Jonquils or Daffodills?

Jonquil's or Daffodil's, this is the question....

I began to ponder this dilemma after seeing the differentiation between these two horticultural beauties over at Ol' Western Gal's site called Banner Haus News. While she did not provide photos, she was referencing their eminent blooming. This got me a-wondering.

I always thought these names were interchangeable but I was WRONG. Being the botanist I claim I am, I have to admit that I do not always pay the closest attention to horticultural varietals. I really specialize in "wild" plants. However, with dozens of "daffodils" blooming in our yard I perked up and thought I'd better straighten out my vocabulary and get the right definition for these flowers.

I actually looked this up. Cause, I know ya'll really wanted to know this stuff... (OK I really wanted to know and decided to post it as a special treat. Hee hee...)

Below we have Jonquils. They are separated from daffodils by presence of multiple flowers per inflorescence. See the abundance of mini stems emerging from one central stem...


These flowers below are Daffodils. They are characterized by one flower per stem...

Big showy varieties...

My favorite mini-daffs.

New Daffs with multiple petals. These were quite a surprise. A good surprise!


Now I just had to throw in the Camellias that are blooming in Suzi's yard. They are equally stunning and brief in their appearance. One must enjoy while they are present!!


That's enough botany for the moment. I could go on but there is only so much I will torture folks with...

Bye for now.

Burgeoning

Burgeoning leaves begin peeking from the tips of naked branches in hope of sunlight to warm the epidermis and start the photosynthetic cycle again.


Burgeoning flower buds unfold from their dormancy waiting for that special insect to visit.


Burgeoning tadpoles with little, black, round-shaped bodies hint at the life form they will later become.


Burgeoning Sharpie-horse bursts with stored energy that winter's confinement creates.


Burgeoning with enthusiasm, Gemma thinks she can touch the clouds.


And race like the wind.


Not so burgeoning, Ella crawls backward on the evolutionary tree, sliding her body off the chair in strange and fascinating ways. This is the preferred method for eating one's lunch...


Or not...


Ella had to be extracted from this location by MOI, complete with tears and screaming. She is banned from this dining location from here on out!!!!!

The Newbies

Give a warm welcome to the newest members of our family who were laid about two weeks ago. They are not warm and fuzzy. They are not pretty or cute. They are not adorable...YET. Just wait. When the baby's emerge from the pond I guarantee that you will utter a big "Aaawww...."


No, they are not worms.


What species are you thinking???


I am sure this is no help and some of you are all, "Ewe and ick!!!!" Suck it up and be a biologist for just a second ladies (and gents).


Now here's a close up of the eggs. These are amphibians. Warty amphibians...

These are western toad (Bufo boreas) eggs.


I pulled these eggs from the seasonal drainage that runs through our property. The creek drys out and will not be inundated long enough to support the full development of tadpoles to adults. From here they enter the pond which I will fill with water throughout their development.


After they emerge from their slime tube they look like this in their larval stage. Their little tails are visible and they hug the bottom of the pond sucking algae and microscopic stuff.


Now for the "evil guy" music....

I found these creatures living in my pond after the first storm. They are bull frogs... NON-NATIVE species which EAT native tadpoles and frogs. They grow to preposterous sizes consuming all in their path, leaving a wake of destruction.

They look all cute with their beady eyes and pretty green patterns BUT they are major predators who have been responsible for the decimation of native species, pushing some, like the red-legged frog, to the brink of extinction.

(Just to clarify...bull frogs are native to the eastern US so don't go hating on your native frogs east of the Rockies. They just disturb the western ecosystems.)

Thus they must be removed and taken care of. In a Mafia kind of way. Hmmm, I guess I could always have some frog legs for dinner. I had one in my net last night and he JUMPED out!! How dare he!!! I will get these before they have a chance to reproduce.


And when the western toad babies can swim freely without the threat of being eaten by a bull frog, the rainbows will arc across the sky and tones of Vivaldi will float over our property.


Well maybe not, but at least I know I've done something to perpetuate the regeneration of native toad species in our area. So many wetlands have been lost to development and it is harder for these amphibians to reproduce and survive in our man-influenced environment.

Every little bit helps.

Wow for Wordless Wednesday

Okay, maybe not wordless.

I am in the field for work this week and am sneaking in some pictures of the scenery. It is amazing. I entered "the canyon" and immediately my eyes were popping with the incredible views.


Fluffy white clouds above the mountains drifted by effortlessly like feathers floating on an eternal breeze.


Steep, dramatic peaks with sharp ridges and swooping saddles were eye candy for my starved vision.


Barns from antiquity could provide shelter from storms while allow visions of stars.


And the view from another angle was not disappointing.


And this was...

My favorite shot of the day...

I'll be back soon and need to catch up on my blog reading! Bye for now...

The State of Our Chicken Nation

Sorry, the mystery animals have declined to be on display until next week. They are fickle that way. But instead I have something else to show and tell.

I can always rely on the CHICKENS to provide some good entertainment on our little property.


Well, it has happened again. That is the round up and lock down of our chickens.


They enjoy a free range existence during the fall and winter months and usually get to frolic where ever they please, BUT the warden has spoken. The fowl have been found guilty and confined to their chicken pen for the following offenses:

1. Rototilling our meager landscaping with their miniature bladed feet.
2. Pooping on my deck.

See here?

3. Eating the cat food.
4. Ripping up the weed matting from my landscaped areas.
5. Pooping on Suzi's patio.
6. Eating the cat food.
7. Laying eggs in unusual places.


