insects wrote squiggly lines on this tree trunk.

Insects wrote squiggly lines in this tree trunk.
For us, the first half of May has been significantly colder than the historical norm, which has slowed down springs’ arrival. Then we had a month’s worth of rain in five days. As of Tuesday spring finally seems to be here to stay, which means that our redbud tree is bursting with colour!
Came across many Sassafras saplings during a walk in a bush. It was good to see so many seemingly healthy specimens.
Not a dog bark, tree bark. We came cross a Sassafras tree during a walk in a nearby bush, and its’ bark made a very interesting subject.
You may remember that we let go of Achilles, aka Chili Dog, earlier this year.
Our vet clinic is in a network which gives people who let go of a pet, buy and plant a tree in the pets’ memory. So there’s been an informal ceremony every October since the year 2000. The municipality generously allows this to happen in a public park. We’ve planted trees for BoJo, Kendal, and Stella. So of course we bought a tree for Achilles. I put in a request for specific species, a Red Oak (Quercus rubra), which is native to both Texas (where he and I came from) and Ontario.
The ceremony was today and it’s a fine October day – mostly sunny, cool, and breezy. I was very, very pleased to find a healthy Red Oak sapling tagged with Chili’s name. So we planted it. It was no trouble at all, just like Achilles was. It’s near Stella’s and Kendal’s trees.
I may not live long enough to sit in its shade. That’s fine.
A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in. -Greek proverb
A willow tree in bloom.
Not every tree, bush, perennial, annual, bursts into spectacular bloom. I appreciate subtle displays.
A Manitoba Maples’ twigs and flowers draw a very open lacework curtain across the sky.
The limbs and twigs of our Manitoba maple contrast a blue, blue sky.
A Redbud tree burst into so much colour it was almost impossible to focus on one set of flowers.