PostIts...

Wildflower meadow returned without planting a single seed

A patch of farmland left to its own devices for over a decade has quietly transformed into a thriving wildflower meadow. It didn’t take expensive seed mixes or heavy machinery. Recovery required only patience, a yearly hay cut, and letting nature do what it does. The find could reshape how governments approach one of conservation’s biggest and most expensive challenges.


This is worth trying anywhere that has at least some seedbank left (that is, the topsoil hasn't been killed or hauled away) and where you have a large amount of land to cover (which can make other options cost-prohibitive). In places that used to be scrub or forest or something other than grassland, it needs mowing at least once a year. Otherwise succession will take over and turn it back into whatever it was. Ideally, mow late enough that nesting creatures have finished and decamped, but early enough to permit regrowth before fall, so there will be winter cover for wildlife and erosion protection for the soil.

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Today we went out to Mattoon so I could attend a permaculture club meeting at Douglas-Hart Nature Center.

( Read more... )

Today is mostly cloudy and warm.

I fed the birds. I've seen a few sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 7/6/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 7/6/26 -- I watered the new picnic table garden. I picked the first tomatoes, 2 red cherries and 1 yellow pear.

I saw a tiger swallowtail butterfly. :D

EDIT 7/6/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 7/6/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 7/6/26 -- I watered the telephone pole garden.

I've seen a male cardinal and a starling in the forest garden.

EDIT 7/6/26 -- I watered plants in the house yard.

I've seen a mourning dove in the forest garden.

EDIT 7/6/26 -- I went out to a local permaculture club meeting, which was lots of fun. :D

On the way home, we saw a heron at the drainage ditch. There were puddles in the road, so we got at least a little rain. That's means I don't need to water plants tomorrow during the Poetry Fishbowl. \o/

EDIT 7/6/26 -- I cracked open a bunch of cherry pits to expose the seeds.

EDIT 7/6/26 -- I bagged up the black cherry seeds in damp sand to cold-stratify in the refrigerator. I think the ones that had been air-drying longer were smaller than the plump ones from today's batch. I'll have to try cracking more sooner and see if that holds true.

Fireflies are coming out. I've seen at least one bat above the house yard.

As it is getting dark, I am done for the night.

"The one who hurt you doesn't get a say in how you choose to protect yourself from it happening again."
-- Ehowton


Periodically I encounter people who feel conflicted about obligations and safety. Frequently it's because an abusive parent or spouse has become incapacitated or is heading in that direction. I've often said that you don't owe an abuser anything. The above quote makes it clear why. Acts of neglect or abuse remove any obligation the victim may have had to the abuser. Cast off, expended, gone. You are completely free to protect yourself by ignoring the abuser's wants or needs, walking away, and never seeing them again. You may deny them all your resources -- time, energy, money, attention, everything. They made their choices and now get to live with the consequences.

Remember this if someone pressures you to harm yourself by taking care of an abuser. That person is trying to use and harm you also. Classify them as another threat to your safety.

These are some posts from the later part of last week in case you missed them:
Safety
Enshittification
Wildlife
Fossils
Birdfeeding
Audio
Economics
Birdfeeding
Philosophical Questions: Morals
Trees
Writing About Fireworks
Birdfeeding
Early Humans
Today's Adventures
Agriculture
Gaming
Birdfeeding
Follow Friday 7-3-26: Nature
Conservation
Birdfeeding
Community Thursdays
Today's Adventures
Science
Winterfest in July Bingo Card 7-1-26
Space Exploration
Birdfeeding
Clean Beaches Week
Affordable Housing
Cuddle Party

LiveJournal has 37 comments. Poem: "Walnut Park" has 46 comments. Early Humans has 22 comments.


There will be a Poetry Fishbowl on Tuesday, July 7 with a theme of "Don't add to the casualty list in an emergency."


"Save All the Pieces" belongs to The Big One and needs $99 to be complete. Stylet has misplaced a giant ground sloth.


