Tending tomatoes

Nothing else going on in my life right now, but tomorrow I'm headed for the oasis. Can't wait.

I uncovered the tomatoes for a little while this afternoon.  This one has 3 or 4 buds getting ready to bloom.

If, or when, they bloom will depend on the weather, of course.

Tomatoes feeling loved and comforted!

They won't get to see daylight until Monday. Then it'll be time to cage them. I might give them a little Miracle-Gro too.

Last cold snap coming

It won't affect anything except the tomatoes. We'll have to cover them tomorrow afternoon. They're happy now though.

Then when the danger of frost is over next week, we can cage them.

I just sat at the computer all day working on the Power Point presentation I'm going to do at the festival in August. It's titled "Living with Lucifers." My favorite subject. I'm actually looking forward to it even though I'm a terrible public speaker.

A week from today Hugh is planning on going to the oasis and do work with his loader. And I've got help lined up. Hope it all works out.

Trying to keep up

Kept on moving today and I can't move anymore. I'm all moved out! LOL But I've lost 5 lbs since I started my diet with no ill effects. Only 15 more to go, but I know that last 5 or so will be impossible. I've tried to lose it before.

Finally made it down to the huge verbena patch above the lower dam. Was on my way to town and just refused to drive past it again.If I had stayed awhile I might have seen some interesting butterflies.

The verbena and phacelia are all along the arroyo from the dam to the oasis. Here's my first butterfly picture on phacelia.

Arizona Powdered-Skipper on  Blue-curls (Phacelia congesta) 

Orange Skipperling

Through the years I've documented six hues of globemallow at the oasis and at our place in town. Here's a lovely rose-colored one from the oasis, which is nice to see after all the orange and lavender ones I tolerate. Only because I don't have the energy to remove them from along the walkways. I'm terrified someone will get snakebitten. I'm really going to try hard to get some mowed.

Copper Globemallow (Sphaeralcea angustifolia)

A respite of sorts

Slept in a bit, but felt fine eventually. Couldn't clean in the tank because it rained in the night and put puddles of water in it. But I had anticipated that might happen so yesterday I cleaned the areas that usually need patching. Now I have to wait for it to dry out again. And just when I had some help lined up too! But it's not a big deal in the scheme of things.

After I patched for a while I got the urge to go photograph an Anna's Hummingbird that's nesting in Big Bend National Park. I hated to go all that way, like 3 hrs of driving, just to snap a photo of a species I see a lot of at the oasis. But this is a first nesting record for Brewster County and I couldn't resist. Glad I went. Seeing other people's photos is not like seeing it in person.

I only hung around five minutes or so because it kept leaving the nest and then going back, over and over. I've never seen an Anna's on a nest before, but I know Black-chinneds and Lucifers don't act that way. It's hard to imagine my presence bothered it when it's nesting directly above a picnic table that I'm sure gets used every day. And I stayed well back from the table. Didn't want a photo of just the bottom of the nest anyway. The campground was full to capacity and people were camping at that spot. I'm more inclined to think it's a first time nester and unsure of itself. And unsure which state it's supposed to nest in too, I guess. They normally nest in California. There are nesting records in Arizona and north of California too. And two records for Texas; one in El Paso (2000) and one in Jeff Davis County (1976). 

This morning an award-winning filmmaker, directing a crew for a documentary on Big Bend, visited. This summer they're filming birds and wildlife in the Big Bend and plan to get Lucifer footage, hopefully displaying, to include in the PBS special. That will be fun! He showed me some of their work and it's beyond impressive.

Getting quality display footage will be a huge challenge. I doubt it will happen, but I hope it does.

Voluntary slavery

I was determined to start cleaning out the stucco tank. Managed to kill myself trying. Hopefully, I'll be able to find some help but for now I have enough cleaned to where I can do some patching tomorrow. Contingent on being able to get out of bed tomorrow.

Butterflies like the dabs of mud left in the tank.

Black Swallowtail

 Tropical Buckeye (male)

I was delighted to find a bloom on my Common Mallow (malva neglecta) that I posted several days ago (March 23).  I would have been really disappointed to totally miss it blooming. Just one bloom but I'm satisfied.

I also saw a flower today at the oasis, while watering, that I identified tentatively as Southern Chervil (Chaerophyllum tainturieri).  Online experts confirmed. It was almost dark when I found it, so hope to get a better photo tomorrow. Assuming I can get out of bed. LOL

Loving Lucifers

This time of year I can't stand to sit in town when the oasis beckons, so am headed south in the morning. Have to get my pickup's front end aligned this afternoon. Lot of birders visiting these days too. Here are a couple of interesting shots taken by Brian Slaughter last week. To me they tell a bit of a story.

