Our feature photo this summer is of Queen Anne’s Lace. It was difficult to choose a favorite flower from the season’s parade of blooms, although at this time of year, this familiar wildflower with its lacy white umbrels can be seen practically everywhere along with the ubiquitous oxeye daisy.
News from the farm
With the month of May, came the time of irises and rhododendrons, heralds of summer. Each year is unique in how the oscillating weather patterns play out over the season, affecting bloom time and growth. The residual coolness this year prolonged the time we enjoyed some of our garden residents, as well as the symphony of chorus frogs whose music graced the late spring nights.
Daylilies followed, along with spearmint in spires of pale lavender, attracting clouds of bees and various insects. Each passing year I watch the procession, never tiring of what nature sends us.
The rains have since ceased. Late summer is harsh as the daytime temperature rises, cracking open the hard clay earth. Grass, a collection of hardy souls here in the Willamette Valley, goes dormant when not watered, taking on a whitish-tan hue, becoming brittle and cracking underfoot. Our gardens and plantings need spot watering and heavy mulching to stay alive. Some garden areas have gone feral while I have been occupied with other needs, needing no help from me, just yet.
It is the seasons of dust devils in our area, those carefree vortices spinning lazily across farmland, spawned in the late summer heat after grass seed and wheat farms have harvested their crops. I noted my first one this year on July 23rd, while driving across the valley. I find myself patiently waiting for autumn’s cornucopia, and the first rains.
News from the Cats of Salmon Brook Farms
The Feline Correspondents Desk is back at work after recovering from a respiratory illness earlier this summer that affected most of the crew, passing cat to cat, taking several weeks to recover from it. Mr. Nano, head of the Resident Feline Correspondent’s Desk, will provide a short essay for May, June and July.
Spring tarried a while this year, long and cool, accompanied by the nightly sounds of chorus frogs as darkness set in. She sent the rains, the moon bobbing along on her nocturnal cloudy seas, and the morning’s rain drenched flowers.
Our days grew longer as Old Sol approached his northernmost post, peering over the horizon, spilling golden light across a green land, sending the myriad drops of water on leaf and blade of grass into prismatic brilliance. Those who have witnessed sunrise, seen the gold upon the green, the sparkle of a new day, know an ephemeral wealth far greater than any jewel cut by Man. No day can be replicated, only appreciated in mind’s eye and felt in the soul.

Some cloud sport downward tails, appearing much like the trumpets of chanterelle mushrooms as seen looking up from the forest floor
I watched the glow one evening as molten golden-white clouds took on the longer peach and rose colored rays post sundown. The grey fox was sighted out back, leaping and prancing with his long brushy tail streaming out behind. Humans had only been walking through his area a few minutes earlier.
The tree swallows followed summer’s longer days, wheeling in the early evening sky, catching insects on the wing. Grass grew long and coarse, a house finch sat on the overhead electrical wires and sang his heart out to no one in particular. Goldfinches arrived, darting about the roses and out in main garden. A mole came up out of one hole, and went down another, a great blue heron flew overhead, long legs out behind, wings like oars methodically rowing across the river of sky, out towards the lake. Each species goes about life according to its own needs, in its own time and space, separate yet shared and connected, gears in the great clockwork of life.
Now well past solstice, the days grow perceptibly shorter, and the transition of day into night seems different somehow, perhaps reminiscent of my own aging bones, knowing the road ahead is shorter than the road I have already traveled. The same barn lights glow softly on neighboring hills as night’s deepening veil rises in the east, and the last rays disappear below the horizon, as they always have done. Stars emerge, one by one, lighting the blackness of space, beacons for imagination. Another day has come to a close.
As always, we wish our readers a pleasant evening ahead, and safe travels to wherever their destination in life may lead them.
– Resident Feline Correspondent Nano, reporting for Salmon Brook Farms
Music news (schedule posted on the Performance Schedule page)
For those readers who missed the spring post, I will be posting on mostly seasonal basis now. Hopefully someday, I may be able to actually catch up on the many projects, including updating the pages associated with this blog, as well as stay in touch with all of you. I will keep the performance schedule updated regularly.

The westbound PIE sign as seen on May 7th on the way to the Oregon coast. This time there was no traffic behind us, and Rick was able to slow down the car while I took this shot out the window.
If you are in the area and wish to see me play live, please visit the Performance Schedule page in the ring menu at the top of this post.
I have been enjoying playing over on the Oregon coast regularly. Rick has been an excellent driver, roadie and sound man. I grow his tomato, eggplant and pepper starts, and make wine for him from our grapes in autumn.

