Fish nesting sites

At Bass Pond recently, at Biltmore Estate, we saw these distinctive fish nests, complete with presumably females swishing around each circle. Remarkable.I'd seen these sort of nests in the Hosta Garden pond years ago, at the South Carolina Botanical Garden (where I taught and worked for many years). ...

Read More

A wonderful morning walk

I've been trying to be more mindful and observant on my walks in the morning.  Not that I'm not inclined already to notice bird calls, plants in flower, neighborhood gardens, or whatever.But it's nice to turn off the podcasts that I like to listen to, as well, and simply be present.Sunflowers at...

Read More

French Broad views

There's a lovely trail up along the Deer Park Trail at the Biltmore Estate.  It starts at the lagoon and goes up to the Walled Garden and the "house."We had a lovely hike there this morning, so I remembered these views from earlier in fall, on a similar hike.There were a couple of red-headed woodpeckers...

Read More

Nettles

I've been following a group that's interested in Celtic traditions and stories, and was surprised to see nettles pop up, as a touchstone plant in the first story.It's nutritious as a pot-herb, but also valuable (historically) as a fiber plant, and as a plant with story-meaning, too.Nettles are interesting...

Read More

More fall views

A morning hike in the mountains of Western North Carolina:view beyond the fielddistant viewreflections on Bass P...

Read More

Biltmore walled garden

view from terraceLast Sunday's visit to Biltmore included a visit to the walled garden, as well as a walk up to see the far vista from the terrace.the creativity with grasses, mums, and Mexican bush sage were nice, and way beyond the usualthe mums were the stars, but the interesting twists with grasses...

Read More

Sunflowers and morning light

I've just started walking along the path near the French Broad River in Biltmore Estate on a regular basis.  It's a magical place, and we've certainly enjoyed visiting the gardens and lagoon paths over the years, with Woody and our previous dogs, too.But the path that extends from Antler Hill Village...

Read More

Biltmore walled garden (2)

I've loved seeing how the Biltmore Estate has expanded and experimented with their horticulture over the last few years.  Hooray!It's always been a great place to enjoy the expansive grounds, the wonderful landscape, and preserved viewscapes of the surrounding mountains, thanks to the stewardship...

Read More

Biltmore walled garden

I never would have thought I'd be blown away by mums, but Biltmore's horticultural staff created an over-the-top design for their walled garden fall display.This photo doesn't really do justice to the extraordinary colors and textures that they've created, and the color patterns, too. (Click to get...

Read More

Trees with shadows

view of trees from Biltmore Yesterday, the sun's angle in the late afternoon created crisp shadows -- in dark contrast to the green of newly-mown pasture. This view from the terrace at Biltmore is spectacular at any time of year, now with the soft greens of emerging leaves on the Blue Ridge mountains...

Read More