January Plant Update

January was pretty cold, rainy, wet, and snowy. We went to the beach, looked to the sky, but there weren’t too many plants to discover, except under all the snow. They are dredging at one of our favorite beaches; Interesting to look at, not great for the environment. We got out to play and Irving came out in the snow, too! Check out more pics of the snow covered garden with the return of Mad Cat Garden, coming soon!

Big winter sky.

A pipeline of sand.

The start of a storm.

What it looked like later.

Snow child.

And back to the sky!

January was very…. January this year. We saw some plants, but it was wintery. Will feb be the same?

How was the first month of your year for plant observations?

December Plant Update

December had unseasonably warm days, chilly days, rain and sun. It was a good month for plant and beach and animal observations. We stayed close to home for all of the month, pretty much; Never traveling further than our county and not venturing far, even then.

Two somber boys.

Many sun rises.

A Cooper’s Hawk?

A neighbor cat.

One very confused iris.

Beautiful but in entirely the wrong time and place.

Decorations and celebrations.

Fata Morgana - when ships appear to float on air rather than sea.

In December, my work sched was almost entirely early mornings, which allowed me to see many great sights, including a floating air ship and striking sunrises. In Jan, I might catch some sunsets from work.

We’ve alread had snow in the new month and the new year. What were you’re plant observations for December and the end of 2021? What are you looking forward to in 2022?

November Plant Update

I might have mentioned, but in November, I was mostly at work, therefore my plant observations come mainly from there.

After a squall.

What a job!! I was tasked to repot 50 coffee plants this day!!

Coffee plants at the sea.

This oxalis loves the light, but looks beautiful in the evening as well.

Sunset at Asbury and Ocean.

A brief but vibrant collection of observations this month. What did November look like in your area?

October Plant Update

Plant observations for October were less about the plants and more about the critters and wide open spaces! We saw some watery spots, some late season butterflies, and some gorgeous skies!

Keyport, NJ

Farmingdale, NJ

Will never get over this color!

Monarch on the oak leaf hydrangeas.

Who can tell me something about this moth?

Another sleepy butterfly.

Morning commute.

And evening commute.

What was your October like?

September Plant Update

We spent a good amount of time on the beach in Sept. It’s local’s summer and we always try to get in some #septemberswims in. We travelled some this month, sometimes to different beaches!! We made some plant observations along the way.

Mushrooms with a view.

A different beach view.

And a closer look at that pier.

A good (but dead) horseshoe crab.

Cormorant at golden hour.

September flowers were wonderful!

Something left behind.

Sunset in Deal.

September was a pretty perfect month for getting out and about. The weather was mostly lovely and we took advantage of it. Where did you go this month? What did you observe?

August Plant Update

August was a great month for plant observations, but it was one of those months that not many photos were taken! It was a wet and rainy summer, but that meant that the moments of brightness and sun were even more lush and high contrast. We saw flowers, trees, so many weird new things in the garden. We saw animals and got to visit the sea.

I’m not sure what color our Japanese maple is supposed to be bc it seems to be constantly changing!

I love this sharp petalled flowers.

We spotted these huge peppers at a favorite community garden.

Keyport, NJ.

Asbury Park, NJ.

Our old man’s beard blew up in August!!

What were plants doing for you in August? Here, Aug is the end of Summer, but also the height of Summer. So we have many great plant observations!

July Plant Update

July was a great month for plant observations and we saw some critters too! It’s been hot here, but we have also had some rain, so the garden and flowers are loving it! We got some smoke from the Canada wildfires and the sun was red for a few days. Things like that never take good photos unfortunately.

I love seeing all the different types of cone flowers out now!

Who knows what these mop top flowers are called?

From all the rain, many large mushrooms have appeared.

These were the size of dinner plates.

In the last few years we have seen more Oyster Catchers on our beach.

We have a few neighbor bunnies.

smoke from the wildfires made it’s way to us one early morning.

Did the smoke effect your observations? Who and what did you see around where you live this month?

I’m looking forward to August which can sometimes be an abundant month for plants around here!

June Plant Update

I may be wrong, but I feel that everything this year is a bit late, plant wise. When we look at the garden, it’s very evident there. But even the flowers and trees and sky and sea seem late this year. Or perhaps less brilliant. That being said, I’m happy to see blooms when they come and in June there were blooms!

Echinacea is one of my all time favorites!

Our one and only (blurry) Poppy for the year.

This yard had thrilling and stunning lilies.

And you can’t beat this color combo!

Some climbing shrooms.

