We are such big fans, we planted over 40 more already this year.
We are grateful to whomever planted our 30-40+ year old Sugar Maples and finally really noticed their beautiful flowers this year.
Ethereal is actually our favorite word to describe these dangling blooms....
The Woodland Stonecrop (Sedum ternatum) and Dryad's Saddle (also appropriately called Pheasant Back Mushroom) make a stunning combo in our fencerow.
The chickens are loving the warmer temperatures and roam about daily getting into all kinds of mischief. Here's Fern and Aster:
Under the old Lilac is their favorite place to hang out, sleep and preen during the day.
Our overwintered native plants made it through winter under their toasty little blanket.
The leaves are already greened back up and we have lots of little seeds germinating. (We hope to have plants ready sometime in June.)
The chickens ravaged the unsuspecting invertebrates that overwintered in this plant blanket. It's an interesting thing - rewilding our 3.5 acres of former lawn and raising healthy chickens for their eggs and witnessing the toll just five domesticated birds take on insects, amphibians, reptiles, etc. Our food, no matter how you grow it, get it or buy it, is very, very related to the health and biodiversity of our planet.
As you all know, our rewilding includes lots of milkweed; pictured below is Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) with TWO monarch eggs laid on 4/25 - the first monarch we saw here this year. WOW! We hope these plants grow fast.
Peas and greens are growing here as well and we are harvesting lots of asparagus, rhubarb and eggs (oh my the eggs!).
Potatoes and onions are the latest addition, which we planted on 4/26 with temperatures in the mid-80s. That's crazy for this part of Ohio at this time of year. It seems many of our old assumptions about weather are not the same anymore.
I'm always happy to soak up the sunshine though. We hope you are enjoying spring too!
