nature

Errant Tomatoes, But We’ll Take Them!

August 20, 2012
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Earlier this summer Pete noticed that a couple of tomato plants had sprouted in our compost bin and also in the alley right next to the bin. We haven’t tended to the compost much lately so he just let it go to see what would happen. (We recently purchased an indoor composter which we keep [...]

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Great Backyard Bird Count

February 12, 2010
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Have a backyard bird feeder? Like to go for a walk in the woods or along a lakefront? Or do you like to birdwatch wherever you are? If you answered “yes” to any of those questions, you can participate in the Great Backyard Bird Count, taking place this weekend, February 12th-15th. The data collected are [...]

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Walk in the Woods

November 6, 2009
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One of the great things about living in Morton Grove is the amount of green space for a suburb that’s so close to the Chicago city limits. The North Branch of the Chicago River runs through the town not too far from our house, and the river is surrounded by the Cook County Forest Preserve. [...]

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House Mimics Nature

November 2, 2008
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Who knew that our Black Chokeberry would match the house so well, or vice versa? The oranges, greens, reds and browns really mimic our colorful face brick. I haven’t noticed any birds feasting on the berries yet, but it should provide some much-needed food as winter approaches.

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Who Dug This Hole?

July 31, 2008
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We’re getting ready to plant native grass seed in the side yard next to our patio. Pete dug up the last of the crabgrass and weeds last weekend and three cubic yards of leaf compost are being delivered on Saturday. Over the past couple of days, we’ve noticed several holes in this area which have [...]

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Swallowtail

July 28, 2008
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I saw this beauty enjoying the Joe-Pye Weed over the weekend. According to Wikipedia, the Eastern Tiger Swallowtail adult males are yellow, with four black “tiger stripes” on each fore wing. The trailing edges of the fore and hind wings are black which is broken with yellow spots. On the medial margin of the hind [...]

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Baby Bunnies

June 30, 2008
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I mistakenly transplanted a False Sunflower from our previous house thinking it was one of the natives. The plant is nice, but it’s very invasive. Pete was getting ready to dig it up until he discovered a bunny nest very close to it. The babies are newborns, eyes still shut and virtually hairless. We hoped [...]

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