I'd say the female came to the feeders to feed and the male had other ideas. She's probably on a nest, or gravid (with eggs), and in no mood for his advances. You can see how the bush is far enough behind him to be blurry.

In this next frame you can see she has him backed into the bush and isn't through with him yet.

What's not to love!

Winter's legacy

It seems I gain weight every winter and don't lose it all in the summer. Every year I get older and slower, so lose less of the winter gain. Now I'm 20 lbs heavier than I feel I should be. I've just got to lose that weight or I have no hope of ever going up my mountain again. Like so much in life, it's a vicious cycle. The extra weight makes me less able to exercise as much. I'm going to really try hard to lose though. My knees are especially bad.

It was such a lovely day today here in Alpine that I uncovered the tomatoes for awhile. It's only March so I'll have to cover them up again when it gets windy. They're still not tough enough.

I was surprised to see a Monarch butterfly today. I usually only see them in the fall.

Monarch at Bluebonnets

And this is only the second time I've seen a Black Phoebe at our ponds in Alpine.

Beeblossoms

The oasis has countless species of flowers blooming currently, including two species of beeblossoms. Here is the Rio Grande Beeblossom (Oenothera boquillensis)..

And here is the other species that I've just recently identified, Small-flowered Beeblossom (Oenothera curtiflora)..

Both are in the Evening Primrose family. Here's a new species for me. I found it growing in the  courtyard. Got it ID'd online as Common Mallow (Malva neglecta). I couldn't ID it myself because I didn't see the flowers on it and thought these green things were the flowers, but not so. The flowers are pink. Sorry I missed seeing them.

On Brian's suggestion, I looked closely at my Tree Tobacco plants for caterpillars. Found one. May have missed some. They really blend in well.

Raptor-ous day

Spring is officially here and I did some serious watering. Usually this time of year I severely ration water, but not today. Having that 65,000 gallons of water in the new tank gives me the courage to water normally even though I should save that water for a summer with no rain. I won't have to touch it this year unless it doesn't rain.

Was surprised to spot a perched Peregrine Falcon from the oasis. If it hadn't been squawking loudly I wouldn't have located it. Even still, it was quite a distance from the oasis near the top of a big hill in the distance.

And as if that sighting wasn't enough, I saw a Sharp-shinned Hawk soaking in the tank.

When I arrived at the oasis I saw kestrels dive-bombing a Red-tailed Hawk too. Such an ordinary occurrence I didn't bother to photograph it.

Was a little perturbed to discover insect damage to my Tree Tobacco plants. It's rough country to grow stuff in. Hopefully, they'll all survive. I still have 4 in pots I can replace some with if need be.

Plant life

The tomatoes have progressed to the next stage of their lives now. I'll harden them off for a couple of weeks and then we'll cage them. Their leaves are really not tough enough yet to withstand our extreme weather. Hot. Cold. Windy. Maybe even hail. One never knows.

My sister loaned me the book, "The Hidden Life of Trees." Translated from the original German in 2016, and written by Ludwing Verlag. A lot of the book seemed a little incredulous to me, too anthropomorphic (I know, laughable since I anthropomorphize the birds and everything), but.....

For years I've said, mostly in jest. Mostly. That I hate to walk past my trees because they cry and beg for water. I may have mentioned that a time or two in my blog through the years. So imagine my surprise when I read this in the book (page 48):

"When trees are really thirsty, they begin to scream.... , you won't be able to hear them because this all takes place at ultrasonic levels. Scientists at the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow, and Landscape research recorded the sounds, and this is how they explain them: Vibrations occur in the trunk when the flow of water from the roots to the leaves is interrupted." (Vibrations that work similar to our vocal chords.)

It makes me want to rush down there today and water them. The good news is that trees learn to become drought tolerant, so mine will probably only whimper softly until I get down there in a couple of days.

Keeping up

I'm really struggling to keep up with the flower identifications. And it's so frustrating when I forget the species of one I've already identified. Especially when it's a common one I know so well. I have to focus (literally) on getting better photos of the flower parts too. At least the guide I worked so hard on has been very useful. Here are more bluebonnet photos. Can't get enough of them.