View from a scenic area on Route 101. Filtered light played on a thrashing silver-grey sea, the wind cool and refreshing with the light tang of salt. The Pacific has her own spirit and mood compared to her sister, the Atlantic, scents and sounds particular to her.
For those readers who are new or catching up, do visit the Salmon Brook Farms YouTube channel. Our first Tiny Farm Concerts one song music video was posted at the end of March, 2017. I am 16 years older and a good bit more grey since my first and only CD was released back in 2003, but still in the saddle. It has been an interesting ride, with more to come!
For those who have missed previous posts and wish to view the channel content, here are links to the previous two videos. There will be more videos when I can get back to this project.
The Orchard, our distributor, has placed some of our music from the Keepsake CD on YouTube. Anyone wishing to see the entire track listing and stories behind the songs should visit my personal page under MUSIC in the menu at the top of this post. Depending on what country you live in, the music placed on YouTube by The Orchard may be blocked. Readers can also access some songs from the CD via the old IUMA archive site
In the meantime, in your area, wherever you may be, please do all you can to help keep your own local music alive. Go out and see someone you don’t know, host a house concert, download songs or buy CDs. Or even just stop for a minute to hear someone at a Farmers’ Market. Live, local musicians provide a wealth of talent most people will never hear about in this age of iPods, Internet and TV.
Lavinia and Rick Ross
Salmon Brook Records / Salmon Brook Farms
https://salmonbrookfarms.wordpress.com
You need to write a song “Still in the Saddle” or that could be the title of your next CD. Happy to hear your playing regularly. Nice post getting us caught up. You flowers are lovely. Beautiful sunflower. Our sunflowers and few and really late this year.
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Hi Tim, thanks for stopping by. It is always good to see you! Yes, “still in the saddle” is what I am, although the ride is a bit rough from time to time. 🙂 I think a group named Haywire wrote a song by that title back in the 80s, and there may also be a book with the same name.
I found another sunflower, this time coming up in the gravel driveway. I moved it to the garden by the squash plants. Hopefully it will make it there.
All the best to you, Laurie and the critters from all of us here. 🙂
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I guess you’re saddled as far as that title. Sun flowers tend to come up in awkward places.
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They sure do! 🙂
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Lovely photos and descriptions as usual, Lavinia, from you and Mr. Nano! I do love iris, which only blooms for a short time here; and that sunflower is terrific. How exciting to be playing live concerts! And going to see the ocean, it’s always such a refreshing sight!
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Thank you for stopping by, and for the kind comments, Leah! I’ll be by soon to see what you all and little Franklin cat have been up to. 🙂
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Lovely post…so good to hear news from your farm, Lavinia. The photos are amazing, and Mr. Nano certainly has a way with words!
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Thank you for stopping by, and for the kind comments, Becky! Good to see you! Mr. Nano has seen much in his lifetime. 🙂
I am sorry it has taken so long to get back in touch with you all. I’ll be by to visit. 🙂
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Wonderful! I like Mr Nano the best.
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Thank you for stopping by, and for the kind comments, Cindy! Mr. Nano sends his sincere thanks. He is somewhere “around” 13 years old now, and has seen much in his day. 🙂
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Hi Lavinia. As always, I love reading your post and enjoy your walk trough your garden. And yes, there’s always the wise comment of a wise cat named Mr. Nano!
My Dad used to plant hundreds of sunflowers at my parent’s home. It was a very beautiful view and I miss it.
Wishing you a wonderful weekend! Mr. Bowie says “Meow!” and sends his regards to all the cats!
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Hi Herman and Mr. Bowie! It is always good to see you, and thank you so much for stopping by and for the kind comments! Do you have any photos of your Dad’s sunflower plantings you could post? I would love to see those.
The cherry tree garden is getting some heavy watering now. It was 90 here yesterday, and probably will be hotter today.
Mr. Nano and the cat crew send their best to you both. Have a wonderful weekend, stay cool, and eat a lot of ice cream! 🙂
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The sunflower (power) periode was 20 years ago. I’ll check if I can find some old photographs…
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Thanks, Herman! How is your Dad these days?
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Dad is feeling better now the heat is gone. And he loves to eat ice cream (when I have left the building… 😉 )
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Good to hear your Dad is well, and that the heat wave has passed. Nothing like ice cream! 🙂
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“[T]hose carefree vortices spinning lazily across farmland, spawned in the late summer heat after grass seed and wheat farms have harvested their crops.” I wish I could write like that!
