04-NOV-2011
Cardinal nest
This is an unusual place for a cardinal nest, but during the earlier part of the summer, this is where the cardinals were coming and going. Normally, they like the protection of cedar trees or other conifers, or even shrubs such as tartarian honeysuckle. However, in summer, these vines were thick and dense with leaves so there was certainly good cover.
01-NOV-2011
Polypore (Daedalopsis)
A common polypore, this one had grown around an Oriental Bittersweet vine in the Birch Grove. Barry and Jeff removed the vines today and in so doing, left a small amount of the bark in this polypore.
01-NOV-2011
Blue-stain fungus (Chlorociboria aeruginascens)
When blue stained wood is first encountered, people wonder where the colour comes from, and often suspect it is of human origin. First time I saw it, I thought someone had splashed blue paint on logs. I eventually learned that this is the hyphae of a very pretty sac fungus. After a good rainfall, gorgeous little blue sac fungi appear on rotting logs. Well worth looking for.
01-NOV-2011
Dark-eyed junco on Sorghum
Adjacent to the garden is a field of Sorghum which is attracting big flocks of juncos.
01-NOV-2011
Sorghum
There is a crop of sorghum growing adjacent to the FWG. Here, you can see the seeds that attract birds such as juncos to feast on them. Sorghum, of which there are many species, is a grass that has long been cultivated as a grain both for human food and for fodder.
01-NOV-2011
Red squirrel
Found this little guy on the edge of Old Field.
01-NOV-2011
Amphibian Pond
Looking across the pond on the first day of November. I guess it won't be long before we see ice and snow covering this tranqil scene. There were about a dozen black ducks and mallards on the pond.
01-NOV-2011
American bittersweet (Celastrus scandens)
While the Birch Grove is overrun with the invasive Asian Bittersweet, there are still a few plants of the native species around the garden. This is the seed head of the native plant.
01-NOV-2011
Reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea)
This small patch of reed canary grass is growing near the Old Field and I don't recall having seen it before! But this grass has a way of appearing, and disappearing too.
01-NOV-2011
High-bush cranberry (Viburnum trilobum)
The pretty glistening red fruit of the high-bush cranberry. It looks similar to that of the non-native vine, deadly nightshade. Although this shrub is touted as a good food source for birds, we find that few birds or animals eat the fruit. It may be that the shrubs we have are cultivars, grown for their lack of appeal to wildlife, ensuring the fruit stays on all winter. But I don't really know.