Monthly Archives: August 2013

Signs of Fall 4 – Milkweed and Monarchs

This past summer has been very wet here in Western Pennsylvania. We have exceeded our to-date summer rainfall by almost five inches. All this extra rain has stimulated our lawns and the plants in our gardens (especially the weeds!) and… Continue reading

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Signs of Fall 3: Ticks!

Back in the Spring (April 18, Signs of Spring #15) I wrote about ticks and Lyme disease. Fall is another important time to watch for these ticks! The “black-legged tick” (sometimes called the “deer tick” or the “bear tick”) is… Continue reading

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Signs of Fall 2: Laurel Hill Bluegrass Festival

We drove up to Laurel Hill State Park in Somerset County last weekend for Rob Bridges’ favorite Sign of Fall: the Laurel Hill Bluegrass Festival. The music was great, and the crowds were large and happy. There was lots of… Continue reading

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Signs of Fall #1: Locust Leaflets and Blackbirds

It’s just August and yet there have been abundant signs all around us of the coming autumn.The locust trees have been losing their leaflets. Hiking down on the Laurel Highlands Trail and up at Harrison Hills Park, Deborah and I… Continue reading

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Summer #10: Predators

Last Sunday morning I was on my way out to fill our surprisingly quiet, front yard bird feeders. Usually there are dozens of birds (cardinals, titmice, chickadees, house finches, and mourning doves) noisily feeding on the black oil sunflower seeds,… Continue reading

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