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Always good to see you, Musiewild! Thank you for stopping by and for the kind comment. The world is a fascinating place, full of things to give a special kind of life to through description. It is a form of recreation for me.
All the best to you. I enjoy reading about your travels!
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Beautiful descriptive writing to accompany good photography – you, too, Mr Nano. I’m fascinated by the number of similar flowers we share
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Always good to see you Derrick! Thanks for stopping by and for the kind comments. Mr. Nano appreciates them, too! 🙂 I think many of our common flowers came over with immigrants, either as seeds and plants intentionally brought along, or as stray seeds. From there they spread west across the continent.
All our best to you and Jackie. I will get your Michael’s tree planted once the drought is over. I have a purple plum and a western cedar, whichever you would like. ❤
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The cedar seems a good one. Thanks so much for remembering 🙂 X
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A cedar it will be! ❤
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X
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It is sometimes in the humblest flowers that one must look for beauty such as carrots (Daucus carota). How many modest plants stand by our side offering their simple but beautiful flowers without being noticed. But when we examine closely we discover the beauty in its simplicity. This becomes a delight and also we become conscious of our ignorance .
Love ❤
Michel
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It is always good to see you, dear Michel! Yes, the humblest of flowers are so beautiful! All they need is for someone to stop by and look at them. The world goes at such a fast pace, we often do not see such beauties underfoot, or in a meadow.
Love to you, Janine and the family, ❤
Lavinia
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I wrote my reply twice at the wrong place . I am sorry, Lavinia . It is late here and I need to go to bed !! 🙂
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Do not worry, Michel, all is good. Sleep is always a good thing. 🙂
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I wished to be there dear Lavinia and to listen to you… I am so glad to hear this, and also how happiness you are here again. Your flowers are so beautiful, seems like being in heaven. And yes, cats… your lovely cats too. Thank you dear Lavinia, have a nice new Month, Love to you all, nia
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Dear Nia, thank you for stopping by and for the kind comments! It is always good to see you, and I think about you and your family, and the kitties. I will be by to visit this weekend. It has been a busy summer, and not enough of me to go around.
Love to you, the kitties and the family, ❤
Lavinia
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The queen Ann’s lace viewed in close photo reveals all of its delicateness such a lace indeed . Besides not only this beautiful but this species is probably the ancestor of our carrots . Thanks you , Lavinia , to recall this to us..
i put this reply at the wrong place below so I put it here as it must be !! 🙂
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I got both responses, Michel. No worries, my friend. 🙂
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What a lovely post, Lavinia! I knew Michael’s tree as I slowly scrolled down, read the caption, and said – “I knew it!!” It is certainly a beauty – I can’t thank you enough.
So happy the Feline Correspondents are now well and happy – we MUST have their point of view every season!
I’ll certainly get over to the YouTube site later. I’m not about to miss a Lavinia concert!
Thank you, Rick for being their to help and keep up the great farm work!
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Thank you so much for stopping by, and for the kind comments, GP! Yes, Michael’s tree is the tallest of the line of five, and put on a growth spurt this year.
The respiratory infection that went through the cats was something else. They never go out except a vet visit. Sometimes things can come in on visiting people, on shoes, etc. Their breathing sounded like something between Darth Vader and a quacking duck. Appetites were off, lots of sneezing. All the cats got it except for two of them, who had some light sneezing fits, but that was all. All are back to normal now, and enjoying the open windows and sunny weather.
I’ll slowly get the rest of this blog site updated. It’s been one interesting year. Not enough of me, or Rick to go around.
All the best, GP!
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I totally understand!!
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🙂
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A lovely, poetic post, certainly worth waiting for. Mr. Nano is quite the philosopher feline. He ought to branch out into poetry, if he wanted a side gig. Glad all of the cats are back to full health. Good luck with your music. Pat
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Thank you so much for stopping by, Pat, and for all the kind comments! Mr. Nano thanks you, too. 🙂
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The queen Ann’s lace viewed in close photo reveals all of its delicateness such a lace indeed . Besides not only this beautiful but this species is probably the ancestor of our carrots . Thanks you , Lavinia , to recall this to us.
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I got both responses, Michel. No worries, my friend. 🙂
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Dear Lavinia, I’m delighted to hear that you are performing your music regularly. Your voice and playing are beautiful. Thanks for taking time to give us this lovely, lyrical post. Such a beautiful place. Hugs on the wing!
