my local pharmacy

little did i know, i have a veritable pharmacy in my own back yard. according to wiki:

The fragrant water-lily has both mental and edible parts. The seeds, flowers and rhizomes can all be eaten raw or cooked. The root can be boiled to produce a liquid which can be gargled to treat sore throats or drunk to treat diarrhea. The rhizomes were also used by Native Americans to treat coughs and colds. The stem can be placed directly on teeth to treat a toothache.

we know so little. and we have forgotten so much.

American White Water-lily (Nymphaea odorata)

cotton candy

ever since i learned about queen-of-the-prairie last summer, i have been excitedly awaiting another opportunity to photograph it even though it is tricky to capture. those florets are tiny!  it reminds me of smoke bush, another favorite of mine. clearly, there is something about cloud-like clusters that i am clearly drawn to; a whole more evocative than the sum of its parts.

queen-of-the-prairie flowers (Filipendula rubra)

ruh rho

keeping it simple because i am running on fumes right now. it appears, my beloved puggle, jack, was traumatized when the oak tree fell on our roof, and he now has a serious case of thunder storm ptsd. last night we had more lightening and thunder and temporarily lost power. and jack was having none of it. he wanted out of the house immediately (it was 2 AM).  he clearly now associates thunder with the roof collapsing. i hope this is temporary, but i fear it is not. jack is now 14 years old, and is getting more and more easily agitated as his eye sight and hearing fail him. you may recall, jack is a big part of why i started STILL in the first place. he was a puppy back then, and needed daily walks to manage his youthful energy. now, 11 ½ years later, i have to bribe to go on walks unless the temperature is between 45 and 75 degrees F. too hot or too cold and he is no longer interested–which i am choosing to see not as stubbornness, nor apathy, but as sensible old age wisdom. but it begs the question: is his new aversion to thunder, wisdom or runaway anxiety?

(possibly) cock’s-foot grass (Dactylis glomerata)

one day in late july

i went gathering july wildflowers this morning to make this large assemblage.  these were all picked this morning between 11 AM and 1 PM.  it’s hot here. and i spent the whole day dripping in sweat. but it was worth it. i think it is a good example of the age old adage “what grows together, goes together”. enjoy this visual feast of a northern summer!

assemblage of late july wildflowers

holding on

these two tiger lily flowers look like they weathered the recent storms by holding onto each other. i did not pose them, that is how i found them. how sweet is that?

tiger lily flowers (Lilium lancifolium)