These palms have an inner glow that warms the soul.

Patterns and Politics

  For the last week I’ve been enjoying warm snow-free days on Kiawah Island, a vacation spot off the coast of South Carolina. One of the joys of being here (apart from the weather, of course) is seeing plants I can’t identify. This isn’t because they are rare, it’s because they are unfamiliar, and in vacation…

The low stone wall marks the foundation of a sugar camp that once stood on this site.

Colour in the Woods

At this time of year, when the startling reds and golds of a Quebec autumn are long gone, the woods around Glen Villa are grey and colourless.       At least they appear that way at first glance. But a closer look reveals all sorts of surprises.     This year, thanks to the unseasonably warm…

The one touch of yellow makes me think of a trendy young woman who dyes a single lock of her hair in an odd colour.

Following My Tree: November

I haven’t followed my tree, a linden or basswood (Tilia americana), since August. The reason is simple — in September and October I was travelling during the time when the Tree Following meme (originally hosted by Lucy Corrander of Loose and Leafy and as of this month hosted by Squirrelbasket) was open. But I’m at Glen Villa today, so a…