The weather has been sweltering this past week. Seen at the birdfeeders this week: a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches, two starlings, a mourning dove, a male cardinal, a robin, a male indigo bunting, and a fox squirrel. I've seen several bats flying around. Bobwhite quail are calling. Fireflies are swarming. Cicadas are singing. Currently blooming: pansies, violas, sweet alyssum, marigolds, honeysuckle, snapdragons, lantana, million bells, blue lobelia, petunias, portulaca, nemesia, fan flowers, firecracker plant, pineapple sage, yucca, Asiatic lilies, snowball viburnum, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, spiderwort, narrow-leaved mountain mint, elderberries, golden rain tree, garlic chives, blackberry lily, Queen Anne's lace, purple echinacea, yellow coneflower, frost aster, cosmos. Green fruit: tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers. Ripe fruit: mulberries.

The Reflector That Started a Conversation

Andy realized he couldn’t reconstruct a dangerous road himself. But he could start a conversation. That insight led to a simple idea: a small reflector that could be handed to pedestrians and cyclists throughout the community. The reflector features a uniquely Fort Smith logo: a footprint shaped from the letters “FS,” making it both a practical safety tool and a symbol of local pride.


This is an example of incremental change, doing the next smallest thing to improve a situation. It's replicable anywhere that pedestrian and/or biker safety in low light is a concern.

Ideally, people should build safe roads, but that takes time and lots of money. Walkers and bikers should wear high-visibility clothing, but that is expensive and often uncomfortable. A small reflector is cheap, portable, fast and easy to deploy. It's better than nothing -- and it does get people talking.

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The first primates may have evolved in the cold, not the tropics

A surprising new study suggests the earliest primates didn't originate in tropical forests but in cold, dry parts of North America. Some may have even survived seasonal Arctic conditions by slowing their metabolism or hibernating. Researchers found that dramatic climate shifts, rather than warmth, played a major role in driving primate evolution and expansion. The discovery reshapes our understanding of how our own lineage began.


<3 snow monkeys.

Today is cloudy, humid, and not but not quite as bad as yesterday.

I fed the birds.  I've seen a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

I've heard bobwhite quail calls.  :D

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I started work on a repair job outdoors.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did more work on a repair job outdoors.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did more work on a repair job outdoors.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did more work on a repair job outdoors.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did more work on a repair job outdoors.

I've seen a male cardinal and a robin in the forest garden.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did more work on a repair job outdoors.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did more work on a repair job outdoors.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I finished the repair job outdoors.  *goflopnow*

Fireflies are coming out.  Cicadas are singing.

As it is getting dark, I am done for the night. 

Podfic Feedback Toolbox: 5 ways to give great podfic feedback

In podfic meta discussions, it periodically comes up that some people want to leave feedback on podfic but just aren't sure what to say. This post is an attempt to give some new ideas to anyone who would like to expand their repertoire for expressing their thoughts about podfic. It is not meant to pressure listeners to leave feedback if they don't feel comfortable with that. Hopefully it will work more like a toolbox, providing tools that people can use to help them accomplish their pre-existing goals more easily and successfully.

Today is cloudy, muggy, and hot.  Yesterday's rain never arrived, but there's more chance today too.

I fed the birds.  I've seen a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds.  Honeybees are busy carrying water to the hive.

EDIT 7/4/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 7/4/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

I've seen two starlings, a mourning dove, and a male cardinal in the forest garden.

EDIT 7/4/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 7/4/26 -- I watered tree seedlings in the savanna.

Queen Anne's lace and frost asters are blooming in the savanna and prairie garden.  Purple echinacea and yellow coneflower are blooming in the wildflower garden.  Wild bergamot is blooming in several places in the prairie garden.  The first few cosmos are blooming in the north notch of the prairie garden.  :D  

I hear thunder to the south, I can see rain to the northwest, and we're starting to get a downdraft.  I don't know if the promised rain will actually arrive, though.  I hope so.  We need it because the ground is drying out from the heat, even as humid as it's been.

EDIT 7/4/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

It drizzled earlier, just enough to wet the leaves and make small puddles in the road.

EDIT 7/4/26 -- I went outside to watch distant fireworks for a while.  There were well over a dozen shows in view.  :D  The storm didn't bring much water but did drop the temperature to near-comfortable level.

I am done for the night.