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Thank your for stopping by, Teagan, and thank you so much for the kind comments! Summer is going by here all too fast. Hugs on the wing back to you, too, from all of us here. 🙂
We’ve seen a lot of hummingbirds this year. I think about your Bob the Hummingbird character when I see them.
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I’m absolutely thrilled that Bob (or any of my characters) continues in your memory, Lavinia. That makes me feel wonderful. ❤
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You do some great writing, Teagan; your characters are memorable. I am still waiting for you to finish Guitar Mancer. 🙂
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I really enjoy your music so when you tour of Scotland is arranged, let me know and i will come to hear you.
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Thank you for stopping by, Mr. Tootlepedal, and thank you for the kind comments! I would love to tour Scotland someday. 🙂
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That song is beautiful, Lavinia. Your voice and the guitar are perfection.
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Thank you for stopping by, Jodie, and thank you for the kind comment! 🙂
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It is so good to read one of your beautiful posts again! I am sorry the cats weren’t well earlier in the year but glad they all appear to have recovered. Mr Nano, especially hasn’t lost his way with words! Wonderful photos of the skies and the plants in your neck of the woods – thank you, Lavinia!
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It is always good to see you Clare! Thanks for stopping by and for the kind comments! Mr. Nano sends his thanks to you, too! It is good to see your posts again! I enjoy reading about what is going on in your beautiful English countryside as well.
We still have lots of yellow bartsia growing wild out back. You helped identify that for us. 🙂
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Oh yes! I remember that! Thank you, too! 🙂
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Beautiful blooms. Have you ever tried eating Queen Anne’s Lace? It is very tasty. Every year I make some, I coat them like onion rings and fry them. They have a lemony flavor.
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Good to see you, 15AndMeowing! Thank you for stopping by and for the information on Queen Anne’s Lace! I did not know they were edible. They sound good!
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It looks lovely there, even if things have dried up for the season. I’m glad the kitty correspondents recovered and that you are playing around the coast. That sounds as though it might be fun–but luckily you have your own roadie!
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Good to see you, Lisa! Thanks for stopping by, and for the kind comments! The Oregon coast is such a beautiful place. The Pacific has a unique mood and feel to it. Yes, I am glad to have my own roadie. The trip out there is about 2 1/2 hrs one-way from here.
All the best to you!
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It’s so good to hear from you and Mr. Nano. I totally understand about needing to cut back on how often you post but I’ve been thinking about you all! You and Rick have a good partnership–doing for each other. And I’m glad the cats made it thru their rough patch–scary when they get sick and especially all at the same time!
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Good to see you, Kerry! Thanks for stopping by and for the kind comments! Yes, Rick and I do have a good partnership. We like to say it takes two of us to get anything done 🙂
The cats did give us a scare, but they are all healthy now. Those respiratory illnesses are not easy, and five of the eight are elderly now.
I am starting to catch up with life, somewhat, and hope to be by soon to visit with you all. I love your quilting and sewing projects!
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Whoa! You just spent a lot of time catching up on my site!! I certainly hope you found it worth your wild, Lavinia. Thank you very much!
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Hi GP, your site is always worth a good catching up. There is so much there about WWII that is not taught in the history books. It also helps me understand my father’s time in the Pacific during the war.
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I’m happy to hear that!!
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Thank you for sharing the wonders of your seasons, which are beautifully described as always Lavinia. I particularly love that passage from Mr Nano about the shorter days and aging bones.
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It is always good to see you, Andrea, thanks for stopping by and the kind comments! Mr. Nano also sends his sincere thanks. We enjoy your accounting of the seasons there. You are a talented writer!
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Thanks Lavinia 🙂
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I planted carrots (experimentally) in a spot soon forgotten on year. The next year, the carrots finished their biennial process with a lovely proof of their relationship to Queen Anne’s Lace, those flowers. I was curious about scent, of course, since I love the scent of carrot foliage. I’d describe it as bubblegum + carrot! LOL! Oh well, I would plant carrot seeds as biennials for foliage the first year and those lovely bubblegun-carrot flowers the second anytime!
I reall\y enjoyed this post for all the flowers and your dead-on description of the season’s blessings! You are the best, Lavinia! And you sing beautifully, too!
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It is so good to know you are back home and recovering with your kitties, Doug! Thank you for stopping by and all the very kind comments! I would love to grow carrots here, but the soil is heavy clay, and needs a lot more more compost. I bet those carrot blooms you grew smelled wonderful. Bubblegum + carrot sounds sweet!
