Summer on the Tallgrass Prairie

“In summer, the song sings itself.” —William Carlos Williams

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A word to the wise: When you leave for the weekend, pick all the zucchini in the garden before you go. Or you might come back to this:

Zucchini (Cucurbita pepo), Crosby’s garden, Glen Ellyn, IL.

Anyone have some good zuke recipes? I think we’re going to need them.

The garden is thriving after the 14 tornados, torrential downpours, and heat of last week. Jeff and I have spent a lot of time pulling weeds in the garden, and tying up tomato branches which bow under the weight of green globes. All this rain and heat are welcome news for the everbearing “Joan” raspberries we planted last season because one of our granddaughters told us she wanted “razzies.”

Joan raspberries (Rubus idaeus ‘Joan J.’), Crosby’s garden, Glen Ellyn, IL.

Another reason to plant whatever your grandkids ask you for. Yum!

The week’s welcome rain came with plenty of weather watching. We dodged a bullet in the Chicago suburbs Friday as we huddled in a downstairs closet under the stairs in the dark, listening to one twister go over with a distant roar. Other than a flat of prairie plants waiting to go into the backyard which blew into the street, we saw no damage. We were lucky.

Crosby’s backyard, Glen Ellyn, IL. We try for 70% natives, 30% “other” —the “other” mostly zinnias and vegetables.

On the Illinois tallgrass prairies, the soaking rains helped fuel the wildflowers.

Unknown insect and bumblebee jostling for position on swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) at a Cook County Forest Preserve, IL.

Look at those yellow blooms! Rosinweed.

Rosinweed (Silphium integrifolium), Schulenberg Prairie, Lisle, IL.

Gray-headed coneflowers.

Gray-headed coneflower (Ratibida pinnata) with compass plants leaves (Silphium laciniatum), Schulengerg Prairie, Lisle, IL.

Early goldenrods.

Early goldenrod (Solidago juncea) with an unknown insect, Shades State Park, Waveland, IN.

Striking black-eyed Susans–almost like an impressionist painting when seen from a distance—

Kankakee Sands, Morocco, IN.

…are full of sharp contrast close up.

Black-eyed susans (Rudbeckia hirta), Kankakee Sands, Morocco, IN.

Flowers also come in knock-your-socks-off orange.

Michigan lily (Lilium michiganense) with leadplant (Amorpha canescens) and prairie dock (Silphium terebinthinaceum), Schulenberg Prairie, Lisle, IL.

I like the oddball flowers. This one reminds me of a court jester’s cap.

Spotted horsemint (Monarda punctata), Kankakee Sands, Morocco, IN.

With the wildflowers come butterflies. I’m seeing larger numbers of monarchs here this week, as if someone pushed a button that told them “GO!”

Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) on butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa), Schulenberg Prairie, The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL.

Wild indigo duskywings speed across the prairie, sampling non-native red clover and native wildflowers.

Wild indigo duskywing butterfly (Erynnis baptisiae) on red clover ( Trifolium pratense), Schulenberg Prairie, Lisle, IL.

Pipevine swallowtail butterflies vie for the best nectar.

Pipevine swallowtail butterflies (Battus philenor) on wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa), Turkey Run State Park, Marshall, IN.

Widow skimmer dragonflies seem to be everywhere, both aloft and perched.

Widow skimmer dragonfly (Libellula luctuosa), Schulenberg Prairie, Lisle, IL.

You might even “spot” the occasional spotted lady beetle.

Seven-spotted lady beetle (Cocinella septempunctata) on prairie dock (Silphium terebinthinaceum), Schulenberg Prairie, Lisle, IL.

If you haven’t hiked your local prairie or nature preserve yet in July, why not? Who knows what you might discover.

Kankakee Sands, Morocco, IN.

It’s all waiting for you. The wildflowers, the birds…

Song sparrow (Melospiza melodia), Schulenberg Prairie, Lisle, IL.

…the butterflies and the bees.

Unknown bee on purple prairie clover (Dalea pupurea), Schulenberg Prairie, Lisle, IL.

July is halfway over.

Pale purple coneflower (Echinacea pallida) with unknown bee, Schulenberg Prairie, Lisle, IL.

Why not go see?

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The opening quote is by William Carlos Williams (1883-1963), from his poem, “The Botticellian Trees.” Read more about Williams at the The Poetry Foundation. He was a physician, as well as a poet, and his grandmother had the surprising name of Emily Dickinson (no relation to Dickinson the poet, however). Critics noted his poetry has “a stubborn or invincible joyousness.” That phrase, “stubborn” and “invincible joyousness,” is going to stick with me this week. What a great outlook to cultivate.

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Hello Wonderful Readers: I’ll still be blogging, but I’m taking most of the month of July off from teaching and giving programs to continue my adventures with Jeff, visiting 40 natural areas over the summer and fall for our 40th anniversary this year. Look for classes and programs to resume at the end of July (see http://www.cindycrosby.com for details), and please let us know where you think we should head to next. Thanks to everyone who has sent ideas! So far, we’ve enjoyed hiking and/or kayaking at the following:

#1 Rock Cut State Park (Rockford, IL); #2 James “Pate” Philip State Park (Bartlett, IL); #3 Potato Creek State Park (North Liberty, IN); #4 Indiana Dunes State Park (Porter County, IN); #5 Indiana Dunes National Park (Beverly Shores, IN); kayaking Silver Lake at #6 Blackwell Forest Preserve (Wheaton/Warrenville, IL); hiking #7 Belmont Prairie Nature Preserve (Downers Grove, IL), #8 Winfield Mounds Forest Preserve (Winfield, IL), #9 Bluff Spring Fen (Elgin, IL), #10 Herrick Lake Forest Preserve (Wheaton, IL); Jeff’s family reunion at #11 Hawthorn Park (Terre Haute, IN); hiking #12 Turkey Run State Park, Marshall, IN) and at #13 Shades State Park, Waveland, IN; and bison viewing at #14 Kankakee Sands, Morocco, IN. We are a third of the way to our goal!