Genetic Roulette

Genetic Roulette, free viewing, watch it before it expires at midnight on January 1.
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Fall In Montpelier

Fall Hydrangeas

 Fall Reflections

Fall At The Cemetary

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© all rights reserved by Elise T. Marks. Please do not use this image on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit written permission.

Velvet Leaf Plant

Abutilon theophrasti

Other common names for Velvet Leaf include: Buttonweed, Indian Mallow, Butterprint, China Jute, Abutilon Hemp, Manchurian Jute, American Jute, Tientsin Jute, Piemaker, and in Chinese Ching-ma. It’s debatable whether the plant is native to India or China.

Velvet Leaf is a commercial failure but a successful foreign invader. A flop as a fiber plant and cursed for its infiltration of food crops, it was first cultivated in China some 3,000 years ago. From there it made its way nearly everywhere on earth. First the Mediterranean area, then Europe. It was introduced into North America before 1750 to make rope but never became popular for that. Velvet Leaf never became the great promised fiber plant in North America because of the lack of machinery to economically process it. Instead it became an agricultural pest. That is has edible parts went by the wayside.

  Where the plant is native its seeds are a common outdoor snack of children. The unripe seeds are edible raw. Young seeds taste similar to sunflower seeds. Ripe seeds, however, must be leached until not bitter, then dried they are ground into flour. Usually the flour was used to make noodles. The seeds contain between 15 and 30% oil.

  Usually Abutilon theophrasti is found near farming activities: gardens, crop fields, nurseries, orchards, groves and the like. It’s significant problem where corn, cotton or soybeans are grown sometimes displacing 35% or more of the crop causing losses in the hundreds of millions of dollars. As a fiber source in Asia it has been used for rope, bags, coarse cloth, fishing nets, paper stock even caulking boats.

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Missing Summer

Family Outing On The Bike Path

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Valerian - Back to Your Roots with Yarrow Willard Cl.H | Harmonic Arts

YOU'RE THE VOICE - An Anthem From Women For Climate Action & Hope | 1 Mi...

Autumn Color 2016

Autumn Color Around A Crescent Moon

Camels Hump Viewed From A Boat On Lake Champlain.

Fall on the road to All Souls Interfaith Gathering Center in Shelburne, Vermont.

Fall on the road to All Souls Interfaith Gathering Center in Shelburne, Vermont.

Autumn on the UVM Campus

Autumn View of Camels Hump and a farm, Classic fall in Vermont.

There's a beautiful little gazebo, in the Hyde Street Triangle Park, that looked really lovely amongst the autumn leaves. The O.N.E.DER DOME Artists: Terry Zigmund, John Marius, & VSA students. Made of stained glass and steel. With help from a CEDO grant, VSA arts of Vermont's four-year goal of erecting a dome with stained glass panels made by adults with developmental disabilities in Burlington's Old North End came to fruition in the spring of 2010. The stained glass panels in the sculpture were made by community artists in VSA Arts of Vermont classes presented in partnership with Howard Center Developmental Services and Champlain Community Services, and taught by Terry Zigmund of Burlington Community Glass Studio. The steel dome was made by John Marius of Champlain Metals.

Fall Light And A Monkey, do you see the monkey.

Autumn Fence Line Glory

Autumn View of Camels Hump With Earthtones

More Fall Fenceline Color

Autumn Ferry Cruise on Lake Champlain

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Drought Changes The Landscape

Drought Changes The Landscape at Delta Park Beach in Colchester, Vermont. The thin golden area in front of the houses, is where the beach normally is & where the water normally reaches. The drought has lowered the lake so much that it looks like we can now walk half way across it. This was so shocking to me, that I felt like I was in the aftermath of an apocalypse. Where I am standing, taking this photo, should be underwater, & there was still quite a distance to go before I reached where the water is. So many aquatic plants have died or are dying as Lake Champlain shrinks.

A Flock Of Geese & A Sculpture at Delta Park Beach in Colchester, Vermont.

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Butterfly takes over Koala Joey's Photoshoot and owns it like a BOSS!

Fantastic Fungi: The Spirit of Good

Stink Movie

This is a must-see!!! FREE during Breast Cancer Awareness Month Oct 2016.
https://stinkmovie.com

Energy Healing

http://energyhealing.thesacredscience.com/video-1.html

Alpaca Faces

Alpaca Faces With Such Personality

Abby- Moonacre Absolute Prestige

 Halle

 Blackberry

Tallulah

 Isabel Too - sunning herself

 Jenna Marie

Poppy Tillie & Pintada

The Three Amiga's

Isabel Too - smiling

Isn't This The Sweetest Face ever! Alpacas at Moonacre Farm. This is CHAF Amber Pearl

There are two kinds of alpacas. These are Huacaya alpacas, (pronounced Wuh-kai-ya). Huacayas are fluffy like teddy bears and Suris have long shiny locks like very soft, slightly curly hair. Alpacas are bred specifically for their fiber. High quality fleece from both species fetches top dollar on the international market. Some hand spinners like to spin alpaca fiber mixed with cotton, wool or Silk. Alpaca fiber is used for making knitted and woven items, similar to wool. These items include blankets, sweaters, hats, gloves, scarves, ponchos, sweaters, socks, coats, bedding, and a wide variety of textiles.

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Thanks for your visits, favs and comments. As always, appreciated very much!

 

© all rights reserved by Elise T. Marks. Please do not use this image on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit written permission.

