Blue Baron Rhododendron in Bloom

A few years ago we planted a Blue Baron rhododendron to add to our color collection of rhododendron and azalea that are around the house and yard. We had every other color so the bluish color was a nice addition. The plant is still very small after a few years – I’m not sure if it likes where we planted it. This year it was full of blooms that look very blue but the camera sees them with a more purple cast.




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Kwanzan Cherry Blossoms

Last year we had a Kwanzan Cherry tree planted (in place of the old pine that we had removed) and with the unseasonably warm temperatures we’ve had of late, the blossoms are beginning to pop open. I can’t wait until the tree is in full bloom. Here are pictures of some of the blossoms so you can share in the beauty!







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Friendly Mallards, Up Close and Personal!

The 2 mallard ducks that hang out at the neighbor’s pond like to take a daily walk around my back yard. Sometimes they pick up the seed that has fallen from our bird feeder. But today, while I was outside, they seemed unusually friendly, following me as I walked around the yard and walking right up to me when I stopped. I suspect they were looking for a handout. They allowed me to photograph them up close, and here they are!




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Feisty Mallards, Canada Geese At Veterans Park

The weather is still nice and unseasonably warm here today, so I decided to take a stroll in Veterans Park (Mentor, OH) to see what the birds were up to. The big pond is still covered with quite a bit of ice, and all that seemed to be out (besides a few people walking their dogs) were bunches of testy Canada Geese and Mallards hanging out in the few small areas of open water. Here are a few photos.









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An Icy Lake Erie & An Eagle’s Nest In Mentor Ohio

All photos © chrisazimmer, chriszimmer.blogspot.com

It seems like forever since we had a full day of clear skies and sunshine here. The winter months usually bring long, endless streaks of skies that are battleship gray in color, thanks to Lake Erie. With the sky a brilliant blue today, and lots of snow still on the ground, it was a good day for a visit to nearby Mentor Headlands Beach to see a frozen Lake Erie.

A special bonus along the way was seeing an eagle’s nest in the Mentor Marsh, less than a mile from the entrance to Mentor Headlands State Park. The nest is very visible from Route 44, and while this time of year the traffic is very light there, it is still not a good place to stop and bird watch. I was lucky to spot the nest on the way to the beach, so I was able to find the spot easily on the way out of Headlands. There was no traffic at all, so I stopped and took two quick photos of the nest, but no eagles were in sight. (It has been confirmed that they are indeed nesting there.)

Here are some photos of a very frozen Lake Erie and a very cold-looking beach, along with the eagle’s nest. I am so thankful to have such wonderful sights just a few miles from home.

(Click on any photo for a larger view.)

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Hoar Frost Makes For A Lacy Landscape

On Monday while I was out driving in southern Cuyahoga County, I saw some very heavy hoar frost coating the trees where I-271 crosses over the Tinkers Creek/Bedford Reservation area. The sky was also a clear, bright blue, and the effect seeing the thick white frost on the trees against the blue of the sky was breathtaking. I had my small camera with me, but the freeway is not the wisest place to stop to take a picture. I settled for another area along the way to my destination which passed by the entrance to Bedford Reservation and was able to snap this picture of some of the trees. (It really doesn’t do it justice, as the frost wasn’t as thick as it was near the freeway. )



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Full Moon January 29, 2010 “Wolf” Moon

The full moon on January 29, 2010 was reported to be the largest and brightest full moon of the year. The size of the moon itself hadn’t changed, of course. The moon’s non-circular orbit put it at its closest to the earth for 2010. (It will actually reach the closest perigee for 2010 at 4:04 a.m. ET Saturday.) Despite the fact that temperatures were nearing the single digits, we went out into the yard to take a few pictures in the very bright moonlight, a sort of companion to the photos of the full moon and Mars that I took earlier in the day.Combined with the snow, it made for a very bright scene.

January's full moon is also called the wolf moon, from Native Americans who associated the January full moon with wolves howling in the cold. What was odd is that while we were outside taking pictures, we heard many dogs barking and howling in the distance.

Mars was also nearby in the sky, and despite the fact that some high clouds were moving in, the planet made a brief appearance in one of the photographs. It's that tiny dot of light off to the left of the first photograph, near the tree top. (Click on any photo for a larger size.)






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