more yard work and a plethora of butterflies

I got all the trees, virginia creeper, and one small grapevine out from under the monster rose and stumps poisoned on Sunday. After I cut the smaller pile of pruning from Saturday into more manageable lengths it took three trips with the garden cart to haul it to the burn pile and that was it, I was done for the day. Still haven't got the compost turned into the ground.

Monday I had two tasks to choose from...getting the compost turned in and vegetable plants planted and dealing with the other large pile of rose pruning. I figured I had the energy and motivation to get one done so I got the compost turned in and broccoli and cauliflower starts in. Then I moved the large pot of bird of paradise to a different location and expanded my little fall garden area. Now I need another bag of compost.

Even though it was overcast it was hot and muggy and I started sweating at breakfast over my oatmeal, hot and sweaty when I came in from my labor outside, sweaty when I got back from walking the dog and not feeling all that great, figured I just overdid it the last three days. Took a shower and felt a little better, got dressed for yoga and sweating and almost sleepy while waiting for time to leave and texted Abby that I wasn't coming to class.

Monday night another cold front blew in and was supposed to bring us much needed rain but if it rained it wasn't much or for very long because the dog did not register it at all. At least it blew out the hot muggy weather. It also blew down a yard full of branches and, in a few cases, some dead limbs so I spent Tuesday afternoon picking up sticks and branches but before that I cut up and hauled the last pile of rose pruning over to the burn pile, three cart loads piled high.

Then I went and did this...

This morning after breakfast I went out in this glorious clear blue sky low humidity pleasant temperature day and picked up more fallen branches and wandered over to the orange cosmos and, while you can't tell from this picture, 

it is swarming with bees and butterflies that are migrating through. I saw one or more long tails, snout, buckeyes, fritillaries, monarchs, sulfurs, painted lady, queen (I think, she was flying away), swallowtails, hairstreak, and a skipper (I think). I haven't seen so many butterflies at once in I can't remember how long, maybe a private river trip in Big Bend during migration in the spring after rain and a rare explosion of wildflowers. I tried to get pictures but they were all in constant motion. The monarchs were the most cooperative.

And this one that I have never seen before and which I followed all over trying to get a good picture and this is the best I could manage. I think it might be a California pipevine swallowtail.

A couple more things blooming...

The yellow bells aka Tecoma sans aka esperanza over in the shop yard, the other monster bush.

The pink trumpet flower shrub/vine in full bloom, also in the shop yard.

And I declare myself completely well.

 

voting, yard sign wars, and plant deformities

Thanks to everyone for the kind comments on my work. Still waiting on the sink install to get completed so I can get back to making. Rocky showed up at the back door yesterday afternoon bleeding and anxious. One of his daughters-in-law was stranded on the side of the road with her three girls and he needed to go deal with that. Not sure how he cut his finger but I forced some hydrogen peroxide and a bandaid on him before he took off.

I mentioned a while back that our annual open house with fellow glass and craft artists is canceled this year because of the virus and the other art show that goes on one of the same weekends is also not doing an in person show but has decided to go virtual this year. The organizers of the Heights Artisan Market have worked hard to create a website to showcase the work of some of the artists and we were invited to participate. Here's a link to the Heights Artisan Market website and I invite all my readers to check it out and hopefully support some of the artists who have basically lost a whole year's income since all their shows and venues have been canceled through the year.

I went and did my time at SHARE yesterday morning. Not too busy, only had 7 or 8 clients coming to pick up food so I finished up early and then went to vote timing it just right. 

There was one couple ahead of me, I waited maybe 5 minutes, voted straight Democratic except for the 5 or 6 uncontested Republicans for whatever they were running for. I would have skipped them altogether but our new voting machines won't let you do that. You get an error message if you try so I don't care for that but I do like that these new machines produce a paper ballot that has your choices printed on that you then take to another machine that you insert it into. And why do they even put uncontested candidates on the ballot? They're gonna get the job no matter how many people vote or don't vote for them.

Well, I've done all I can do by voting but over in my sister's old neighborhood there a battle of the yard signs going on. First one house set out 3 Biden yard signs, then the Trump supporters across the street put out a Trump yard sign, then the Biden house put up two long narrow banners on either side of their front door, then the Trump house put out an American flag and a Trump flag, then the Biden house put up a huge poster on the side of their house and that's where it sits now. 

Waiting to see if the Trump house escalates. And speaking of battles, Biden looked and sounded very presidential at his Town Hall meeting while Trump looked and sounded like everybody's crazy uncle and Trump got slaughtered in the ratings. So now of course today he's demanding Biden's arrest.

Later my sister and I went to an estate sale in West Columbia, about 40 minutes from here and once in the town but before we reached our destination, one of Google's street view camera cars passed us on the right. I would have tried to get a picture but we were using my device for the GPS.

My confederate rose started blooming this week but the deformity that eventually attacks all my confederate rose bushes has appeared on both and affects the leaves and the buds. On one the flowers open pale pink, are smaller than normal and sparse in petals.

On the other bush they are opening half white and half pink and are so dense they can't really open fully.

I have no idea what it is that is affecting them, takes about 3 - 4 years to show up on a new plant. The leaves get deformed, small and curled and just plain look weird (you can see the healthy normal leaves in the back), 

the buds are not full and oval but skinny and elongated. Usually it just affects the leaves and buds but on one bush one of the stems is all gnarly. 

I have tried for years to find out what is causing this and no one, not amateurs or experts alike, can tell me so if anybody out there knows, fill me in.