Dichorda Iridaria

Drumrollllllllllll. . . . .

With a lot of help from friends and family and their friends and family, it appears the strange caterpillar on our sumac has been ID'd:





And, here is the moth it will become:


(These photos courtesy of friendscentral.org.)

This is the showy emerald moth. Now I'll know what to look for as the season goes on.

Keeping a garden that is chemical free leads to such interesting discoveries. Of course, yesterday's big discovery was hoof-prints of a horse! Then, while walking dogs, we stopped to feed Poco the horse and learned from his owner Cathy that Poco had been loose the evening before. Yep, it was his big ol' hoof that squished a tulip. Small loss. We stop and give Poco a carrot every day when dog walking. Buck and Cocoa have learned that this is part of the routine, so they automatically turn in at Poco's place.

Our life here has such a sweet rhythm. We have real seasons, but they aren't terribly extreme, well except for summer heat. Tons and tons of birds have taken to feeding at our feeders, stopping for a drink at the little bubbler, and rewarding us with song. I'm hopeful we'll have nesters this year. Gary the Coopers Hawk isn't here every day like he was for a while, but he still makes an appearance every second or third day for hunting. A few quail are showing up - the leaders of the huge coveys we'll have in the summer. I have a tiny garden this year and big hopes that by late fall I'll have the space created for a much bigger garden next year. It's a challenge. The soil is heavy clay. The gophers are everywhere. Deer stop by to munch. Local dogs pee on everything. There is no rain in summer and 100+ degree heat. And, our lot is quite steep. My plan is to level an area, put down gopher wire topped by a large raised bed, surround that with deer fence, catch rain water in a cystern for irrigation, and possibly put bird netting on the top. Whew! All that so I can enjoy the labor of gardening - - and the taste of fresh veggies of course.