So these are the result of my day out.
A weed.
I see this every where here. This is the bloom. In the fall they dry out and are a stalk with a prickly top in a very dark brown. I don’t know what they are called. Anyone with a name?
(edit: I have the name. Teasel. Another quilter, Pippa (she blogs here and here) sent me the name and what it was used for before machinery came along. In the old days the dry prickly head was used to nap wool. But it also used as an herb in Chinese medicine and more recently against Lyme Disease.)
While taking the portrait of the weed I found these shinny little bugs
I also don’t know what kind of beetle this is. This is the coloring of the bugs, not enhanced in post processing… so I don’t think they are June bugs or Japanese Beetles… they are a beetle of some sort and a quick search on the internet did not reveal the kind.
(on edit, I did an Internet search for iridescent beetle and discovered that they are commonly called Dogbane Beetle)
On the way back to the spot where the car died, I took a detour …. and found this:
An abandoned Mansion. I don’t know any of the history of the building… but it is clear that the vegetation is taking over!
Just past where I broke down was a small pond. It was posted to keep out, so I was unable to get closer. But it was a very serene and peaceful place.
And the picture I started out to capture was an expanse of wild Cosmos:
The 2 distance shots really don’t show what I saw, but part of that is because of the location… on a highway and not a safe place to mess around with a camera…. for “the picture”. But the portrait of a blossom or two is just right!
That looks like a Japanese beetle, the ones that eat leaves bare and just leave the veins. I have a few of them this year but had lots that last 3 years.
ReplyDeleteThe wildflower is a teasel...the dried heads were used in the weaving industry to raise the knap on woollen fabric.
ReplyDelete