The cats and crew here send their best to you, Andy and Dougy cats. Stay well, Doug! You are a dear friend in our community!
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We have heavy clay soil here, too, but as few miles to the east y=wee have the Nebrasjh=ka Sandhills, which ptrovide a lovely amendment to clay soils in the form of wind-blown sand. If you can manage sand from someone’s cdorral, you get the added benefit of manure. Where I grew the carrots was rich in organic material from decades of a rose bush shedding leaves there. As for the scent, it was a bit cloying…!
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Hi Doug, I fished your reply out of SPAM. I am not sure why it ended up in there. Sand + clay + organic matter = good soil. I bet those were great carrots!
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I have that same problem. I was really happy when someone pointed me in the right direction to retrieve comments i accidentally trashed. I think I accidentally hit something on the lower left hand of the keyboard that does it. Perhaps the other part is a cfombination of some letter in the first thing I type. Whatever it is, it is irritating! Soooo…
Actually, they might have been the first year, but these were accidentally biennial carrots, and the root is inedible, “rooty”. I decided to let them self-sow after that. The tops get heavy, droop, and wind and birds knock the seeds to the ground.
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Self-seeding carrots sound like a good solution!
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It’s fun to see how nature assures the next year’s growtrh~!
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She works in strange ways sometimes. So far, the grapes and apples are the most promising this year on the fruit end of it. We have had a new kind of bug wreaking havoc in the raspberries this year. A friend who used to work in the Extension service took a few for identification. They are black beetles with a lone red spot.
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I am a fan of the old fashioned hollyhock, buth for the showy flowers and trhe extra dimension they give to the garden. A few years ago, commercial sunflower growing arrived here in Box Butte County. Along with the sunflowers, a pest (the sunflower bud cutting weevil) arrived that also is a pest on hollyhocks. They sever the bud, which, of course, reduces flower production.
Best wishes with your pest!
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Thanks for the good wishes on our new bug identification! Zipping off to work now. I’ll check in with you and the boys this evening.
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That sign reminds me of the Norskie Nook, a bakery and diner in a tiny town in NW Wisconsin. Stopping there for pie has become a tradition when we we drive from Chicago to the Twin Cities (and back again, if I can convince Judy).
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Always good to see you, Jason! Thanks for stopping by and for the kind comments! I remember when we lived back east and used to travel west. W eha dour own traditional places we stopped.
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I love sharing the seasons with you, Lavinia, with all the wonderful photos of what is blooming. The iris is stunning, and although I have heard of feral cats and dogs, I must admit, I have never heard of feral plants. What one may also call volunteers? That Mr. Nano – becoming still more poetic as he ages. He has such an imagination. 🙂
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I thinks of plants as being “feral”, as well as volunteers in tended beds, who seem more tidy than their feral cousins somehow. Gardens that grow wild-looking due to lack of human attention I tend to think of as feral.
Like me, Mr. Nano does have his own way of looking at the world. 🙂
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Ahh – well, that makes sense, and I’ve learned something new! And that the area between my driveway and privet hedge can now be officially considered as feral. 😦
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I have many feral areas here this year. 🙂
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It is so good to see your post and know that you are well. I enjoyed the flowers and Mr. Nano’s essay and point of view! I wish the best of everything to you and your family!
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Always good to see you, Montucky! Thanks for stopping by and for the very kind comments! Mr. Nano sends his sincere thanks. He is a good observer, and I count on his view of life. 🙂
Wishing you all the best from all of us here. We enjoy your posts from Montana Outdoors
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What a lovely parade of flowers! The Queen Anne’s Lace is so beautiful. I also love Michael’s tree – a perfect tree! Your beautiful writing matches the beauty all around you. I enjoy reading your beautiful post and Mr. Nano’s report!!!
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Always good to see you Rosalinda! Thank you for stopping by and for the kind comments! Micheal’s tree is a coastal sequoia, and will grow strong and tall, providing shade and homes for birds and wildlife. A friend had given us the seedlings some years ago, and the trees have done well in that line.
Mr. Nano sends his sincere thanks as well!
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How wonderful to have such beautiful flowers around you.
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Always good to see you T! Thanks for stopping by and the kind comment! Those flowers can sure brighten up a day. 🙂
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I was so happy to see your post. And when I saw the conversation about being “back in the saddle,” I smiled and smiled, since it brought to mind one of my favorite cowboys, and his song about the same experience. Funny, how the memories from childhood linger.
