Summer Green
Beau August 12th, 2007
Somehow the light has changed in the mornings and evenings… and the sun is rising later as well. I know the summer season will be winding down now, but I can just “sense” the differences with the light. Actually I’m glad… it tells me that soon the days and nights will be getting cooler, and Fall will be upon us. I have so many plans for the Fall season! Much work around the house, clean-up, landscaping, outdoor activities… but I suspect not enough time to do them all. That’s okay… little by little I suppose. For now we can enjoy the days, and wake up earlier to find cooler air. Yesterday I liked how the light brightened the trees and shrubs.
The leaves of the Redbud tree glow with the light of the rising sun.
The trees and grass surrounding the pond are beautiful green in the afternoon light… they are also very dry with the little rain we’ve had!
The Ferns are doing well in partial shade, with enough water!
I love that view of your lake across the kept lawn. How large is your lake in surface area do you suppose?
Hi Pablo- I paced it and estimated it’s only 1.4 acres total, but it’s like a long triangle with the dam as the hypotenuse. It’s really a draw from a 30 acre watershed, much of which are hayfields beyond our property. It’s shallow to about 8′ deep over the first third, and then steadily deeper to about 24 feet in the middle near the dam. But it does look bigger where the view from the house is- only about 75 yards away. The oak trees really are nice, but I struggle to keep the grass growing with the rocky clay soil under the trees. Last year was bad for algae, but this year I left tall grass at the top of the drainages, and a grassy buffer around the pond. Stocked some Grass Carp and three Koi last year and we haven’t had a bit of algae. I also asked the farmer who cuts hay for us to try and leave a larger buffer for the one time each year he uses a little fertilizer… and if I can do a good job picking up the leaves this year the total phosphorous load will be reduced for next year as well. The borders look great from a distance, but oh so weedy up close! And someday I’ll need to bring a backhoe in to try and dredge a little of the mud from the shallow end.