North Winds ...

You know 'Winter' has officially arrived to stay when the temperatures plummet and the north winds howl making the windchill hover towards -30C.  'Winter' ... I wasn't quite ready to see you!  

Snowberries ...

A quick snapshot before heading out for the day!  A bit more fog and a bit more frost but in the morning light it makes these Snowberries (Symphoricarpos albus) look that much more delightful ... as if they've been dusted with sugar!  The deer population should have plenty to browse on this Fall and Winter.  

Sun Kissed And Ready To Fly ...

May all your weeds be wildflowers.  

~Author Unknown

I don't want summer to end ...

Goatsbeard ...

Who said "beauty" and "weed" couldn't go hand in hand?  

RAIN ...

The best kind of rain, of course, is a cozy rain. 

This is the kind the anonymous medieval poet makes me remember, the rain that falls on a day when you’d just as soon stay in bed a little longer, write letters 

or read a good book by the fire, take early tea with hot scones and jam and look out the streaked window with complacency. 

~Susan Allen Toth

What started off as an overcast 'misty' morning has turned into a delightful, 'good soaking' RAIN!  And with that ... a cup of hot chocolate, a blanket and a good movie are required as one snuggles in for the evening and listens to the rain!  

June Meanderings

Miss Me?  I kind of disappeared without notice!  Well ... I can't really claim disappearing, as I was still here and taking pictures BUT my computer and I separated!  Yup ... after a long, cold winter it has been rather difficult to keep the love affair alive when the sun is shining, the days are so much longer and there are a zillion things to do!  SO, having already taken and posted pictures everyday for approximately 1200 days in a row ... I was a REBEL and took pictures but didn't post them!  That being said ... Here is what has been happening on 'My Lil' Piece of the Prairies ...'

June 1, 2014:

A 5:00am a road trip to Southern Alberta!!!  The most painful part of that equation is watching a GORGEOUS sunrise out of the dirty truck windows and not being able to talk the *pilot* into 'QUICKLY' stopping for a photo (hmm ... I sense the pilot knows better than that!  LOL!).  Needless to say, travelling at that hour is always glorious, especially in the spring time AND the *pilot* does stop long enough for a fresh cup of coffee (He has different priorities I guess!)!

Two hours later, we arrived at the Brooks Motocross Park with two excited boys ready for race day!  Yes, the boys have started their motocross racing season once again!

June 2, 2014:

Our local Great Horned Owl family is growing!  There are actually 3 owlets but on this day, only this feathery *fluff* was inquisitive enough to peer over the side of their nest!

June 3, 2014:

The prairie is BURSTING with colour these days!  Certainly a welcome sight after such a long winter!  These magnificent Dark Throat Shooting Stars or Saline Shooting Stars (Primula pauciflora var. pauciflora) always add a delicate beauty to a saline flat or wet meadow!

June 4, 2014:

The innocence of a wild babe that will soon have to fight to survive in this human tainted landscape and world!  Often viewed as a pest, I am a firm believer that coyotes play an integral role in the prairie ecosystem and love 'em or hate 'em, I don't think we would ever want to see the outcome if they were completely removed.

Our youngest attended our school division's Track n Field day for the smaller grades!  Everyone there was blessed with a beautiful, sunny day!  All you could see was smiles gleaming from the kids!

The heat of the day (which was marvellous!!!) always seems to cook up some interesting storm clouds!  Racing to get the final few acres of barley seeded, my husband managed to finish our spring seeding just as the wind, lightning and rain hit!!!  Yeah!  It's nice to be done!

June 5, 2014:

Brrr... those storm clouds the night before carried in single temperature digits and a very brisk, cold wind the next day!!!  Not exactly the warmest day for our oldest to compete in his Track n Field day!  However, he had a blast!!! I on the other hand FROZE!!!

June 6, 2014:

Much of our birds have finally returned and it wouldn't quite be the same without our Barn Swallows (Hirundo rustica)!  Always cheerful and on the fly, like the other swallows that visit us, they EAT FLYING INSECTS!!!!  Any bird that does its part to reduce the flying insect population is golden in my books!!!

June 7, 2014:

Out on a late Saturday morning adventure to check cows and scour the pasture for old relics from the past, the boys and I found ourselves taking cover in one of the old buildings and patiently waiting for some storm clouds to move off!

Apparently the rain and rather large but soft (thank goodness) hail didn't really bother some of the gals but the boys and I thought otherwise!  So we took turns gazing out of the old doorway!

June 8, 2014:

The 'hay and crop' tours are in full swing!  It happens when you are married to a farmer and it happens OFTEN!!!

June 9, 2014:

... The moment you get over to the pasture and start checking cows ... the cold wind picks up and the clouds roll in!!!

June 10, 2014:

Happy BUZZING honey bees!!!!  Mmmm ... HONEY!

June 11, 2014:

Another new BABE!  But a few more to come!

June 12, 2014:

Yes, this beautiful, old prairie continues to blossom but not every lil' native, perennial forb is as delicate as it looks!  Meet Death Camas (Zigadenus venenosus)!  This meadow beauty can certainly wreak havoc especially to livestock (its a favourite among sheep)!  Its toxic alkaloid 'zygadenine' is present throughout the entire plant!  Some believe its more potent than strychnine!  Sometimes referred to as a 'wild onion,' this plant should be considered poisonous to all livestock and humans.