I was sorry to read that the cats had been sharing ill-health, but it seems that all is well. I was particularly struck by Mr. Nano’s comment that “no day can be replicated.” That’s so true. I suppose it’s human to want to repeat a day, particularly when it’s filled with good things, but each day has its gifts — as your wonderful flowers seem to prove.
Your Queen Anne’s lace is beautiful. It’s not common here, although it can be found north of me, especially around the Oklahoma border. I got to see fields of it (and ditches filled with it) in Arkansas a couple of years ago, and it was so appealing. I especially like the buds and the seed heads — more proof that every stage of life can be lovely.
I laughed at the discussion about feral/volunteer plants, too. Perhaps we should throw another term into the mix and call them “free range”!
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It is always good to see you, Linda. Thank you for stopping by and for the kind comments! I love the idea of “free range” plants! Lemon balm and spearmint are certainly in that category, too!
Queen Anne’s lace is everywhere here, and I remember it from my days in New England. I hear the “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies” in my head when I look at them. Perhaps the umbrels remind me of a ballerina’s costume as they dance and bow in the breeze. They are lovely rogues, and thrive in poor soil. You are right, every stage in life can be lovely.
The cats are all well, and I work hard at that. Most of them are seniors now. The youngest, the three sisters, are 6 years old, the oldest is 17. The other four range from 12 to 14 years old.
I will listen to that Gene Autry song. Thank you! 🙂
All the best to you and your family, Linda! 🙂
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Happy summer to you.
As I traveled around the Northeast over the past few weeks, Queen Anne’s lace was by far the most common wildflower I saw along roadsides. In second place was chicory, also not a native species.
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Always good to see you, Steve, thanks for stopping by and for the kind comments! Happy summer to you, too! I also remember chicory, with its striking blue flowers. Yarrow was almost as common back there as QAL.
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That sure is a beautiful sunset .. and your flowers are so lovely Lavinia. How good to hear from you 😄
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Always a pleasure to see you stop by from Frog Pond Farm in New Zealand, Julie! Thank you for the kind comments! You should be in the tail end of winter now, and it will be spring there soon.
All the best to you and your family, and all the critters!
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Thanks Lavinia 😄
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Although your days are growing shorter, it looks like you’ve had plenty of beauty along the way. Keep fit and healthy, all of you — we trust your harvests of food and grapes go very well.
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Always good to see you, Annie! Thanks for stopping by from AnimalCouriers, and thank you for the kind comments! I hope the recent heat wave there did not affect your vineyard, and that you will have a good vintage. We are all trying to stay fit and healthy as best we can. 🙂
A friend in Sicily wants to know if you have any connections to dog and cat rescue operations in their country.
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Mr Nano is really a poet cat . I am amazed by his romantic way to describe the sunrise and the games of light through the drops of the dew . And also his pleasure at watching the glow of the sunset .
He is also a cat that is observing the other species : birds: sparrow,s goldfinches….moles, fox etc …
Short reports you say, Lavinia , but so much interesting and poetic .
Love ❤
Michel
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It is always good to see you, Michel! Thanks for stopping by and for the kind comments! Mr. Nano also sends his sincere thanks. He is a very observant cat, nothing much escapes him. 🙂
So far we have had reasonable weather for August, not too hot, and some cloudy days to keep things cooler and from getting cooked in the sun. The garden is growing fast, in a race with time now. It is only about another 5 weeks until the autumnal equinox.
Much love to you, Janine and the family, ❤
Lavinia
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You are in a area with a well balanced weather, Lavinia, allowing varoious growings such wineyard and others . ❤
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Flower parade was beautiful. You have so much of everything there.
I don’t think any area has ideal weather any more. We had extra hot July. You are saying it’s very hot and dry at your place.
The weather can be a huge problem for farmers because it is less predictable nowadays.
Glad you’re playing live and giving performances. Great thing to do!
Wishing you nice rest of the summer!
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It is always good to see you, Inese! Thanks for stopping by and for the kind comments!
The weather patterns seem to oscillate. Our normal summer is hot and dry. We are getting some of those days, although this July and August have been fortunately cooler and cloudier than recent years.
All the best to you, Inese! Have a wonderful summer, too!
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Some wonderful flowers – feral and tame – hope you’ve had a great summer!
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It’s wonderful to see you again! Thanks for stopping by from Canada, and for the kind comment! Summer is going by quickly here. Seems faster every year. How are Romy and Ivy?
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Ivy is as feisty as ever and Romy is great as long as I’m accompanied by an apple 😂. Greetings from your Northern neighbours!
