Fieldnotes
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G Train Roses
This morning, these roses at the corner of the patriotic intersection of Washington & Lafayette were still going strong. Ruins of Halloween in the background.
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Autumnal Details
Autumn lingers…. I keep expecting to be greeted by an embrowned world when I venture outside.
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Ranger Robin Sez
Rogue Ranger Robin, hardly haven broken a sweat after running the Occupy The F’ING NYC Marathon, verges between chagrin and rage over the state of our parks: “Uh-oh. Pragmites have colonized the Vale of Cashmere. The end — complete take-over by this invasive — is near. By next spring, in fact, I wouldn’t be surprised…
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Autumn: American Chestnut
Prospect Park’s American chestnuts are still with us, no thanks to the onslaught of wild weather this year. One of the young trees is bent over, weighed down by last week’s snowstorm, and not rebounded. The heavy, wet snow combined with still-leaved trees — a fine illustration of why our broad-leaved trees lose their leaves…
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Sumac Light
Standing under or near certain trees this time of year bathes you in the color of their leaves. They make the space around them glow. I think of Honey Locusts, with their hundreds of thousands of tiny yellow leaflets mellowing the air, and Sumacs, with this brilliant red magic-hour light all day long (as long…
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Milkweed Party
A larval Large Milkweed Bug, Oncopeltus fasciatus, on its eponymous food source in Brooklyn Bridge Park.Two of the adults. The park has several species of milkweed, which hosts a number of interesting animals. Monarch butterflies (and their caterpillars) are the most famous milkweed fans, but they have flown south for the winter. These milkweed bugs,…
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Autumn in Prospect Park
The natural world, our world, changes both subtly and radically. This is why there is an inexhaustible source of material for this blog. Yesterday, in Prospect Park:The Upper Pool’s duckweed, emerald green in summer, has darkened.The glory of the northeast, the Sugar Maple, Acer saccharum, is in fine form, and deserves multiple views. Two different…
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Ranger Robin Sez
Making her first appearance here after being “disappeared” by the Parks Department, Ranger Robin doesn’t hold back when it comes to her opinions: “Clean up after yourself, you little CENSORED! And your mama! And your papa, too!” “Oh, and happy Halloween.”
Backyard and Beyond 