A pileated woodpecker

Behind my office is a Southern red oak in decline.  Limbs have been trimmed and the top has already broken, although we're not inclined to take it down just yet.

My colleague pointed out to me this morning that a pileated woodpecker was busily working a cavity high up on the trunk - what a great sight.  This is a blurry image from early morning (cropped, of course!).

It's probably a feeding cavity based on my bit of research, although I'm hardly an expert on bird behavior.  Not the time of the year for a nesting cavity, certainly, and pileated woodpeckers forage in dead and dying trees in search of a favorite prey item, carpenter ants, according to All About Birds, Cornell Ornithology Lab's online field guide site.

(This is a duplicate post from Natural Gardening).

Hunt Cabin Open House

The Hunt Cabin is a historical treasure located in the Botanical Garden.  Over the past year we have been opening the Cabin to the public at least one Saturday a week.  So many people have peered through the windows over the years and are delighted to have the opportunity to come inside and look around.

Our plan is to interpret life in the mid nineteenth century when there were ten inhabitants of the Cabin, and three enslaved African-Americans who lived on the property.

Age in 1850 Census

Ransom Hunt 46

Martha Hunt 47

Grandma Mary  Dalton 89

Charles Hunt 22

Harriet Hunt 18

Samuel Hunt 16

Emeline Hunt 14

William 10

Melissa/Matilda Hunt 7

Mary  Elizabeth Hunt 4

Who lived on the property

Female slave 18

Female slave 14

Male slave 1

We began in January 2012 beside a roaring fire.  People were drawn to the Cabin by the smell of wood smoke and the colorful and beautiful quilts displayed on the porches.  Jennifer Bausman a renowned local storyteller and former Garden employee joined my daughter Chloe and I dressed as costumed interpreters for the period.   Jennifer told stories, encouraged everyone to dance and as we got more used to the cabin, Jennifer started to cook over the open hearth  To date we've had popcorn, warmed apple cider, hoe cakes and yummy  beans.

One day we talked about fiber production and clothing.  Chloe demonstrates an early and rare hand cotton gin in the photo above, and a student from PRTM, Paul Nelson, took us through the stages for preparing flax for linen production.  Look for flax to be planted in front of the cabin in the Spring (I hope!) In September 2012 we will again focus on fiber production and fiber arts and give the opportunity for people to experience carding and weaving , and other such practical crafts, and learn about clothing in this period. 

Visit the Garden's calendar for more information on upcoming programs. 

Vegetable transplants at the SCBG plant sale

We have a fabulous collection of native and ornamental garden plants available at the Friends Spring Plant Sale on April 20 (2:30-6 pm) and the SCBG Public Sale on April 21 (9 am-1 pm).  You can download the list here.

We'll also have an excellent selection of warm-season vegetables and herbs and will be providing advice about growing vegetables in the Upstate at our Garden Fest table.

Eggplant

Millionaire Hybrid (Japanese type)

Asian Trio (long purple, white, magenta)

Violet Prince

Peppers

Ancho San Martin Hybrid Pepper

Pizza

Corno Di Toro Mix

Corno Di Toro

Pimento

Sweet Jemison (sweet Italian) OP

Sweet Abundance (sweet bell-shaped pepper) OP

New Mexico Big Jim (ancho/poblano type)

Jalapeno 'Jalafuego'

Tomato Hybrids: Beefsteak/Slicing/Salad

Big Beef VFFNTA Hybrid

Juliet

Better Boy VFN hybrid

Lemon Boy VFN

Big Boy hybrid

Paste tomatoes

Super Marzano VFNT hybrid

Roma 'Pompeii'

Principe Borghese (OP)

Cherry tomatoes

Super Sweet 100

Sun Gold Hybrid

Sweet Million FNT Hybrid

Heirlooms/OP

Chianti Rose

Brandywine Tomato

Cherokee Purple

German Giant

Pink Brandywine

Black Cherry

Hawaiian Pineapple

Tomatillo

Verde Puebla

Herbs

Parsley (Italian)

Parsley (Italian 'Gigante')

Parsley (Moss curled)

Basil (Italian pesto)

Basil (Profumo di Genova)

Thai Lemon Basil

Stevia (sweetener herb)

Bulbing Fennel 'Trieste'

Spring nights

I'd scheduled a spring full moon hike for April 6, not realizing that it was Good Friday (so maybe not such a good time for Christian observers), but then again, it may be a lovely evening to connect with nature and spirit.

A previous (almost) full moon

The warm season in the Southern U.S. --spring, summer, and fall-- is magical with night sounds.  Insects and frogs (of many species) are the primary players in the nocturnal symphony, with birds punctuating the transition from dusk to dark, and perhaps some of the night flying birds (such as owls) will be calling out.

The exceptionally warm winter and early spring means that the nocturnal symphony is playing earlier than normal.  Enjoy!

(This is a duplicate post from my blog, Natural Gardening).  Here's a link to previous posts about night sounds, with some excellent resource links. 

Spring wildflowers

If you have a chance to visit the Garden, you'll find spring definitely well along.

I've made a number of posts about early spring wildflowers on my blog, Natural Gardening, over the last couple of weeks (here's one about Hepatica) from late February). 

Some of my colleagues have posted on the Garden's Facebook page about sightings of Oconee Bell, Hepatica, and others.

This last week has seen flowers of bloodroot and trout lily, among many other early-flowering species from around the world.

Here's a trout lily blooming today in the Woodland Wildflower Garden.

Erythronium americanum (Trout lily)

American beech

American beech trees are a ghostly presence in winter.  Their leaves persist until expansion of new buds pushes them off in early spring.

Shade-tolerant, young beeches became established and persist as saplings in the understory of mixed hardwood forests in the Piedmont of the Southeastern U.S., and maybe elsewhere, too.

beeches near the old sawmill in the Schoenike Arboretum, SC Botanical Garden

In a mild winter, other hardwood species retain their leaves, too.  Ironwood (Carpinus caroliniana), also known as musclewood or American hornbeam, is a beech look-alike in winter guise this year along the stream near Crucible, apart from the distinctive long buds signifying beech.

There are a lot more beech saplings in the understory today than were present five years ago -- it's something I've noticed particularly this winter.

I'm thinking that the easing of the decade-long drought might have encouraged a 'cohort' of establishment (first seedlings and now saplings) in the understory of our mixed hardwood forests, where seed-producing beeches were nearby. 

This is evident both in woodland/forest areas near the Meditation Garden, as well as beyond the powerline corridor, where the photo (above) was taken (adjacent to the beech grove).

Hunt Cabin Open House

Starting in February we are opening the Hunt Cabin once a month.  These are pictures from our first event.

We had about 60 guests over the course of the time (10 am to 2 pm) and we had fun eating popcorn cooked on the fire and drinking apple cider warmed on the hearth.  There was dancing, storytelling and playing  fun (and historically appropriate) games.

Our next open houses are

March 10th, 10 am to 2 pm

Open hearth cooking with Wayne Link

Secrets of cabin construction

Storytelling 

April 14th, 10 am to 2 pm

What to wear? Cloth and clothing in the 19th C upcountry

Storytelling

May 5th, 10 am to 2 pm

Ready for visitors

Games to play

A roaring fire of welcome!

Wintery Outside

Pam Kline - lovely spinning

Playing Graces.

Storyteller Jennifer Bausman

Boy Scouts playing

Learning to write with a dip fountain pen

Tessa and Helen (l to r)

Tessa - an English Sheepdog

Learning to play the washboard

Visiting with Pam and learning about the past

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