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Good to hear all are well! 🙂
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Happy summertime, Lavinia! Love the flowers and trails down the Oregan Coast sound delightful. 🙂 I wanted to watch your music videos but you must have taken them down.
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Hi Kevin, thanks for stopping by and the kind comments! Always good to see you. The videos are still there, but something has changed with how YouTube is working with other websites. You have to go to the Salmon Brook Farms YouTube site to play them. Copy the individual video URL and open in another window which will take you directly to YouTube. I’ll fix it in the meantime.
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Sounds like a plan. 🙂
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Just subscribed. 🙂
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Thanks, Kevin! Welcome aboard. 🙂
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Hi Lavinia,
Sounds like you’re having a busy summer too. Whenever we come off the horse show tour, there’s plenty of catch up – both work and ranch stuff – but it settles down within 2-3 weeks. We’ve planted a couple of mini-rose shrubs but mostly keep our landscape close to natural with whatever rainfall we receive. Our “lawn” is a mix of buffalo grass and rye, which greens up nicely in the spring. Both grasses are drought hardy but will go brown and crunchy during long stretches of dry. When the summer monsoon rains arrive, then it’ll green up. In the paddocks and pastures, it is primarily prairie grasses, which aren’t much different from when the Johnson family established North Ranch in 1882. Our wildflowers are all volunteers. I did think about buying couple of pounds of wildflower seeds back in the spring for a few bare areas, but I kept it bare.
Mr. Nano is a very observant cat. Such a thorough report. 🙂
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Always a pleasure to see you, David. Thanks for stopping by and for the kind comments! Our monsoons arrive in winter, turning the grass green again. It’s pretty dry out there right now, and I am grateful for a cooler than normal August.
Mr. Nano is one sharp cookie! 🙂
All the best to you and your family. I enjoy reading about your daughters equestrian endeavors, and I know you are quite proud of them being in medical school now, too. They are amazing young women!
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Lovely music!!!
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Thank you for stopping by and for the kind comment on the music, Chocoviv! Welcome aboard to our farm and music blog. 🙂
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Thank you!
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I pulled your comment out of the SPAM filter. Sorry it took so long to post it. 😦
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🥰 thank you! Never too late!
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Lavinia , I still listened to ‘ Weary stranger ” and once again I tell you I love your voice and the harmony with the sounds of your guitar. This was playes in 2017 . I have suscribed an abonnement on you Tube and I hope after the work in the wineyard you and Rick will compose new musical pieces for Christmas .
Love ❤
Michel
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Thank you so much for stooping by from France, dear Michel! It is always good to see you! And thank you for subscribing to our YouTube channel. I hope to get more videos up once I have the laptop up and running again.
Love to you, Janine and the family, ❤
Lavinia
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encouragements, Lavinia .
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Having had respiratory trouble myself this year, I sympathise with the cats. Like them I produced a range of sound effects, ranging from the calls of small birds to the breathing of a mummy in a black and white film. It is often more alarming for the listener that the patient.
Thanks for the pictures of the coast, I just spent an enjoyable ten minutes on Google and now w ant to see Black Oyster-catchers. .
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Always good to see you, Quercus! Thanks for stopping by and the kind comments! Yes, the cats sympathize with you, too. It was alarming here for a little while, with nothing to do but ride it out.
Our Pacific Northwest is very beautiful, especially the coastline. You and Julia would have a great time touring from up in Washington, all along Oregon and all the way down into northern California.
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I think we may have left it a bit late to travel. One of the kids is currently i Toronto, sending us pictures. The other was in New Caledonia last week – he sent a selection of tropical beach photos just to rub it in.
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I’ll try to take more photos of the coast. 🙂
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It would be nice to see more. I was struck, when reading one of the sign boards, by the way we share the same ground with so many people over the years.
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I will take more photos of places along our travels. 🙂
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When I come back on your post, Lavinia I like to be welcomed by the glorious flowers you put at the beginning . You have a dream garden that enchants the eyes ?and also great production.
Love ❤
Michel
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Always good to see you, Michel! Thank you so much! ❤
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Thank you Lavinia for your kind comment about my father’s carbide lamp . You are kind
Michel ❤
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You are welcome, Michel! I love your stories of what life was like back then.
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awesome fields to walk thru!
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Thank you for stopping by and for the kind comments, KRC! Welcome to the Salmon Brook Farms blog site. Yes, it is a very beautiful place. 🙂
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Love your flowers and while I can sorta kinda sing… I’ve always admired those who can play a musical instrument.
