Timm

The normally dull trip across flat, straight I-74 in Indiana was much prettier this time due to a bloom of Queen Anne’s Lace.

I love the vibrant, almost-fluorescent green foliage in Kentucky in May:
 

Click the image to see the full size panorama of our golden field hike.

Here is what I think is an Eastern Black Swallowtail butterfly on a pink thistle flower.

Notice the bottom of his right wing is eaten off.  The bright colors on a butterfly’s tail warns off potential predators, and also attracts persistent predators determined to take a bite out of the butterfly’s body, but instead munch [...]

We interrupt your busy day to show you a pretty orange Fritillary butterfly on a pink thistle flower.

Nearly every year we cut down all the thistle plants growing in our wildflower field.  It takes only about 10 minutes if you keep up with it every year, otherwise it can take hours.  Thistle is very invasive and will blanket a field in just a few years.  Thistle has pretty pink marshmallow-sized flowers that [...]

It’s one of the prettiest times of the year now with the yellow daisies and purple Ironweed blooming together.

Here is a view of the wildflower field from our porch.

This is a pretty time of year with the wildflower field and Theresa’s garden blooming simultaneously.  Here is one of Theresa’s flower gardens with yellow daisies, and white and pink hibiscus:

My uncle Mike and aunt Jeanne hiked with us at our neighbor’s beautiful Big Bone Gardens.

Mike and Jeanne are standing by a cute lily pond.  Mike was nice to give Theresa his walking stick, which was hand-carved by a friend.  You can check out Mike’s new hiking blog at Big-Canoe-Hiker.com.
 

Here’s a neat shot of what appears to be an American Hover Fly on a thistle flower.  This fly gets its name from how it hovers above flowers.  It’s considered a beneficial species because its larvae helps eliminate species that attack commercial crops and ornamental plants.
Thistle are very pretty but also invasive.  They are armed [...]