And a very small fellow at home.

June was good for wild fruit!

And pretty lovely for sunsets.

I loved seeing this giant!

Overall, June was a good month for plant observations, even if it felt delayed. What were plants doing near you this month? Do you agree that things seem late this year?

May Plant Update

May was up and down for plant observations. We observed a lot, but the pits and peaks were with the weather. At the beginning of the month, our world looked like Spring, all flowers and bright colors, but it felt like Winter, cold and brisk. Later there was hot sun and Summer feels, and it seems we had skipped Spring entirely. By the end of the month it was raining, cold and we were back to late Winter or early Spring. Over all this is the first year in many many years that I cannot predict at least in part, the weather and the seasons.

Love these little trumpets.

More and more I appreciate azaleas.

Wild colors.

The peonies were big and bountiful.

The outside…

…and the inside.

Stumbled on this little lake front park.

Lovely high views.

As well as this hidden beach.

If you could hear him, you would know that this is a red wing blackbird.

We were surprised by this image.

We found some unexpected spots, where hopefully we can return and revisit. We also visited our normal spots, some of which we have not seen since this time last year. We saw lots of flowers!

What were your plant observations? What were the seasons doing at this time?

April Plant Update

What the heck spring? The month has been all over the weather map. Cold, rainy, hot, sunny, hail, freezes, and the plants can’t keep up! Spring was not sprung in our neck of the woods. It kinda limped in, left and then returned. Even now, in the first week of May, it’s dreary. Where is out bight spring blooms? Already gone, missed them, it’s over. There were some good plant observations but everything felt stunted.

So many petals!

Love those rain droplets.

Belmar, NJ

Asbury Park, NJ

A rainbow.

Some early blossoms.

What is this fiery shrub??

Lovely lichen.

River bed.

Asbury in the evening.

In the beginning of the month, our front bed was blooming…

…but by then end, it had been trampled by the roofers. At least we have a new roof.

How was your April? Was the weather cooperating with you? Was it what you wanted and hoped for?

March Plant Update

March still feels like a blur but we did get some good plant and nature observations in. The weather was up and down but by the end of the month there were some flowers and buds pocking out and about. Spring might have officially started in March, but only at the end of the month did it really feel like it.

Lovely, foggy, moody Asbury Park.

This poor beauty.

Dusting and rearranging the house plants.

Found a stone cormorant.

And a living duck.

We spent plenty of time at the beach this month.

Spotted this crane on a still wintery walk.

And this camouflaged deer on a drive.

Swampy goodness.

This pic does not do justice at all to how HUGE this bald eagle was.

I’ve seen this little creature a few times now. Neighbors.

Another foggy evening.

And finally the cherry blossoms.

What did you see or do in nature this month?

February Plant Update

There was a lot of snow in February. Sometimes we went out and explored it and sometimes we hid inside our warm house.

When we took walks, we saw a lot of cat tracks!

Ivy on trees is hanging on.

Bare trees give sneak peaks at some bird folk’s houses.

Ice on Deal lake.

Met a new neighbor.

Dove feather.

Shi++y pics of the moon

The full moon this month was a highlight of our observations and we went down to the beach to see it on the water. There were also some shoot sightings here and there which was surprising (as always) after so much cold and snow.

Are you seeing signs of Spring where you are or is it still deep Winter?

January Plant Update

Oh January. There were some plant observations, but we ended up at the beach more than in the garden, or at parks this month. There’s nothing quite like the Jersey Shore in winter. So let’s call this a beach edition.

Where were most of your observations made this month?

December Plant Update

We spent way too much time in December indoors. The weather turned cold and we had work to do, and the month went so fast! We did get out some and tried to take walks and make some plant observations when we could.

The surfers braved the cold, but were rewarded by beautiful skies in Dec.

I was taken with this speckled sand.

Near Deal Lake, flowers bloomed in December.

Our boxwood has these amazing bright green tips with tinges of red.

I was captivated by the huge aloe.

Back on my wreath game.

Made from all foraged materials.

Hello, Neighbor.

Goodbye 2020.

Another year of plant observations on the books! Even though we didn’t go out too much, I feel we were mindful of our practice to observe the plants and nature around us. We went to a few parks, and made a point to walk. We were disappointed when we could not. In 2021, I’m excited to keep up this habit and this series!

November Plant Update

November felt like am month where we got back to plant observations, even tho looking back I didn’t have too much saved. This month was mostly temperate, but turned cold for some days and right before the end of the month. We caught many beautiful sunsets and twilight times as the days got shorter.