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Always good to see you, Teri! Thanks for stopping by and the kind comments. You take some amazing photos!
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Thank you so much, Lavinia 🙂
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When I see the beauty of your flowers at the beginning of this post, Lavinia, I think mine still flowers in mid-September but they have lost their bright freshness. They give a lesson .
Love ❤
Michel
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“Days like flowers bloom and fade, and do not come again” is a line from one of Kate Wolf’s beautiful songs, “These Times We’re Living In”. Each day is a gift, dear Michel. Yes, the flowers do teach us a lesson.
Love to you, Janine and the family, ❤
Lavinia
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Yesterday I started to dig out the numerous dahlias and put them in the cellar before the frost comes ( often at the beginning of November ). They still were poorly in bloom . At the place I will put bulbs of Tulips to bloom at spring.
Love ❤
Michel
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Always good to see you, Michel! Yes, the bulbs will brighten up the land come spring. Our daffodils start blooming in late January here.
We have had three killing frosts in a row here now. Autumn’s cold, with Old Man Winter in close pursuit, has come early.
Love to you and the family, ❤
Lavinia
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Lovely photos and descriptions, Lavinia! Such a nice way to keep updated on how you’re doing…. Glad your kitties are better sounds scary! Also glad that you’re still performing. Please say hello to Rick. Well wishing to you all! Love & Hugs, Nina
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Always good to see you, Nina, thanks for stopping by! Rick sends his best back to you, too. Please say hello to everyone back there in our old stomping ground.
The kitties are well, but they are aging right along with me and Rick, and five of the eight are over 12 years old now, getting into the age group where they are more fragile. The youngest, the Three Sisters, are 6 years old. Time flies!
Love and hugs back to you, too! ❤
Lavinia
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A beautiful post, Lavinia. Glad you’re still singing. I don’t know what the world would be like without music. I loved seeing all of your gorgeous flowers. What a lovely place you live in. It looks so tranquil. This respiratory infection seems to be doing the rounds this summer, doesn’t it? So happy that your feline friends are now recovered. Great to read Mr Nano’s informative update as always.
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Always good to see you! Thank you for stopping by and for the kind comments! Mr. Nano sends his thanks as well. 🙂 It is a lovely place, and we are having an early start to the rainy season, which is far better than an extended fire season. The farm is full of life in its various forms, and tranquil, too.
Yes, the respiratory infection went through all the cats, some had a harder time than others, especially old Abby cat. All seem to be fine now.
All the best to you!
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Lovely pictures and inspiring music. Thank you.
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Good to see you, Jacqui! Thanks for stopping by, and for the kind comment!
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Our Queen Anne’s Lace (and various other field wildflowers – Goldenrod, Joe-Pye-Weed, Ironweed, Bouncing-Bette, Asters, etc.) have gone to seed for the fall season. I’m cutting them down & moving the seed heads to other locations in my Spreading-The-Meadow project… less law, more meadow the better. – Oscar
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Thanks for visiting, Oscar! Always good to see you. I love a good meadow filled with wildflowers, too. Summer is a bit dry here, so only the most drought tolerant make it.
All the best to you at The Hermits Door!
Lavinia
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I’ve finally got a day out of rehearsal to catch up with my blog, thank you for your lovely message again this week Lavinia, and what a super post I’ve read here the Queen Anne’s Lace is just lovely and I have a project soon to decorate some fake white trees and they would look super on the end of the spikes if I can find them in fabric.
I love listening and watching live music you are so right to encourage people to get out and give small concerts and live music a try. I’ll have to drop back in to listen to your videos because I haven’t got my earphones with me. Keep in touch xx Charlotte
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Good to see you, Charlotte! Thanks for stopping by and for the kind comments! Someone must make Queen Anne’s Lace in fabric. A crafting supply store may be able to help.
I’ve always loved music of all kinds. I used to play on the swing set and sing when I was a child. The window will close on me someday, and I am out there enjoying myself making music while I can. I wish I had your vocal range! I do my best work in the basement. 🙂
All the best on your tour!
Lavinia
Readers and opera lovers, please visit Charlotte’s blog at Charlotte Hoather
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I came across your post today and liked your photos and your way of expressing everything. Regards, Lakshmi Bhat
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Welcome to Salmon Brook Farms, Lakshmi! Thank you for visiting and for the kind comments. All the best to you!
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I really love the flower photos.
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Welcome to Salmon Brook Farms, rabirius. Thank you for stopping by and enjoying the flowers! They are beautiful. 🙂
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You’re welcome.
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