above ground level, with stairs leading up to it and two seats with rails around them. She kept referring to it as her "bleachers" and I didn't understand why until I saw it. The two seats are folding stadium seats. A few years ago, Soldier Field in Chicago was remodeled and the old folding seats that were removed were sold to raise money. Someone presented her (or her husband actually) with two of those seats. A much better use for them than watching football, I must say. I think they'll also be excellent for watching meteor showers and eclipses. There's a great view of open sky for almost 360 degrees.

Her prairie is full of goldenrod, black-eyed susan, and heliotrope just now, as well as some stray native thistles and creamy lobelia (I think she said it was.) I did take some smaps, but they aren't out of the camera yet. Perhaps tomorrow.

We had peach pie and coffee, and talked about weaving, spinning, cooking, and the difference between schools today and what they were when we were students. It was a lovely afternoon.

Also got through four more inches of threading on the loom, only four more to go and it will be ready to sley.

Rain here was insignificant, in spite of the weather forecasts. Sun was scarcer today than predicted as well, and in consequence it was darned cool. I'm not sure we made it to 70F, and that's probably the first time since early June or so.

Had a great visit with my friend Susan, but we got no sketching or painting done. We haven't had a good talk in several months and had to look at flowers, birds, gardens, knitting, and various other stuff. I did get a bucket full of black walnuts that Gilbert had been picking up under one of their trees. Those are steeping by the back door now, and will be simmered in their own juices tomorrow if all goes according to plan.


Susan and Gilbert have been engaged in a major prairie restoration on their land over the past few years, and have recovered vernal pools, bird habitat, and acres of native wildflowers. Most of the flora did not have to be brought in and planted. Instead, they just stopped mowing what had been horse or cow pastures in the past, and let the native plants that were still there grow. Combined with burning and judicious weeding of non-native or aggressive species, this tactic has produced a veritable ocean of native plant life, and draws birds, insects, and small mammals in great numbers. Here a late blazing star stands amid a sea of goldenrod.


Here are the September wildflowers and grasses, primarily goldenrod and little bluestem, framed by the native oaks that form the open canopy of the typical wooded savanna found in our area.

(As usual, click any thumbnail for a larger view of the image.)