Sunset Lake, Asbury Park.

6th Ave Beach, Asbury Park.

Cormorant Tree.

The sun setting on Old Man’s Beard.

These flowering trees are either out of season or very very confused.

Cattails going poof.

Sometimes the backs of buildings are the best.

Bayhead, NJ

So there were more expanses than plants observed this month, but we had a great time looking. What are plants doing in your area?

October Plant Update

Looking back at October’s plant observations, I sort of only took pictures of the brightest and bluest days! there was a lot of rainy days in October, that shook the blooms and fruit off the plants and bushes. There were copious downpours that made all plants grey, sodden and sagging. But there were clear bright days as well. Flowers hanging on for dear life.

Tall trees in Northern NJ.

Anyone know what these white drop blooms are?

Looking quite idyllic with a busy road right and train tracks out of view.

Tempted to buy any flower still blooming when we visit the farmers market.

American Beauty Berries provide a pop of color!

Someone said these are Asters?

This moth was STUNNING! Huge and iridescent.

One of my all time favorites.

I never managed to see what this fellow was stalking.

Our pumpkin fam.

But just down the road, they go bigger.

What was October like where you live? Was it a month full of observation or light on them?

September Plant Update

September was an interesting month for plant observations. I usually find that September is one of my favorite months. It’s Summer, but not summer. It’s Fall, but not fall. This year was more Fall than previous years: the weather took a chilly turn and plants were not as vibrant as other years. It was a good month to watch the fast forward of the natural entropy.

Our clematis bush pretty much took over our porch this year.

But quickly declined in Sept. (See that black bee??)

And now really looks like old man’s beard.

We saw quite a few good mushrooms in Sept.

Our morning glories also took over this year, our backyard is swimming in them!

This flower has all sorts of bee tracks on it!

One new and ready to open.

Gnome interlude.

Afore mentioned bee.

Our neighbor’s sedum gets the prize for most bugs ever.

The bees started getting sleepy by the end of the month.

Our sensitive plants have been blooming!

This pothos is starting to climb the walls again.

I’m interested to see what October brings for the all the plants. We’re still getting tomatoes, flowers, buds and leaves. Will that change in Oct? I’m nervous that it will be very cold!

How were your plant observations this month? Is the weather changing by you? Are the seasons changing?

August Plant Update

Looking back at my plants photos of August, I didn’t take too many. We were quite busy, as I’ve said in just about August wrap up post. We did travel a bit and we did go to the beach so we got a wee bit a variety. A’m happy every month of the year that there are flowers to observe.

A little mushroom at Grover’s Mills NJ.

A happy bee on cloudy day.

Although it’s the high season, we have made it to the beach a few evenings this month.

Rose of Sharons remind me of my mother’s yard.

One of the flowers from our wildflower bed.

These puffy grasses are on my way to work.

Another beach sky.

Was August a busy month for you? Were you able to observe some plants around you?

July Plant Update

July was a good month for plant observations. Although it didn’t feel like we got out too much, we did indeed see some fun things. From the moment flowers start blooming until it’s too cold, these articles will always be a lot of just pretty flowers.

Echinacea are my Summer favorite.

Now sure what these are but we planted them in the spring and they keep blooming.

Who is this frilly fella? Another echinacea?

A perfect circle.

I tried to maintain our house plants this month, moving some, turning others.

The monstera is doing well!

We came across this and other mushrooms on one of our evening walks .

I was trying to capture the two enormous crows in this tree in this pic, but it turned out to be a nice tree portrait instead.

We drove out to visit Cherry Grove Farms and this is what it looks like.

And we met these goats!!

Notable about July was that it was hot. Like really hot and sweaty. We were lucky to be out and about as much as we were. What was July like where you live?

June Plant Update

I see a definite theme in my warm weather plant updates: Flowers. I love flowers. In the warm weather, I love to see all the flowers that are out as they bloom. In June, we travelled a little, tried to continue our daily walks when we weren’t working, and hung out in our own yard. We stayed away from the beach, now that it’s packed with people. But we were able to sneak in some beach walks, too.

There are several lakes about 5 min from our house. If you see them at the right time, they are shockingly scenic.

I was captivated by this shade of purple.

Puff ball.

Spire

Coxcomb?

The last of the irises.

We wondered down to Cape May NJ this month and stopped at some farm stands on the way.

A very flower full traffic island on my walk to work.

This color of rose is pure magic.

Another stunning sunset.

And a very blurry houseguest.

What do you love most to observe of the Summer plants?