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summer things

Hours after it happened, I realized I saw my first lightning bug (firefly to some) of the season, today, June 1st. I was having dinner on a restaurant patio and it was over by the restaurant wall. I didn't really actively notice it, focused on my conversation. Just now I saw a picture of a lightning bug (a daytime photo of one with its wings closed) and all of a sudden tonight's visitor was there in my mind. I don't so much mind that I didn't realize it at first but I'll try to appreciate the next one.

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natural egg dyes, an update

Last year I posted my experience dying eggs with natural materials. I mentioned that it takes a lot of material to get a good pigment, that they do well sitting about 24 hours in the solution at room temp (I use empty shells so don't refrigerate but refrigerating the jars is probably fine), and that they need time to "develop" - at first they all look mottled grey and beige but the next morning they look nice.

This year I tried 3 more colors based on what I had around, including the onion skins I have been collecting in a jar for a year for this purpose.

Black beans - blueish grey

Onion skins - dark orangish brown, like burnt sienna maybe?

Pomegranat skins - yellow (i only had 3 pomegranates so it was sort of light)

I also tried the trick of putting the egg in pantyhose with leaves pressed against it. It worked better in 2 of the 3 than expected! The clover + onion skins turned out like expected, but the black beans + some leaf I picked from my yard did the opposite and was darker underneath, very cool, no idea how to recreate it.

My chickens' eggs are brown shades, so last year I "bleached" them in vinegar and rubbed the top colored layer off before dying. That made them brittle and chalky and the color faded quickly. It also made the dyes only work for 1 egg I think because the calcium collected in the pigment. This year I just chose lighter eggs and put a splash of vinegar in the color solution.

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spring springing

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chickadee

Trying out a pattern for holiday cards. Not sure it says winter yet.

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Late Summer field and forest edge flora:

Pawpaw, hawthorn, black gum, sassafras

Goldenrods, ironweed, white snakeroot, bottle gentian

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tomatoes again

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Thinking about the persimmon trees I planted in my parents' yard four years ago, and how when I learned it would be 10 years before they ever fruited, it seemed impossibly far away, especially compared to the near-instant gratification timeline of the garden vegetables I had spent the summer overrun with.

I didn't know who I would be 10 years on, where I would be, if I'd even be nearby enough to see the fruit. Could I keep them alive that long? What if me and the trees put all that time into growing and the fruit wasn't even good? What would happen to the trees in 20 years, 50 years, 100? What if they got so tall or the roots so deep they got tangled with the older trees around them and everything ended up worse off?

Four years later, it has gone by so fast. It feels like yesterday. The trees get fuller, but are still small. They could probably use more sun.

I don't want to rush the next 6 years, but it feels like it's already here. But also, I want to see persimmons already!

A photo of baby trees, and my rendition of what they'll look like some day. If this isn't how persimmons grow, well, I wouldn't know.

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tomatoes

The photo was printed in clear film, one was put directly in the window, the other was used to make a turmeric anthotype. The tomatoes were grown by a neighbor, hopefully mine come in this pretty.

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tomatoes on display

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moths on lightsheet

David Fischer, Malaysia, 2024.

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grapes & plums at the farmers market

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Alright, I should probably make a post to pin at some point.

Hello! My name's Jace, but you can also call me Jay or Sparrow.

I was really into birding for a while in high school, lost interest for a few years, and have now come back to it more passionately than ever! Shoutout to ebird for reeling me back in. I live in rural northern Minnesota surrounded by lots of forests, lakes, and rivers, so there's plenty of fun stuff nearby to keep me entertained.

This is my blog I intend to use to post my nature photography as well as post about my more nature-related interests and hopefully interact with others who share those interests c: Feel free to say hi if you want. I'm shy though, you've been warned. My main blog where I post more random/fandom stuff is strawberrygiorno.

I don't have a very particular tag system. It's mostly vibes. I try to tag location and species at least. The "backyard birds" tag is for things related to birds I encounter specifically in my yard and the immediately surrounding forest.

Some of my favorite birds in no particular order:

- Eastern phoebe

- Common Loon

- Gray catbird

- Rose-breasted grosbeak

- White-breasted nuthatch

- Osprey

- Cedar waxwing

- Secretary bird

- Roseate spoonbill

and more generally

- Birds of prey

- Corvids

- Ibises

- Cranes

- Storks

- And vultures I love vultures

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hustle culture

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Beginnings of a strawberry baby quilt for a friend who’s expecting!

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found some nice trees* on my morning walk

*but i think every tree is nice so this doesn't mean much