24-OCT-2009
Old Field
Another shot of the old field, showing the raspberries and the mist over the treetops in the background.
24-OCT-2009
Green Heron Way
For those who don't know, some years ago, one of our previous volunteers suggested we name various parts of the garden so that we'd all know to which section we were referring. This stretch of the service road, running from Prince of Wales Drive to the Ash Woods, and between the Old Field (left) and Birch Grove (right), was called Green Heron Way because we frequently saw the herons flying back and forth across it. I think this is the only name that has stuck! Here, we are looking west along the road.
24-OCT-2009
Carleton University from FWG
Looking towards Carleton U, shrouded in mist, from the Old Field.
24-OCT-2009
Tamaracks (Larch)
This row of tamaracks is on the northwest edge of the Ash Woods. This is an anomalous species, a conifer that loses its needles each fall. They turn a gorgeous golden yellow before all the needles drop off.
24-OCT-2009
Oriental bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus)
This is an old vine that has been around for some time. Another such vine used to be on the west side of the Old Field thickets, but haven't seen it for awhile. Another vine has self-seeded along the fence at the Amphbian Pond. It didn't take long for it to grow to a substantial size. This is the non-native vine that not only is considered a serious invasive, especially a little bit south of here, but also hybridizes with our native bittersweet vine, not a good thing.
20-OCT-2009
Stinkbug possibly Brachymena sp.
These very large stinkbugs are pretty common in fall. I have seen quite a number at FWG over the last few days.
13-OCT-2009
American Robin
This robin was having a grand time feasting on crabapples.
13-OCT-2009
Ducks on raft
Mallards and Black ducks were happily making use of the turtle raft! There must have been about 30+ ducks in the pond. Down in the Arboretum there were over a 100, mostly mallards.
Not a lot of birds around today, but there was a large flock of dark-eyed juncos near the Interpretive Centre, and lots of goldfinches and chickadees in various locations. Robins have made inroads on the mountain ash fruit near the Ravine! Last week the fruit was untouched, today it is nearly all gone. House finches are more apparent now as their numbers build. During the winter we often have flocks of anywhere from 10 to 20+ around the garden. A far cry from the old days (a decade or more ago) when we would find large flocks of 60+ around FWG.
13-OCT-2009
Trail through sumacs
This lovely stand of sumacs is on the western side of the Old Field, on the very edge of the FWG property.
13-OCT-2009
Storm's approach
Looking north across the Ravine toward the Arboretum, the sky is darkening quickly. Within about 4 minutes the skies opened!
13-OCT-2009
Mushroom (Marasmius sp.)
This unbelievably tiny and delicate mushroom is not uncommon, just overlooked much of the time because of its tiny size. The stems are thread-like and seem too fragile to hold up even this tiny mushroom head.
11-OCT-2009
Red-legged Grasshopper (Melanoplus femurrubrum)
Diane was at the FWG on Sunday, and found this lovely red-legged grasshopper.
