Weed Alert!

I found this growing in our newer backyard pollinator habitat.

Birdsfoot Trefoil (Lotus corniculatus), a perennial legume with small, yellow, pea-like flowers.  It is known for a sprawling growth habit and is commonly found along roadsides, in meadows, and in waste areas.

It is used as a forage crop due to its winter hardiness and ability to tolerate poor soil conditions; nevertheless, as a native to Eurasia and not North America it is a weed or invasive species.  

I'll nuke with some RoundUp first opportunity.

 

Garden To Table

I collected seven harvests of spinach from one of my raised garden beds already.  We love fresh spinach.  Yesterday I resowed one of the two rows.  My second sowing of radishes is poised for picking and last evening we had fresh garden lettuce on grilled burgers.  Everything else is coming along nicely.

 

Anyway, I made a loaded quiche recently with onion, bacon, Gruyère and garden spinach along with a rich egg and cream custard. 

 

Pretty good chow. 

 

The secret is the crust. It is made with lard….

 

 

Oldtime Baseball

While the Door County Baseball League holds itself out as one of America's oldest, continuously operating, amateur baseball leagues it doesn't hold the pole position.  It's pretty close, though.

Founded in 1914 the National Amateur Baseball Federation is the absolute oldest.

Followed by the Boston Park League founded in 1929.

Who is the absolute oldest is a matter of some controversy and dispute as a consequence of amateur vs. semi-pro, reorganizations and continuity. 

The Door County league was founded in 1931 and does hold an unbroken record of never missing a season.  It survived the Great Depression, managed to continue playing for the duration of World War II and the COVID pandemic.  Not many amateur leagues can make that claim.

So, even though it's not the oldest, this year is its 95th season of uninterrupted, small town  amateur baseball.  Which is a big claim considering the county's population (give or take) has grown from 18,000 people in 1930 to 30,000 people nowadays.

Photo - Kolberg Braves 

So if your visiting on a weekend and want to hop in the Mule with us and drive down the road about a mile to Kolberg for some Sunday afternoon baseball there's a good chance you and your sweetie can catch a Kolberg Braves home game.  Admission, a couple of beers and a hotdog might set you back $20 (all-in) so it's a bargain by any measure.

That's what made America Great!  

You can learn more here.

Summer Blooms

Meet the Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea), a hardy native perennial.

Frequently found in prairies, butterfly gardens and household flowerbeds this plant loves full sun and is a favorite for pollinators and wildlife habitats.  These flowers typically bloom from July through September; consequently, they've got some staying power and you can enjoy them all summer long.

Clickbait

If your experience is anything like mine you've likely got a couple of friends or acquaintances who are particularly aggrieved or otherwise disgruntled.  And they make a daily habit of re-posting memes on their Face Book pages reflecting their grievances over Joe Biden, Muslims, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, Jeffrey Epstein, the Supreme Court or whatever.  I can think of four individuals in particular for whom it is a near constant effort.  It is a fixation bordering on mania.  Some days I wonder if these people have a life beyond bellyaching on social media.  

Since the beginning of this year I have endeavored to be a better person.  Not a saint, just better.  I don't have very many grievances and a relatively high tolerance for differing opinions.  Speaking if which, I have opinions too; but that's not the same as full-blown grievance.  Sure, I happen to not think very much of Mr. Trump and may post something on that subject once a week or thereabouts; if you think I'm coming-across as manic please let me know.   Other people's feigned Face Book outrage is annoying if you let it get under your skin; so it's better to scroll past.  Best policy for me is to avoid politics and religion on FB and if I have anything to say on the subject to restrict it to the Blog.  Visiting here is purely voluntary and not subject to an algorithm.  Read at your own peril. 

You won't find much cut and paste here as I place a high value on original thought and factual content.  I attempt to keep content on the blog diverse.  Anyway, as a public service and in the interest of spreading positivity on the interweb here are some very recent trail camera photos from our woods.  

This event is a dose of annual joy and always brings a smile to the lips of this old hunter.  If you don't like the appearance of spotted fawns you probably need to seek professional help and have your head examined.....

 

 

Summer Blooms

Foxglove Beardtongue (Penstemon digitalis), commonly known as Smooth Penstemon is a native perennial wildflower.

A member of the snapdragon family this showy native to the prairie it features tall spikes of tubular, white flowers.  Native Americans and folk-healers have made use of this plant for medicinal purposes for both people and animals.   

On our pollinator habitat this is the first species to materialize in large quantities.  And there is an abundance of this blooming beauty. Acres upon acres of the stuff.  This flower appears during late spring or early summer for about a month and then it’s gone.  

Long-tongued bees, including honeybees, bumblebees, miner bees, butterflies, Sphinx moths, and hummingbirds favor this plant.  The name Beardtongue is a consequence of the hairy reproductive parts found within the flower.

Why Are Gasoline Prices Still High?

While differences in gasoline prices across states are driven largely by transportation costs and taxes, changes in gasoline prices nationwide are primarily driven by crude oil prices.

Because crude oil is traded in a global market, swings in its price impact every state similarly.  From February to March the average U.S. gasoline price rose from $2.91 to $3.64 per gallon, with crude oil accounting for roughly 76% of the increase.

The retail cost (price at the pump) typically lags changes in crude oil because oil must first be transported (by ship and pipeline), refined, transported (again) and delivered to retailers, who price fuel based largely on wholesale replacement costs rather than the spot price of crude oil.

Consequently, although crude oil price have mostly returned to pre-war levels, gasoline prices remain elevated but slowly drifting lower.

If tensions in the Middle East continue to ease it is reasonable to expect the price at the pump to continue trending downward.