winter

Solstice: Tracking the Sun

Posted by on Jan 3, 2017 in environment, Unmowed Blog, winter | 1 comment

Solstice: Tracking the Sun

Photographer Bill Bailey explains: “It is a pinhole photo I made by putting a piece of photographic enlarging paper in a soft drink can with a pinhole.”

Read More

Winter Solstice

Posted by on Dec 19, 2016 in Unmowed Blog, winter | 0 comments

Winter Solstice

In 2016, the winter solstice falls on December 21, at 5:44 a.m. Set your alarm.

Read More

London Plane Tree: East Meets West

Posted by on Jan 16, 2016 in plant parts, Unmowed Blog, winter | 0 comments

London Plane Tree: East Meets West

London plane trees decorate streets all over the world. Hardy hybrids of American sycamore and oriental plane trees, they defy smog and traffic.

Read More

Goldenrod: Bird Seed

Posted by on Mar 11, 2015 in birds, seeds, Unmowed Blog, wildlife, winter | 0 comments

Goldenrod: Bird Seed

It’s been a long tough winter. And even though it feels a bit like spring–Daylight Savings, birds cautiously chirping–this is the worst part of all. The last gasp of winter is a tough time for wildlife. The sun is making efforts to warm us up at noon, but it’s still frigid at night. And there’s practically nothing left in terms of food for hungry birds. Good thing there’s still a bit of goldenrod in the back yard. Goldenrod, a native plant, still has a few seeds left on the winter stalks.

Read More

Sumac: Rabbit Food

Posted by on Mar 8, 2015 in Unmowed Blog, wildlife, winter | 0 comments

Sumac: Rabbit Food

It’s an old saying: it’s an ill wind that blows no one any good. The wind and ice and snow that blew so outrageously this winter were definitely bad for this young sumac tree. The fragile wood bent and cracked under the weight of wet snow. But this turned out to be extremely good news for the rabbits. The rabbits hang out in the shrubbery and tumbledown sheds at the edge of the yard. Things have been pretty tough for them this epic winter. Not being talented at climbing trees or flying south, they’re stuck down here, like the rest of us, knee-deep in snow. Food sources,...

Read More

Living Snowfence

Posted by on Feb 28, 2015 in Unmowed Blog, winter | 1 comment

Living Snowfence

The wind is howling. The temperature is frigid. And snow is covering the road, filling the air—total white-out. I can hardly see a foot in front of me. And yet, when the swirling snow clears for a second, I glimpse clear blue sky overhead. It’s a beautiful day. Clear, sunny. It’s actually, for a change, not snowing. Then why is there so much snow in the air, drifting dangerously across the road? And as I drive along, I realize that some stretches of road are fine. It’s only some spots—the same spots, it seems, every year—that get drifted over. The poor overworked snowplow guys have to...

Read More