While what is supposed to be winter in Colorado Springs has only brought one short-lived snowfall, which has already receded into memory, and the landscape, instead of being clad in a snow-white suit is wearing a drab brown cloak, my mind wanders back to those autumn days in Germany still draped in colorful garb. My … Continue reading A German Posy
As I’m driving to Chico Basin Ranch in eastern El Paso County, the sun rises like an orange balloon above the horizon, hazy with smoke from wildfires farther west. I am eager to spend this July morning at one of my favorite birding destinations, which I haven’t visited since the end of May. Migration has … Continue reading A Summer Day On The Prairie
April’s reputation as a changeable, capricious month is well established, but it seems to have been particularly fickle this year. Each suggestion of spring was followed by a wintry interlude. Our early garden bloomers—hyacinths and daffodils—spent more time weighed down by snow or encrusted by frost than with their cheerful heads held high. After admiring … Continue reading Hoping for Spring, Hoping for Earth
Among the multitude of notable and noticeable plants of the Great Plains, one stands out by virtue not only of its height of 2 to 3 feet, but also because of its striking spikes, studded with cream-colored to green petals, and adorned with reddish sepals. Soapweed Yucca (Yucca glauca) is one of a number of … Continue reading The Amazing Yucca
I hadn’t paid a vernal visit to Germany for many years, until my husband and I arrived there in early May of this year. Living in the semi-arid climate of Colorado’s Front Range, we are accustomed to many more shades of brown than of green, but the photoreceptors responsible for numerous nuances of that latter … Continue reading Springtime In Germany
tanja britton 