Bottlebrush buckeye and swallowtails

The large bottlebrush buckeye (Aesculus sylvatica) in the front of our house is in full flower.

It's glorious for a couple of weeks in mid-June each year. It keeps getting bigger, but we selectively prune the suckers to keep it from over-running the kalmias and rhododendrons nearby.

This picture doesn't do it justice at all, taken quickly before heading off, but shows how large the flowers can be.

Swallowtails are enjoying visiting the flowers; pipevines and this black swallowtail (I think) are abundant.

Note: Actually, it's a pipevine swallowtail (Thanks, Randy) - we have lots flying around right now, thanks to our huge pipevine (Aristolochia macrophylla)!

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Fall color

Cold nights and sunny days have accelerated fall color in the last week. Yellows, reds, and oranges are becoming more vivid (and spectacular).

There have been pockets of frost in low-lying areas, but the freeze warning last night didn't materialize here. I harvested all the tomatoes and peppers yesterday, in any case, and have several large bowls of tomatoes on the kitchen counter.

Coming home this evening, the bottlebrush buckeye was lovely, and the color of the dogwood in front, backlit from the setting sun, spectacular.

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