Let's Paint Nature!
Hiking & Painting in Nature – Chicago
Tag: sketchbook
It was there and then it was gone – Monarch Caterpillar Watercolor
It was there… I was looking at the reward for planting common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) in my backyard. Several times the hubby almost pulled it because he thought it was a weed (well it is), I pleaded for him to leave it and to…
Windy at the Lake Watercolor and Nature Journal Club
Hearty winds whip across the lake, Kayaker struggles. Seagulls hover in the air, Clouds race above. Reflections can’t form in this wind, Dragonfly skips on waves. I messed my ankle up last Monday, so I’ve been off my feet for almost a whole week….
My Native Front Yard – Blue Vervain Watercolor
Today blue vervain (Verbena hastata) is in bloom in the native garden. I absolutely love its flowers. Up close they look blue-purple. From a distance they look purple to pinkish-purple. The actual flower itself is tiny but grows in clusters on a spike. They…
My Native Front Yard Wildlife Edition – Black Swallowtail Caterpillar
The native plants are working! Look who I found munching on some leaves…. a big juicy black swallowtail caterpillar (Papilio polyxenes). That means a black swallowtail butterfly must have laid an egg under the leaf of my Golden Alexander (Zizia aurea) plant when I…
It’s a Boy! Update on Polyphemus Cocoon
Do you remember last year when a Polyphemus caterpillar visited my house? (Click on the link to see post with video of caterpillar eating maple leaves.) I was completely shocked as I just happened to find it on my siding. Suddenly, in a matter…
My Native Front Yard – Golden Alexander and Prairie Alumroot
Build it (a native garden) and they will come (insects)! He he he. That was the famous quote from the 1989 movie, Field of Dreams, without the garden and insects insert. But in all seriousness, they will come. Why do we need to help…
My Native Front Yard – Wild Geranium
Last year I converted my front yard into a native habitat. Goodbye grass, hello native plants! Why? To save the insects. First, lawn grass does not benefit much in nature. If there is little rain, you must supplement with water from your hose. Water…
Cup Fungi Watercolor
What a mouth-opening surprise I had when I found these cute cup fungi growing in my own yard! What’s so neat about these fungi? Why, let me explain their coolness. First, they look like tiny cups on the ground. Awwwwwww. Second, they want it…
Great Horned Owl Watercolor
I’ve always wanted to see an owl in the wild while hiking. The natural way…not with a local bird group nor some Audubon field-trip, but surprisingly caught off guard while walking through the woods. For years, I’ve prayed for it. Then it happened. And…
Unbound and off trail – watercolor
Like many of you, I’m home bound. My state of Illinois issued an order last Friday that restricts residents from venturing out except for necessary grocery trips or doctor visits. But Governor Pritzker said the magic words on television last Friday: “You many go…
Daily Verse
- James 1:21“Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.”
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