8. Hiding.
9. Eating the cat food.
10. Clucking and crowing beneath my bedroom window.
11. Killing my seedling plants.
12. Eating the cat food.
13. Intimidating the cats.


You see, they've even taken to swarming the cats when it suits them...

But as always, turn around is fair play.


14. Allowing ones self to be caught and eaten by a great horned owl. (One of my favorite birds came up missing. There has been a lot of hooting happening at night so I am drawing my own conclusions here about the missing bird.)

I am not holding anything against them, obviously. You see they are a roaming pack of marauding peckers who have nothing on their mind but partying and destruction. I'd hate to see what they do to hotel room.


But we had to draw the line in the sand and reclaim what is rightfully ours. These birds are a guilty flock of foul fowl. So slam the door and throw away the keys on the Chicken Nation. There!

Just Like Pigs to Mud

CHARGE!!!!!!

Muddy day gymnastics peak in the height of winter around the waller pit we call home... Of course, Wyatt comes to the competition prepared to show his best. He has trained for several weeks with his new moves.

First, it's a single somersault, difficulty of 6.0, with a muddy foot handicap.


Then buttocks hangtime is shown for bonus points. Grass on feet increases difficulty level to 7.8.


And the four limb off the ground landing brings the crowd to their feet. Hurray!!!!! Judge Mommy gives a 10 for total effort.


Next my porcine son moves onto the muddy balance beam for the next level of competition. Oh Yeah! Bonus points added for the extra mud on foot.


Then the competitor finishes his routine with a two foot plant and an extra difficult tongue waggle, then an arm stretch move for final victory.


Wyatt thinks, "Come on Ella, I've got things to teach you. Just take of those there mud boots and I'll lead the way. Me and Adam are pros at this mudding stuff."


The mud is getting a little old for me, but to some people the mud is a never ending source of entertainment. It does not help that I take pictures. It only feeds their appetite for clothing destruction.

And if you were wondering, Ella went through four pair of pants today and Wyatt only two.

Also, this week I have some new characters to introduce from our winter menagerie!! Stay tuned for the exciting reveal later in the week...

The boredom sets in, the wood works begin...

We're working on about 10 days of consecutive rain here on the left coast. I know.... Wah, wah, wah.... Poor babies.... We in California like to complain about the weather when we have no real justification other than we are spoiled rotten with nice weather and are sullen by the infrequent cloud cover that blocks the sky during the winter. Blah blah blah. I know.

But I, however, really like the rain. On the other hand, my equine friends do NOT like the rain. In fact they melt in the sprinkles, but that is another matter all together. Since the onset of RAIN, they (the horses) have been locked up in their stalls to wait the weather out. Their pasture has a creek flowing through it. They have pens behind their stalls, but their paddocks now look like this. This fine photos shows a layer of muddy slime over rock. Call it slop. But it's not as bad as it looks... really. (And I have an extra job of cleaning these slop pits every day too...)


With nothing better to do then mull over their confinement, some of the prisoners have reverted to former vices, which I do not see during the summer months. With teeth of considerable length and the smell of cellulose close to their noses the reprobates have begun to chew. Chew their stalls that is.

One of the equines, a senior in the ranks of the horse world is Alfie. He is 25 I think. I sometimes can't remember these things. He is the angel of the barn. Quiet, respectful and a clean living man. I don't think he ever had a taste for the stall walls. Tried it once, never liked it. He had a hankering for women in his younger years, but the horses equivalent of crack, i.e. wooden walls did not call him.

"I had nothing to do with this stall chewing stuff, Lady. You scare me with your flashy camera anyway."



The wooden walls of his stall remain in their virgin state and I thank him for this!


Then there is the Anglo-Arab six year old named Max. He is just starting to dabble in the wall chewing. Call him a tea-tottler or a casual chewer.

Here is Max's best, "Who ME???" look.


And the wounds from his three inch long daggers consist of this.


This is best characterized as minor surface damages with lots of teeth scraping rather than actual "chewing."

Then Sharpie, the 14 year old Thoroughbred also partakes in the festivities of wood chewing. But he is in denial telling me, "Can't you see I am eating, Woman! Eating HAY that is!!"


This is Sharp's attempt to hide because after all he is totally innocent of any crime here.


He's only a little addicted to wood chewing. I think Sharpies walls are not in eminent danger for the moment.


The last perpetrator you have seen before. In fact, she has been a notorious wood chewing addict. She is unstoppable. Insatiable. A monster. A destructive force to be reckoned with. I sometimes think that it is a good thing horses are vegetarian after seeing the damages she inflicts upon her stall.

This is Gemma, the termite horse. Her age and parentage are unimportant at this point. She most closely resembles a beaver with long legs and hooved paddles.

Looks are deceiving. The innocent, kind eye. The long lashes. The calm gaze. But inside this horse is the heart of a killer. A killer of my BARN!!!!!


"Confinement does not suit me," she says with nonchalance. "I need my pasture. And NOW, if you please."

FYI: A large portion of the lower panel was replaced last year after she took her chop saw to the wall. Like five pieces of 2 x 4 to be exact. This year it's looking more like 20 pieces of 2 x 4.


In case you could not tell how much wood has been removed, see below. These two by fours will be eaten through by the end of winter at this rate.


I am thinking I will have to dust them with a special pepper sauce or jalapeno spray. I will be grinding up some spicy peppers soon. I just hope I can stop the giant termite in time. And that there are enough peppers at the store for my five gallon spray tank...