The Last of August........

The arrangement of the coneflowers really is not a natural one.  I had to stake up most of them and they ended up on bunches that look like this.  The flowers are fading quickly and I have yet to see a finch on the seed heads.  The butterflies don't seem interested in them any more so I guess the nectar is gone.

The sunflowers which grow next to the coneflowers are just now blooming.  I was glad to see that those small heads did expand into a larger flower.  The photo is a little blurred but I was thinking this one sunflower does look differently than the others.  The seed pack must not have had pure variety seeds in it. 

I shot the two pictures of the monarch with them a couple of days ago and yesterday I did see a single monarch flitting around in the area.   Never landed on anything.

I do have this mini patch of zinnias that should bring in some butterflies.  I think the warmer weather will bring them out more.  The apple tree branch that hung down above these flowers has raised up now as it started to drop apples and it has less weight on it.

I am thinking the city told the company that school was starting today.  The few children that do walk to school need not fall into all those ditches around the sidewalk.  It has all been filled with dirt and packed down with a small machine with caterpillar blades for wheels. The 1920's sidewalk is now tied in completely with out barricades to the 2015 addition.

A big change now is the space filled in with dirt on the corner next to the road.  The culvert was extend longer into the ditch.  The big trucks use to take a turn here and it would end up driving on the metal culvert. Now they will make their own new gouge into the area until that soil settles in and is grassed over.  I am hoping for grass and not gravel.

Barney keeps wanting to drab me through the ditch.  It is a mud hole and I could believe that we would be a real mess if he ever does succeed.  I notice that all my photos have the trees leaning in them.  The trees really do stand straight so I will work on that.  My redtwig dogwood bush did survive all of this as is shown on the right foreground.

The red coneflower has proven to not be red as the summer season continues.  I will be interested in seeing it coming up next year.  It being planted in real soil outside and not in a pot should make its growth to be different and better.

It is another slow day for me today but I am inspired to get some things done today.  I won't be working outside because of the heat.  I might go out and pick apples a couple of bags a day should do me. School starts today as they had 6 days of workshop before they kids finally started.  Of course it will be a full week of hot, very hot weather as the week progresses.  A third of all of the learning centers do not have air so it will be a challenge for some.  As new buildings keep being added to the school district they have air, but the 1970 areas are still not air conditioned.  Promises keep being made but it doesn't happen. 

It is the beginning of the week and I am hoping for good things all week.  I hope are are well and things are going well for you.  Thank you for coming by my post today.