Color Coded
I sat today in the "green throne" at the top of the hill in the meadow behind the house. If I turn it at an angle, I can see just about the whole area which has to be at least three acres. Close to one half of this area is, of course, the wild flower area. You can "read" the "history" of this area by the colors. No, seriously. As I've mentioned before, when I made the Acres my home, this back area was all overgrown. My first autumn here I had the area flattened with a bush hog. Then, I marked the area I wanted to let grow wild with a number of cement blocks. (Hmmm, if I lose this place, I'd better tell the new owners those blocks are out there. They have long since disappeared into the wildness. The next bush hog user could be in for a big surprise if he tries to level the wild areas. Shame on him if he does! But I doubt if a bush hog can cut down cement blocks. Ugh.) Anyway, that first spring and summer I let the marked area go wild--minus the mowed paths, of course. Walking Iten's Acres requires places to walk--everywhere. Since that first year, however, I have let the wild area "grow." In fact, every year I have let it expand. I just love God's gardening even better than my own. This year I've widened two of the margins: at the top of the area I've let it expand by ten yards or so and at the very back of the property I've expanded the margin by five yards or so. And I plan to let another quarter moon shaped area go wild this fall and winter. The last two or three times I mow back here I'll let that area go unmowed. No more cement blocks. (No allusions to any similarities to those blocks and my head are permissible--even if applicable.) I already have seeds to throw in this "new" area, either right before or right after the first snowfall. (I may have to amend that and wait for a later November snow the way this fall has begun. Brrr.) I always "plant" the seeds then. I mean, that's when nature does her "planting." The seeds then go through the normal progression of wet, cold, and spring warmth. It has worked well in my years here.
Wow! that was a long digression. Sorry. Back to color. As I sit in my green chair, (remember, that's where I was before my mind started to wander) I can tell which areas are the "oldest" because they're yellow--golden rod everywhere. The younger areas, on the other hand, look to be all white--heath asters. The color difference is quite obvious from my seat at the top of the hill. Of course, when I walk the areas, the colors are not quite as defined. The white area has dabs of golden rod and dabs of mainly purple asters and a few pink ones. In fact, the "older" the new area is--that sounds strange--the more dabs there are, mostly purple ones. And the older yellow area is full of purple asters. In fact, even though the golden rod is fairly much through blooming, I have tens of thousands of aster buds that have not yet bloomed. And the edges of the golden rod area have white asters. There are also four old paths that I have for various reasons let go back to wildness so that the yellow area has four white stripes in it. Yellow zebras? All those various beauty marks are obvious when you walk the paths, adding to the joy. Yes, I feel joy walking there. But from the "throne" it just looks like a huge patch of yellow and a huge patch of white. Beautiful in its own way.
Another beauty moment this time of year as I sit and enjoy the view is the activity of the goldfinch. They are all over the dried out thistles. Amazing. And, of course, the butterflies are all over the area. Especially, this time of year, the monarchs. What beauties!
Anyway, sitting on Iten's Acres can be as wondrous at times as walking Iten's Acres. Remember, bring you own throne--color doesn't matter--and relax awhile. It's good for the soul as well as the eyes. And the leaves haven't really started to change yet. I love autumn!
