This afternoon I felt compelled to photograph mushrooms, of which there are several of at least three different species along Piney Woods Church Road right now. This is a view from underneath, looking up at the gills that are letting in the sunlight.
On a shrub along Piney Woods Church Road today, I saw this tiny insect perching. According to insect experts at the BugGuide on Facebook, it is a species of leafhopper in the family Coelidiinae. I am fascinated by its enormous eyes, one of which seems to be focused on the photographer. It patiently endured a several minute photo session before hopping away.
On my early afternoon walk down Piney Woods Church Road, I was quickly drawn to explore some shrubs growing near the road edge just a short distance from Rico Rd. Among the leaves, a broken fragment of a leaf was hanging by a single thread. The slightest hint of wind would send it twirling round and round. It was a marvelous lesson in patience trying to focus on it, let alone photograph it. With enough tries — maybe fifteen in all — I succeeded a last, and the result is the lovely image below.
An unusually elongated sassafras leaf in brilliant colors demands my attention as I walk down Piney Woods Church Road. I am reminded of satellite images of the Earth from space, or a map to an imaginary world.
“Say can I have some of your purple berries?”
“Yes, I’ve been eating them
For six or seven weeks now; haven’t got sick once.”
“Probably keep us both alive.”
— Wooden Ships, Crosby/Stills/Nash —
The sassafras trees (Sassafras albidum) along Piney Woods Church Road bear bright bluish-purple berries now. I pull one off and crush it between my fingers. It is mostly seed, with a thin layer of pulp that has a fresh, invigorating scent, reminiscent of sassafras tea. Later, at home, I pore over field guides and search the internet for information on the berries. I find that they are beloved of many bird species, but none of my edible wild plant guides inform me whether or not they are safe to eat. It would take quite a few to satisfy a hunger, of course, but I relish wild flavors, a bit like Thoreau with his love of wild apples. Maybe tomorrow I will try one. I doubt they are harmful, given that sassafras twigs can be chewed and roots steeped for tea.
On a cloudy, windy afternoon, I discovered another new flower blooming: a single whirl of four yellow petals, forming a cross atop a low shrub with oval leaves. The plant is almost certainly Saint Andrew’s Cross (Hypericum hypericoides), native to the Southeastern United States.
As sunset approaches, a horse grazes contentedly at the base of a pecan tree, while across Piney Woods Church Road, a mother cow gives her new calf an evening tongue bath.
Here is another charming bug I saw along Piney Woods Church Road today. I am almost positive that it is a Leaf-Footed Bug nymph, quite possibly Acanthocephala terminalis. Despite bearing a passing resemblance to a Wheel Bug sans wheel, Leaf-footed Bugs are harmless vegetarians that feed on the juices of plants rather than those of other insects.
As the sun sinks low in the sky along Piney Woods Church Road, the rays illuminate a barb on a pasture fence. Ah, how I relish such moments of grace along my way….
Eleven days ago, I paid a late-day visit to the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. A stunning array of lilies and water lilies was in bloom, and dragonflies were everywhere. There were some butterflies, too, to round out my adventures. The first photograph is of a Pineapple Lily. I did not get the opportunity to identify any of the other flowers. The dragonflies are male Blue Dashers (Pachydiplax longipennis), while the butterfly is a Fiery Skipper (Hylephila phyleus). The last photo is of a female Blue Dasher perched on a tomato cage on my back porch. I figured that she belongs with the males, although in this case, they are actually separated by a couple dozen miles.
