Opuntia humifusa! I still say it like I mean it and am making an important point!

Opuntia! ☝ I still say it like I mean it and am making an important point!  Unfortunately in reality I am still mispronouncing it. I guess studying the botanical name for that ID test at Brooklyn Botanic while mispronouncing it (and pointing) really imprinted that mistake pretty deep in my mind. I think I was trying to associate pointy (like pointy cactus) with Opuntia, so I ended up with the hard t sound stuck in my mind instead of that crunchy, Cha Cha Cha punch sound, which is the correct pronunciation. 

Hardscape in the Memorial Garden for Ellie Greenwich at Hofstra

There's a pebble treble clef underfoot and musical notes being tossed up above by the juggling sculpture in the memorial garden for Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, Ellie Greenwich, at Hofstra.

I like the pebble treble clef but this little pocket memorial garden was perhaps a hair too peaceful when I passed by, as there was not a baby in sight doing the hanky panky. 🎶

What Dares to Bloom Now? Witch Hazel!

Though I tend to be impressed by most plants, I really have to give it up for one that is fierce enough to dare bloom after the first frost of the year. Our native witch hazel blooms today.

The Gnarly Needles of Pinus strobus 'Contorta'

"Distinctly twisted" is how one nursery describes the needles of this Eastern White Pine cultivar. I agree as I've never seen a similar pine.

Whose Got Great Fall Color This Week?

It's been a warm fall in New York with leaf color coming on slow. But this week the temperature will fall below freezing for the first time and there is a lot more vibrant color, it seems to me. One tree with some great color right now is the crepe myrtle, a standout in all seasons.

Box of Bulbs

Because the seasons bleed into one another and spring will come next year, it's bulb planting time again.

Seven-Son Flower: New Autumn Crush!

Last week I bumped into this fabulous plant that I'm assuming was newly planted in two spots at Hofstra. I wasn't sure what I was looking at. Tree or shrub and were these clusters of pink strappy stars a panicle of really late-blooming flowers or something else?

Something else turns out to be the answer as the mass of color that caught my eye has followed the flowering. And as it also turns out I wasn't the only one stumped about the name of this plant (a few of the grounds keepers at Hofstra were equally stumped about the name of a this shrub originally from China) nor am I the only one who might confuse the rosy calyxes in fall with flowers.

Chasing Fall's Fleeting Color and Schmetterlings in the Morning

If you should spend at least one afternoon in summer chasing schmetterlings, it stands to reason that in the fall you shouldn't miss any chance to catch the season's fleeting colors while the getting is good.

While walking this morning, out of the corner of my eye I caught some vibrant fall color and had to make a detour just to get closer to it.

The detour to the Japanese cherry tree was doubly lucky and worth it then as I caught a Painted Lady butterfly show nearby too.

New Leaves and Old on a Chinese Blue Fir

Earlier in the year, I spotted some new leaves or needles just emerging on a Chinese Blue Fir at Hofstra. Today some older needles, no longer blue-green but yellow, made this "evergreen" seem like it was sporting a bit of fall color.

Sweet Sweetbay Magnolia Median Garden

You know you are a serious garden and plant geek when you begin naming median gardens that you pass.

And you find that you have taken more than one picture of said median garden you have named. 

This median planting by a street entrance at Hofstra though is so lovely and lush and densely planted, it makes me curious about who designed it. 

More Than Anything, I Must Have Flowers, Always and Always-- Monet

Wait. So this Monet was a butterfly?

What kind?

Or maybe he was a honeybee?

Plants With Pavement and the Built World as Background

Because the sheer beauty of the form of the NY ironweed is not diminished by it.

Because even the tiniest of flowers can still manage to command your attention here.

Because the pavement and sidewalk take me where I want to go. And because the flowers and plants are here right where we are. In the places we have built that contain both hard and soft landscapes.

"The only true voyage of discovery, the only eternal fountain of youth, would be not to visit strange lands but to possess other eyes..." Proust

Entomology Photo Safari at Hofstra

I went on an entomology photo safari at Hostra and the cool thing was (yeah, I just put the words cool and entomology in the same sentence) I didn't even have to get a plane ticket to go on this adventure. I just had to stroll over to the Joe Pye-weed to discover some pollinators, like this sweet Monarch butterfly.

The Summersweet was another local joint that was jumping, with a variety of bees and wasps zipping in, out and milling about. There I had chance encounters with two new species. The first was a very small butterfly, which would only reveal enchanting flashes of blue while in flight. Since it didn't give me its name and wasn't wearing a name tag, after doing some hunting around I am going to call it a Summer Azure. (Thankfully, I was the only one on today's photo safari, so I'm safe doing this, as I just read over at the North Jersey Butterfly Club that all it takes is one Azure and two entomologists for a butterfly ID smackdown to spark, or at the very least a "spirited battle". Who knew entomologists were such brawlers? Not me, thats for sure.)

Speaking of tough guys, the other new insect I met at the Summersweet seemed to be acting more like it was on the prowl than seeking some flower nectar. My immediate guess was that I had just photographed some kind of predatory fly. After some research, I'm going to call this one an assassin fly because assissin fly seems more threatening and apt (and badass) then another common name, the robber fly. If it is an assassin fly, it isn't exactly out to "rob" another insect's nest or eggs. Or purse. It's going for the kill.

Monday's Plant: Joe-Pye Weed

Of course the Joe-Pye Weed isn't really a weed at all.

It was clearly planted purposefully, most likely for it's beauty, and I'm assuming also because it is a North American native plant that attracts certain pollinators.

Tall, pink and handsome. 

It Takes Time to Get To Know Something

Because it takes time to get to know something, I have made it a habit to pay attention to plants I see or grow during the seasons. The bleeding hearts which were blooming this April at Hostra are just now starting to fade and turn yellow as they die back with the heat of summer.

Of course this is also just a really nice excuse to follow some of my favorite plants and spend some time outside with something beautiful.

Quick Bee Hunt

I wanted to see if I could snap a picture of a pollinator today so I headed to a plant I figured might have some visitors and this Liatris, an American wildflower,  did not disappoint.

A big patch of Lysimachia clethroides was also a hot spot for bees and wasps. And while I got no pictures, I spotted pollinators visiting some Summersweet, Vitex and Russian sage on my quick bee hunt as well. Success!

It's Crepe Myrtle Time Again

And if the number of pictures I have taken of Crepe Myrtles over time indicates anything, it's probably that I'm a bit of a fan of them even when they aren't in bloom.

Two Seasons, Same Spot, Same Plant --Oakleaf Hyrdrangea

What remains of an Oakleaf Hyndrangea's bloom and bracts --winter 2017

The beauty of this season will endure longer than you might think is possible.

One From Here and One From There

The Trumpet Vine, which is said to attract hummingbirds from North America and the Russian Sage from the steppes far away, whose spikes of small purple flowers look to me like bees might be attracted to. Both are pretty fierce plants in their own way, formidable survivors.