Art Show

Ceramic Still Life

This photo was awarded Capture My Vermont, Photo of the Day, for August 11, 2016.

Pottery at the 10th annual, Farm & Open Studio Tour, in Grand Isle.

The Face Of Raku

Demonstrating Raku Pottery at the 10th annual, Farm & Open Studio Tour, in Grand Isle.

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Sea Gulls

Gulls At The Waterfront

Gulls Flying Over Lake Champlain

Gull In Battery Park

Coming In For A Landing

Coming In For A Landing

Gull Under An Apple Tree

Ring Billed Gull At The Park

Gulls Flying Over Lake Champlain

Gulls Flying Over Lake Champlain

Gulls Flying Over Lake Champlain

Seagulls are intelligent, adaptable and often beautiful birds. There are over 50 species of seagulls worldwide, there are 28 types of gull species seen in North America.

They, are seabirds. The average lifespan for a seagull is 10-15 years in the wild, but there have been cases where they have lived up to 30 years old. Seagulls can eat up to 20% of their body weight in food each day. They can achieve average flight speeds of about 23-25 mph in headwind conditions and 29-30 mph in tailwind conditions. Gulls have an impressive sense of smell that allows them to detect the faintest trace of food from over 3 miles away. Some types of gulls nest on the ground or on cliffsides while others build nests on the water’s surface. ​​​​​​​Seagulls have incredible vision- they can see clearly from as far away as 2 miles, their eyes are set at the side of their head, giving them a panoramic view. 

They have excellent memories and can remember specific people’s faces and places where food has been hidden from days ago. Seagulls also recognize other seagulls who they associate with as friends or enemies, by their calls.​​​​​​​

They mate for life and form a lifelong bond with their partner. They work as a team to find food, protect the nest, and raise chicks. The male seagull brings most of the food while the female cares for the eggs or young chicks at home. Many species of gulls have an amazing ability to return to their original nest year after year. Some gulls even return in a span of two years. Gulls also share the same nesting site for generations

Seagulls feed mostly on seafood like crabs, clams, mussels, shrimps and small fish but also scavenge for scraps of human food left behind. ​​​​​​They also eat various types of insects and worms as well as sea vegetation like seaweed and kelp. 

The seagull is a symbol of healing, wisdom and tranquility. The belief that the seagull is a messenger from the creator has been traced back to Ancient Greece. In Native American symbolism, the seagull represents peace and prosperity, as well as emotional balance and strength in numbers.

My photographs are available for purchase through EliseCreations.net

Thanks for your visits, favs and comments. As always, appreciated very much!

© all rights reserved by Elise T. Marks. Please do not use this image on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit written permission.

Disclaimer

My blog is meant to inform and I strive to be totally accurate. It is solely up to the reader to ensure proper plant identification. Some wild plants and mushrooms are poisonous or can have serious adverse health effects.

Balloon Flowers

Balloon Flowers, also known as Chinese bellflower, (Platycodon grandiflorus). Though I'm partial to the blue, this white one caught my eye. 

This plant is known for its root. In the greater Campanula clan, the root of the Balloon Flower, Platycodon grandiflorus, is very popular in Korea where it is cut into strips, seasoned with chili’s, vinegar, sesame oil and soy  sauce and eaten as a salad. It is also used in soups, stews, dishes with vinegar, and is one of the ingredients in Toso, or sweet Japanese sake. Boiled young leaves are eaten in salads. Its blossoms are sweet in taste, have a bit of texture, and are used in salads, stuffed, candied or dipped in butter. The Balloon Flower is so called because before the petals open are fused at first making the blossom look like a balloon.

My photographs are available for purchase through EliseCreations.artfire.com

Thanks for your visits, favs and comments. As always, appreciated very much!

© all rights reserved by Elise T. Marks. Please do not use this image on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit written permission.

Having A Ball With Bees

Bees congregating on Blue Allium.

Ordinary Onions They're Not 

Onions, shallots and garlic are members of the allium family that belong in the vegetable garden. But there are many ornamental alliums that deserve a hearty welcome in your perennial gardens.

There are more than 700 different types of alliums in the world. It wasn't until the late 1800s that this vast group of plants started to intrigue plant lovers. Russian botanists began collecting some of the spectacular alliums from Central Asia and introducing them to avid horticulturists through the Imperial Botanical Garden in St. Petersburg. Of course, it didn't take long for the consummate plant hunters, the British, to get wind of this "new" family of garden-worthy plants. Their expeditions yielded many more interesting alliums varieties.

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© all rights reserved by Elise T. Marks. Please do not use this image on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit written permission.

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Silvery Checkerspot Butterfly

The Silvery Checkerspot (Chlosyne nycteis) is a species of Nymphalinae that occurs in North America.

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Thanks for your visits, favs and comments. As always, appreciated very much!

© all rights reserved by Elise T. Marks. Please do not use this image on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit written permission.

Django Takes A Plunge

With a little encouragement from Liz, Django leaps from his inner tube to cool off in the water. He loves to be towed around on this tube, but rarely gets wet. When he does get wet, he has to lick every drop of water off, like a cat cleans itself.
This photo was Photo of the Day on Capture My Vermont, for July 30, 2016.

My photographs are available for purchase through EliseCreations.artfire.com

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© all rights reserved by Elise T. Marks. Please do not use this image on websites, blogs or any other media without my explicit written permission.

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Wildflowers

Me

While picking blueberries in Charlotte, Nancy & I could not resist taking some photos in the field of wildflowers.

Nancy

Me at a sunflower farm