And with that ... I think I'm officially caught up!  

Sun Kissed

It was a bit rainy, overcast and rather cool for a good portion of the day ... (yes, I was wearing my multiple layers AND my winter gloves today).  However, eventually that sun managed to shine through and kiss the landscape with its long, warm rays!  

Emergence

Despite a cold, NW wind howling, overcast skies and the remnants of last nights rain (which was very welcome by the way), I managed to find a few little spots of 'Spring' emerging from the cold, drab, prairie landscape!  Aaah ... the Crocuses (Anemone patens) are beginning to make their beautiful Spring display!  

I absolutely love crocuses, like so many on the prairies do!  So delicate to look at yet so resilient to the harsh environment they emerge from, they are a gift of colour in the Spring!  

Farewell February!

Nothing fancy!  Remnants of last years White Heath or Tufted White Prairie Aster (Aster ericoides) swaying above the snow on this sunny but very cold day!  The ice crystals have danced in the sky off and on all day and the thermometer is set to drop to -40C, adding the windchill ... anywhere from -47C to -50C overnight!  A very cold way of bidding farewell to February!  Keep warm and have a great weekend everyone!  

Tawny Hues

Welcome, winter. Your late dawns and chilled breath make me lazy, but I love you nonetheless. 

~Terri Guillemets

It's not a chore to get up and out the door when there is so much beauty to take in!  

Morning Stroll

(Blogger is driving me crazy these days ... as some of my images are altered either darker or lighter when I upload them!  Grrr .... this image isn't this dark)

After last weeks miserable cold temperatures and nasty winds, I managed to get our hounds out for a long 2 hour run (yes, they ran ... I trudged through the deep snow!) this morning!  We checked on the cows, gazed at the winter landscape and said our "hello's" to some of the bred heifers on our way back home!  It was a beautiful morning!

Melting Away ...

Yes, the beautiful 'above' freezing temperatures have certainly reduced are snow levels over the past couple of days!  No worries ... there is more on the way!  A heavy snow fall warning is in the forecast!  YEAH!!!  (I think!)  LOL!

Monday, Tuesday ...

Monday ... one of the heifers nuzzling her babe!

Tuesday ... the rain showers returned but you could still find some sunshine out on the prairies! 

A Beastly Beauty

Hmm ... it doesn't look that beastly does it?  In fact, it's really quite dainty; almost enticing you to pick it!  Meet Zigadenus venenosus ... otherwise known as 'Death Camas' or Meadow Death Camas!  True to it's name, this native perennial herb is one of our most toxic springtime plants and is considered poisonous to all livestock and humans.  In fact, even honey bees are poisoned by the pollen and nectar!  The toxic alkaloid 'zygadenine' is found throughout the entire plant and can cause some fairly serious consequences when ingested, including seizure, coma and death!

Death Camas has certainly had a history of causing livestock losses over the years, especially during droughts.  This 'nasty' little plant is busy blooming these days, however, if your pastures are in good range health, your livestock will have plenty of grass to eat and will usually avoid eating Death Camas leaving it stand for admiration!

After the Crocus and Beans ...

The Three Flowered Avens Arrive!

One of my favourite prairie perennials, the Three Flowered Avens (Geum triflorum) is nodding and swaying their tender pink heads as the prairie wind blows these days!  It was a busy weekend but a good weekend.  Wishing everyone a wonderful week!

Prairie Beans

Thermopsis rombifolia

Spring is just not the same on the prairies without the sway and nod from the native forb known to us as 'Buffalo Beans' or 'Golden Beans.'  After 8/10ths of inch of rain and the return of the sun today, the patches of Buffalo Beans dotting the prairie are gleaming!  I hope everyone had a great weekend and wish you all a fantastic week!

Snowy Asters

I'm late with yesterdays post, however, I find it a bit cheery on this overcast, frosty Friday!  We had a dusting of fresh snow but the sun did pop it's head out from behind the clouds yesterday afternoon.  When it finally did emerge, the remnants of last years White  Heath Asters (Symphyotrichum ericoides) stood tall in the glistening snow that surrounds them!  How many more days of winter will remain????

Reaching for the Sun

If you truly love Nature, 

you will find beauty everywhere.  

~Vincent Van Gogh

Even in the winter, there is beauty in a prairie forb!

Western Snowberry on Ice!

The Western Snowberry (Symphoricarpos occidentalis) scattered throughout the central Alberta prairies was certainly living up to a portion of it's name lately!  Dusted in wet snow and ice perhaps one should consider making Snowberry Ice Wine?  LOL!  Hmm ... on second thought, I think we'll leave them for the wildlife!  The Blackfoot Indians used the fruit as 'famine fruit' and boiled the fruits to make a diuretic for horses!

Prairie Remnants ...

Although summer is gone and 'Fall' has had it's toes stepped on by 'Old Man Winter,'  there is still beauty to found on the prairiescape!  I love walking through native prairie during all seasons but during the 'Fall' it's so easy to find the remains of what gave the prairie colour not too long ago.  These are the remnants of White Heath Aster plants (Symphyotrichum ericoides) and can be found throughout the prairie landscape.  They make beautiful dried flower arrangements ... and can easily replace dandelion's in a vase, if you have kids!  :)