Showing posts with label Austin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Austin. Show all posts

Thursday, March 1, 2018

Tales of the Traveling Tote #14 ~ Stickworks

Welcome to Tales of the Traveling Tote # 14

Home Bodies, that's what we've been!
With the push of the holidays in December 
and the bitter cold of our January and Februay days this year, 
Miss Merri Mac and I have not ventured far 
from the warmth of the cozy fire in our living room.
What to share for an adventure when one is
curled up on the sofa reading, stitching, or napping?

How about filling Miss Merri Mac 
with sticks for a little stitck adventure?

Those of you who follow Hyacinths 
know of my love of nature, gardens, and parks.  
Austin has many natural areas with hike and bike trails, 
creeks, and rivers, some of which I've shared in the past.

You might recall one of Miss Merri Mac's 
early adventures to Zilker Park here.

Shoal Creek flows through the heart of Austin 
where it empties into Lady Bird Lake.
Though it definitely shows the stress of urbanization, it also
offers respits of natural beauty with city hike and bike trails and parks, including Austin's oldest and much beloved Pease Park.

What's this you ask?
It's a recent Stickworks sculpture right
here in Austin's Pease Park.

Some of you may know of the internationally 
aclaimed sculptor, Patrick Dougherty.
He has created over 280 of these organic outdoor sculptures made from twigs and sticks and sapplings gathered from the area in which he constructs these large scale structures.
Click Here for an fascinating interview with Patrick Doughtery about the process of creating Yippee Ki Yay.

Yippee Ki Yay here in Pease Park is constructed of
Roosevelt Weed, Ligustrum, and Ash, all sourced from 
the hill country west of Austin.

  A Spanish cathedral was the inspiration 
for this patricular sculpture.  According to Mr. Dougherty,
"The surfaces are a bit rude and raw like the terrain of the hill country where the material was gathered.  I imagined cowboys herding cows through the mesquite trees and decided on a cowboy saluation, Yippee Ki Yay!"

 There are five of these large "rooms" that create a
delightful maze to wander.  As you can see,
the 12-14 feet height dwarfs me and Miss Merri Mac.
Photo Credit, Margie Gaudin
The sculptures are intended to be interactive,
both in the construction with local volunteers who helped
to buid the sculpture along side Mr. Doughtery and his son, Sam
and in the enjoyment as visitors young and old experience

Yippee Ki Yay first hand.

It's heartwarming to see children and parents chasing each other through the stitck passageways, sounds of glee echoing through the 
park as families come to see Mr. Doughtery's latest work.

Photo Credits Clockwise From Top Left
Daniel Finchum, Shannon Clark, Bob Joy, Pierre Charbonneau
As you can see in the sampling above, 
you must go visit Patrick Dougherty's site and 
view the distinct sculptures he has created round the globe.  
Click Here!
You can find an interesting article here on the process of constructing Yippee Ki Yay.

Thank you for joining me again for Tales of the Traviling Tote.
Miss Merri Mac and I will leave you with a touch of spring.
Iceland Poppies from a local flower farm, Grassdale Farm.
Read below for the details of the latest giveaway,
MacKenzie-Childs soap dish 
with the Beekman 1802 Goatmilk Soap.


Our Traveling Tote Group is pleased to welcome
Ricki Jill and Countes DeMonet @ The Sketchy Reader
Jackie and Miss Madi K @ Purple Chocolat Home
Lea and Miss Scarlett @ Cici's Corner 
Please come along and travel with us.  Just click the link to join each of the Traveling Tote Adventures. 
Debbie with Miss Aurora @ Mountain Breaths 
Emily with Miss Courtney Childs @ The French Hutch
Patti with Miss Kenzie @ Pandora's Box
Jenna with Miss Coquille @The Painted Apron
Linda G with Miss Poppy @ More Fun Less Laundry
Linda P with Miss Lola @ Life and Linda
Rita with Miss Luna C @ Panoply 
Jackie and Miss Madi K @ Purple Chocolat Home
Ricki Jill and Countess De Monet @ The Sketchy Reader
Lea and Miss Scarlett @ Cici's Corner

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Monday, November 14, 2016

The Flight of the Monarchs


Photo by MonarchButterflyGarden.net
Excellent information on Monarchs on their site:  http://monarchbutterflygarden.net

Correction
It was brought to my attention that I 

mistakenly identified the butterflies in this post.  

The butterflies I've photographed here are Queens, not Monarchs.  

In my rush and excitement I didn't properly examine the photos. 

You can see in the photo below, with the butterfly wings open, 

that the black veining of a Monarch is not present. 

When the wings are closed, both the Queen 

and the Monarch share this black veining characteristic.

Queens, closely related to Monarchs, 

are often mistaken for Monarchs.

I apologize, I should have noticed because I wrote a 

previous post on Queen butterflies here.  

That said, the information about Monarchs is correct. 





It's late in the migration season,

but Monarchs are here in Austin to refuel as they

 make the long journey to their winter home in Mexico.





Thursday, after my monthly CAMEO meeting,

I noticed my friend's garden was all a flutter.





Dozens of Monarch butterflies

were fluttering from plant to plant to feast

on the nectar of tropical milkweed and other plants.





These beautiful creatures are 

nothing short of little miracles and are the 

only butterfly known to make a two way journey of migration.  





The Monarch's 3,000 mile migration from Canada to 

Mexico and back again has long puzzled scientists.





Dwindling populations in recent years have caused alarm.

The governments of the US, Canada, and Mexico have  

joined in an effort to help save the Monarch butterfly.





Milkweed is the most important factor

in saving the Monarchs, as it is the only food

the Monarch caterpillar can eat, and 

it is the chemicals in milkweed that protect the Monarch.



Austin, recognized as the most wildlife-friendly

city in America, has resolved to incorporate

more native milkweed into the city's landscape.




 Former First Lady Laura Bush 

founded Texan By Nature in 2011.

A community run conservation effort to preserve Texas'

environment,  Texan By Nature has begun a state wide  

initiative to help preserve the Monarch.

Click here to become a Monarch Wrangler and learn

how you can make a difference for the Monarch butterfly. 










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Sunday, August 21, 2016

The Magic of Rain Lilies




Over 14" of rain in Austin over the past two weeks.

Fortunately we have not experienced flooding

with these recent rains, and the cooler than

normal temperatures have been a welcome relief

from the triple digits that are typical here in August.




What we have experienced,  just like magic,

  the sweet little zephyranthes

are doing what they do after a Texas rain.




Zephranthes, also known as a rain lily, prairie rain lily,

or fairy lily, are in the amaryllis family.

Here in central Texas we see them burst into bloom

after heavy rain storms such as we've recently experienced.





The grass like leaves produce the trumpet shaped flowers

after heavy rains.  The blooms begin to open at dusk and by

morning will be almost two inches across, lasting only a few days.





Rain lilies are native to this region 

and often seen in mass along roadsides

or in grassy meadows of parkland as seen above.  



The rain lilies in our herb garden

get full sun and with a layer of gravel 

above the soil, a well drained bed.

 We get the pleasure of all three of the pastel colors.



More rain is predicted for the coming week.

It may be sometime before we see blue skies again.

Fortunately we have the magic of the rain lilies!
If you live in Zones 8 - 10,  you too can enjoy the magic.

Joining
 Dishing It and Digging It @ Life and Linda

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