The blooming flowers signal that autumn is coming, but the weather still feels like summer, with highs in the mid- to high 80s and lows in the mid-60s. (I know that these temps seem cool to many of you, but the averages here are 80 and 60 or cooler for this time of year.)
The turkeys wait for me to feed, and some of the deer do, too. Here’s what it looks like as I walk down. Other deer come out of the woods and up the road when they hear me call. The twins pass by near my house almost daily but still run off when I approach. One of the other fawns is getting a little bolder, and I am concerned that one of the does may still be pregnant.
The walk down into the meadow is especially colorful this time of year. The wingstems (Verbesina alternifolia) and ironweed (Vernonia noveboracensis) are some of my favorites. I also like seeing the Carolina elephant’s foot (Elephantopus carolinianus)—Roll Tide!—and goldenrod in the meadow. Up in the orchard the apples have all been picked (by me, not the deer!), some hardy ageratum and rudbeckia are blooming on the dry slope, and the milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) pods are getting ready to let their seeds float away. Around the house the wild poinsettia (Euphorbia cyathophora) I brought from Alabama is developing seeds and the cardinal flowers (Lobelia cardinalis) continue to put on a show that attracts butterflies and hummingbirds.
It’s been dry, but we’ve had some foggy mornings, as you can see below. Maybe we’ll get rain before I post again.
French Broad Hollow Ramble 