Photo by Tim McKenna

Photo by Chanci Anderson

Our poor tomato plants in Alpine have had to spend their nights under covers. We aren't taking chances on a surprise freeze. Soon though we can unwrap them. A couple of them are pushing through their bucket covers. As you can see I had to put an extension on one of them.

I'll be real surprised if we get any fruit from that apricot tree this year. Lots of freezes.

My daughter and her husband own a condo in Colorado that they rent out. If anyone is interested, here's the link.

https://www.vrbo.com/1464881?unitId=2023473&fbclid=IwAR1KSH5nWWTdS0ECd72UVsuwt2o0LyTR5wGtlwY7NVe_97fnl9fUNK6ve3I

Chilly day

A group of birders came today, and it was so cold this morning, and my electricity was out all morning. I was so frustrated! Called the electric company and they said it'd be out 3 or 4 more hours. No way could I make it that long without internet, so I packed up, ready to head back to town, without watering, when the electricity came back on. I got all happy again and it warmed up nicely. Luck of the Irish,* I guess, whatever that means.

Lots of Lucifer Hummingbird activity. I expect the feeders will stay busy except when the ocotillo blooms.

Orange Skipperling

J
The electric company said the reason for the outage was a bird flying into the transmission line.
______________________________________________________

*Recently I had my DNA tested and found out I have more Irish in me than I had expected. All my long life I thought I was 25% Irish and 75% German. (In pre-DNA days we estimated like that.)

I'm still not going to celebrate St. Patrick's Day.  LOL

Surprise lifer butterfly

I ran outside late this afternoon to cover up the tomato plants. They're looking healthy and I want to keep them that way. Forecast for 33° tonight and forecasts are not accurate at all so not taking chances. While I was dashing around weighting down quilts over them I saw a butterfly. I watched where it landed, grabbed my camera and got pics of it. When I couldn't ID it I consulted Brian,  assuming it was either a Funereal or Mournful Duskywing. Brian said it's a male Juvenal's Duskywing, which is a lifer for me.

I always have Mexican Ducks on the ponds but not very often Mallards. Here's a lovely male Mallard. Not rare, but a treat for me.

The wind finally died down. My sister said two wind protectors blew off my Tree Tobaccos. She put them back on and watered them. Can't wait to get back down there myself.

Terrible wind

Last  night the wind blew off three of the protectors around the Tree Tobacco. I put them back on and secured them as best I could but I thought the wind would die down. I'm in town and my sister says it's even worse. So if more blow off I won't be there to rescue them. Frustrating. They'll probably survive but they were laid flat this morning.

I love Woolly Locoweed (Astragalus mollissimus) even if it is poisonous.

Here in town it might freeze in a couple of days so I have to protect the tomatoes. They're looking good now, but.....

Drifting along

Came to the oasis today. Watered some. Saw a few interesting flowers, but some weren't blooming, so will check them again tomorrow. Meanwhile, I saw a lovely Shortfruit Evening Primrose (Oenothera brachycarpa) blooming.

This next plant has been coming up in the courtyard for years but I wasn't into plants enough before to ID it. The digital Brewster Co. guide that I made last winter is very helpful. Trouble is, Powell shows the plant for this area as Arenaria ludens. His book doesn't have a photo of that species and I can't find one online, but based on other similar Arenarias, I feel confident that's what it is. Common name is Trans-Pecos Sandwort. It grows in a mat like a groundcover almost like moss, and is in the Pink (or Carnation) family.

I used a magnifying glass to photograph the close-up of the ever-so-teensy flower. Could have done better if someone had been here to hold the magnifying glass while I held the camera, focused the camera, and depressed the shutter.

Lots of Lucifer Hummingbird courtship displaying going on. I had the best photo op ever of the action but my camera went black for some reason. I put in a new battery. Didn't help. Then I fiddled with all the knobs and buttons and it finally started working. But too late for a photo. The female was perched about 10 feet from me, in the open, and the male displayed for the longest I've ever seen. The only consolation I had was that it was an overcast day and his gorget wasn't very spectacular.

I wonder if the reason for that orangish color on his side is due to the overcast sky. I don't recall seeing that before. Hmmm... Nature is always so fascinating.

The Tree Tobacco plants all looks great! As it gets warmer they should grow faster.

And verbena are everywhere.

Bluebonnets are everywhere too, even along Snake Road coming to the oasis, but none at the oasis. (The white flowers are Bicolor Mustard.)

Due to the lack of sun and not very warm, and now wind, not much butterfly activity. Hope that changes soon.