Ilex verticillata - Winterberry

Ilex verticillata - Winterberry, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

Ilex verticillata – Winterberry

A deciduous Holly. One of my favorite shrubs. Grows wild in this area the one in the video clip is in my road side garden. Most of my property is natural forest and there is a clump of this shrub growing in the dense part of the wood. I dug this bush up and moved it to the roadside years ago when it was just a small plant. At that time I didn't know that Winterberry was a true Ilex a member of the Holly family so like all hollies it has male and female plants and you need one of each to get the nice red berries. When this plant was almost full brown it started producing a few berries every year, only five or so, which proved it was female and evidently a small amount of pollen was being carried to it either on the wind or by insects. A few years ago I went to a garden center and bought her a mate and ever since then it has produced a load of beautiful berries that stay on the bush almost all winter.

Pound Sweet, Pound Sweeting, Pumpkin Sweeting, Rhode Island Sweet, Round Sweet, Vermont Sweet, Lyman’s Pumpkin Sweet, Sweet Pumpkin, Yankee Apple

Pound Sweet, Pound Sweeting, Pumpkin Sweeting, Rhode Island Sweet, Round Sweet, Vermont Sweet, Lyman’s Pumpkin Sweet, Sweet Pumpkin, Yankee Apple, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

The apple with many different names. I bought mine years ago as a Pumpkin Sweet. What ever you call it, it's a wonderful old heritage apple. Very firms flesh, an excellent storage apple, great in pies or apple sauce. I also eat them fresh off the tree but it wouldn't be to everyones taste, a bit on the hard side.

(A quote from Big Horse Creek Farm's website) “The name for this apple is derived from its large size and yellowish-orange color. It originated in 1800's in the orchards of S. Lyman of Manchester, Connecticut and was first recorded in 1834. It has long been a popular apple in the South sought out for its culinary qualities. It is excellent for baking or canning, but less desirable for fresh eating. Fruit is large to very large with tough, smooth skin with patches of russet, occasionally showing a brownish-red blush. The yellow flesh is firm, crisp, juicy, and very sweet. Ripens October or later. “

What I like about it most is what it does this time of year. It doesn't drop it's fruit on the ground. I've never seen any other apple quite like it. What ever fruit is left on the tree after I've harvested all that I want, stays on the tree all winter. This is a great treat for wildlife, especially birds. After we've had a lot of cold weather the fruit turns brown but it still doesn't fall off the tree. All winter long there are birds in the tree picking at the frozen fruit and in the spring it's the first thing the robins go for as soon as the arrive.

Winter Herb Garden - Parsley and Basil - Last of this years Leeks.

Winter Herb Garden - Parsley and Basil , originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

The outdoor gardening season for 2009 is officially over, the garden beds are cleaned up and ready for winter and I harvested the last of the leeks yesterday. I have three different varieties of garlic planted in my square foot garden frames a new variety that I bought this fall via the Internet from B.C., some of the garlic that I harvested from this years crop and some that was just off the store shelf this fall. They have all been in the ground for over a month now and the only variety to actually come up and start to grow is the supermarket variety. It was only in the ground six days when it broke through the surface and started to grow. Right now it is green and healthy and about six inches tall. I will try to remember to mulch it as soon as the ground freezes. Should be interesting to see how the different varieties prove out next year.

I have got a lot of use out of the light garden that I bought last winter. It was in use from mid January last winter when I started my onion, shallot and leek seedlings through to late spring as I started the various seedlings for the summer garden and now it has been in use since mid September this fall when I planted several pots of Italian Parsley and a mixture of different Basils for kitchen use this fall and winter. They are up and doing nicely I made a pasta sauce the other day and it was so nice to have fresh herbs to use.

Remembrance Day Poppies

In Flanders Fields

by John McCrae, May 1915

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep,
though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Maine Coast Heritage Trust Prize winning photo.

Maine Coast Heritage Trust Prize winning photo. Machiasport area. Mill Pond stroll. With Yurts August 9, 2009, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

I just received this notification that this photo won the Maine Coast Heritage Trust photo contest prize;

Hi Dale:

I am writing to inform you that one of your photos has been chosen as the 2009 MCHT Photo Contest Winner (see attached). Thank you so much for participating in this year’s contest. Your image does an excellent job of capturing the beauty of the Maine coast. As winner of this year’s contest you are entitled to an MCHT Tote bag. Please forward to me your address and I will send it on its way. Again thanks for your participation and support of MCHT.

Sincerely

Jeffrey Romano
Maine Coast Heritage Trust
1 Bowdoin Mill Island, Suite 201
Topsham, ME 04086

I'm pleased to be the winner but I'm not sure if I had any competition. A man from the Heritage trust led a Pathfinders walk in Machiasport on August 9th and he invited any of us who were taking photos on the walk to enter the contest, he also said that as of that date there had not been any entries.