Skywatch

Sunrise this morning…

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New Walkway

I have a new place to take walks---straight across the cornfield through the rows that were recently chopped for silage:

 

Ironweed

This picture was taken close to a nearby creek the other day:

Those brown-headed plants in the pasture area are Ironweed.  I could kick myself for not getting there when they were in bloom.  Their flowers are very pretty…sort of a purple-magenta color.  I’ll have to remember to go there earlier in the season next year.

Brown-Eyed Susan

Recently, I stopped to take a closer look at this patch of wildflowers along a nearby road.  With the help of the flower book, I found them to be Brown-Eyed Susans.  Their petals are shorter and wider than Black-eyed Susans and their stems are different.    

Often, the wildflowers I find are along gravel roads, which explains the whitish dust.

Today

Our soybean field is looking more golden by the hour, it seems!  I love golden soybean fields, so you might see more photos of them here on the blog.  This one was taken this afternoon:

 

I drove the tractor most of today, disking this cornfield that had been chopped for silage a few days ago:

I’m typing this while sitting on the porch this evening enjoying a sunset similar to the one in this final photo which was taken a couple days ago:

Barn Charm

I like seeing barns like this---it has modern steel siding in that old-fashioned red color!

Happy 100th Barn Charm to Tricia and everyone! 

Visit Bluff Area Daily to see more barn photos.

Bird Shots

Here’s some birds I found on my photo hunts over the weekend.  (Sorry they’re blurry---I don’t have the right lens for good bird photos.)  I searched the bird book for this first one and concluded that it might be a 1st-year female American Redstart:       

I can’t figure out this next one.  It might be some kind of Warbler.  If you recognize it, let me know.

 

Near a creek, this Great Blue Heron flew up:

And, finally, my walking companion, Buster---who is hardly a bird dog---wandered into a cornfield and managed to flush out several Pheasants!  This one is a rooster:

There’s been very few Pheasants around the past few years.  I hope he finds a place to hide this fall during hunting season!

Locust Tree

Silo-filling continues.  Sometimes, in between making casseroles and brownies for the guys, I sneak away on photo hunts.  That’s what happens when you become a blogger! 

A couple miles from here is a woodsy area along the road and I went there recently.  “NO TRESPASSING” signs can be depressing, so why not fight back by taking pictures of them! 

On the right in the above photo is some kind of Locust tree. 

Here’s a closer look at the seed pods:

Speaking of blogging, sometimes I get so caught up in reading the nearly 240 blogs on my Google Reader that I would almost rather do that than post on my own blog. Usually, there are around 100 or so new blogposts to look at every day.  My husband and I don’t travel much, so I really enjoy scenery photos from other parts of the U.S. and the world.  Awhile back, I decided not to be a follower of blogs anymore.  Being a follower is just not my thing, but I do very much enjoy perusing many blogs!   

Soybean Field

Yesterday morning from the backseat I snapped this shot of a soybean field that’s on its way to gold! 

Your Sunday Best

I like how the depth of focus turned out in this SOOC photo taken yesterday:

Visit A Rural Journal for Your Sunday Best.

Weekly Top Shot

I went on a photo hunt this afternoon and found evidence of autumn’s approach.  I particularly liked this picture of a Cottonwood tree.  The breeze through its leaves sounded so nice, too.  Cottonwoods are known for that.

Visit The View From Right Here to find Weekly Top Shot.

Arboretum Visit

Recently I visited the Cedar Valley Arboretum & Botanic Gardens near Waterloo.  I hadn’t planned on going there so I didn’t have my better camera with me.  The very sunny afternoon provided for dark shadows in the photos, but that’s the way it goes.

The Butterfly Bushes were beautiful and were living up to their name:

I was unaware that Eeyore had ever said this:

These Morning Glories were pretty:

I almost deleted this next photo, but then decided to have mercy on it:

Be sure to visit this place if you’re ever in the area!  Click HERE for more information.

Asters

Here’s some more photos from my wildflower hunt a few days ago.  I was really happy to find these Asters.  The blooms were over one inch wide---usually the ones I find are smaller than that.  And, these were such a pretty color!

Sneezeweed

Here’s another wildflower I found the other day.  Its name is Sneezeweed.

Great Blue Lobelia

I saw some Great Blue Lobelia on my wildflower hunt on Sunday afternoon:

  

Checkered White Butterfly

Yesterday afternoon I went on a wildflower-hunting excursion near the farm I grew up on, a few miles from where I live now.  The first photos taken were of this butterfly I’d never seen before---a Checkered White:

The checkered design is more visible in this next photo:

The flower might be a Black or Brown-eyed Susan, but I’m not sure.

Your Sunday Best

From across the farmyard I zoomed in on the milkcan and Black-eyed Susans in front of the barn:

Visit A RURAL JOURNAL to find Your Sunday Best.

Autumn Preview

The road ditch is beginning to give a preview of autumn colors.  If you know what to look for in this scene, you’ll find Big Bluestem, Goldenrod, Milkweed, Rue, and Solomon’s Seal.

Weekly Top Shot

Here’s a close-up of a Butterfly Milkweed that’s still blooming in our yard:

Visit THE VIEW FROM RIGHT HERE for Weekly Top Shot.

Small Fritillary

This morning I finally got a photo of that small Fritillary butterfly I’d been seeing.  After looking it up online, I think it might be a Small Pearl-Bordered Fritillary.

From the Lawn Tractor

Last evening I decided to try and get a few blogworthy photos while on the lawn tractor.  This first one was taken as I mowed around some elderberry bushes: 

It was quite cool out---our hot summer weather seems to have made its exit for the year.  A north wind was blowing, too, making it feel even chillier.  Before we know it, these leaves will be changing to fall colors: 

There was a bird gathering going on, something we’re seeing more of now that late summer has arrived: 

Skywatch

Sunset sky last evening…

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I’m Slow

I am so slow to realize things.  Yesterday, from high above these fluffy clouds came the almost constant roar of jet airplanes flying back and forth.  I kept thinking to myself, “What is going on?”  

When I mentioned the jet sounds to my husband, he said it was probably because of President Obama being in Iowa.  I knew he was here, but didn’t make the connection in my mind with the jets.  How dumb is that!?  The President had visited the Iowa State Fair the day before and I’d seen a picture on Facebook of him talking to the Fair Queen.  We’re proud of the fact that she’s from our local area!  Click HERE to see a video of the Fair Queen ceremony.

Chopping Corn

Here’s some scenes from today’s chopping of the corn for silage…

 

At times, there was almost a traffic jam in the field:

The cornstalks get cut, chopped up, and blown into the chopper wagon for transport to the silo.  Cows consider corn silage a gourmet food!

 

These cats didn’t help do any of the work, but they wanted to be on the blog anyway: