My June Graphic Calendar

Life has been busy! So it has taken me a week to bring out my graphic calendar of weather, daylight hours - and human activity for the month of June 2026.

The most enjoyable part of this creative activity for me is drawing the daily sky at some point of the day.

The big news was the summer solstice - the several weeks when there is very little change in our (longer) hours of daylight.

To me it sometimes felt as if I were holding my breath, waiting for change to return. For most of the year we gain or lose 2 to 3 minutes of daylight from day to day. But in the month of June very little changes. We started the month with 15 hours and 25 minutes of daylight and ended it with 15 hours and 37 minutes.

Although we had 11 days with about 15 hours and 40 minutes of daylight, the actual longest day here in Ottawa was June 23 (not 21!) with one minute more - 15 hours and 41 minutes. 

The whole month was warm - and busy!

Trees Fall...

Recently arborists removed a large tree branch that had snapped and fallen onto college property near our house. Arborists came to remove the fallen branches.

I took a few pictures and posted them on the blog...

Last week the rest of the tree toppled over - landing in the opposite direction! 

I don't think anyone expected that to happen!

Luckily no one was harmed either time - though the fence will need to be repaired.

Ants, Lemons, Squirrels and Tulips

I'm trying to make some connections...

We often have a large ant hill in our front yard. It's noticeable mid-summer when the soil is dry... Then a dusty mound emerges in the grass...

How to get rid of ants without chemicals, I remember googling...

Somewhere I came across an answer: Ants hate lemon peel...

Hmmm. I often buy lemons. Why not toss the peel into my flower beds and see what happens. 

So I did - all last summer and last winter - mainly into the large front flower bed... where NO tulip flowers were snapped off by squirrels this year... 

But in a smaller bed, where I had tossed NO LEMONS, two out of four tulip flowers were missing.

Is there a connection?! Does lemon peel deter squirrels?! 

I guess I'll keep tossing my lemon peels into flower beds - at least wherever I have tulips.

I have yet to discover if lemon deters ants!

Interesting Tree

One neighbour - in my son's neighbourhood - has been working on this large tree in his front yard.

Last year, the branches were trimmed - and it looks like they carved birds and animals into the wood.

(Or did they just attach them?!)

Now... I wonder if new leaves will sprout on the branches, shading these lovely carvings?!

Will more animals and birds be added??

An interesting work in progress!

If You Sit Still Enough...

Hmmm. If you sit very, very still, maybe no one will notice you're there!...

I walked past this spot a few days earlier ...

I noticed the sign but I didn't understand.

Then, a few days later, I walked past again... and I noticed her - a mother goose - sitting very, very still in a planter.

The planter was in a quiet corner of a shopping mall.

I looked around but couldn't spot her protector - the father goose. I'm sure he was there, somewhere, watching, ready to fly to her defence.

I'd really love to come by every few days, just to see what is happening - but it's not my usual path...

From my limited experience, I notice that urban Canada geese choose the most unlikely spots to build their simple nests - a few sticks on the roof of the house (next to my daughter's apartment in Guelph). On the edge of a cliff overlooking the river in Manotick. And now this planter in a strip mall.

Her days here may be numbered... 

Is it my imagination, or do I see a gosling peering out from under her wing feathers? Have some or all of her eggs hatched - and she is now covering her chicks with her wings? If so, they may soon be gone.

They don't learn to fly for several months... but they do walk away from their nests when all the eggs are hatched. They follow their parents, when only a few days old, walking - as their parents search for grass and water. Then, several months later, much larger and stronger - they begin to fly.

Budding

After a few cold, blustery spring days, I notice trees and bushes budding!

Nature is not deterred! 

Spring is here!

A "Walk on the Wild Side"

Last Sunday, Terry suggested we take a walk at Andrew Haydon Park, on the Ottawa River.

There's a large pond in the middle of the park, where ducks "bob" for food.

We hadn't been there for a while... (Or, as kids apparently now say: we haven't been there "in a minute"...)

The river was running high...

With a brisk wind, the park felt "wilder" than usual.

We saw ducks, seagulls and Canada Geese.

Why are the rocks here so orange? I've never noticed that before.

Had the rocks absorbed the colour of the dead leaves and pine needles?!

No frogs, turtles or otters in the creek this time. I always come to check. 

Chilly, but still a lovely, refreshing walk. 

Glad Terry suggested we head over!

New Neighbours?!

After our last snow fall, I noticed a tiny path in the snow - between our neighbour's cedars and our wooden shed...

Do we have new neighbours? 

Mice? Rats? Chipmunks perhaps? 

Not an animal that hops. One that burrows, or so it seems to me. And the burrowing path stops at the base of our shed!

A skunk once lived under that shed. It would let off warning whiffs from time to time. After it left, Terry wired up all entry spaces... or so he thought!

But those tracks... Tracks in the snow don't tell a lie! I think we have new neighbours!

Snow Moon 2026

I read last week that the "Snow Moon" was coming... and that it would be extra bright.

I looked up the definition of  "Snow Moon" - and discovered that it was the name given to February's full moon. 

My daughter saw it in Toronto - commented on it, and sent me the picture below.

I saw bits of the moon between pine branches in our back yard early yesterday morning.

But it was our neighbour Mary who captured the first two amazing photos - the first, while driving on Fallowfield Road, south of our neighborhood at 5 pm last Sunday; and  the second, the following morning, shining over our house!

Thank you do much, Mary!!

Wild Life Among Us

It doesn't take much to remind me that - although we live in a city of a million human inhabitants - we are surrounded by at least that many animals and birds as well. Many species come out in the dark, when I'm rarely out. I don't even know they're there.

I see dozens of squirrels daily. It's rare that I look out the window without seeing one. Raccoons, chipmunks, mice, groundhogs, coyotes and foxes inhabit our neighbourhood, as well, though I see them less frequently. And, of course, lots of birds!

There are skunks, too ... one sprayed our neighbour's dog a few mornings ago when the dog was let out into the back yard. She's an indoor dog... For two days every window in their house was left open, until the scent of the spray disappeared!

Then, a few days later, this owl (a barn owl?) swooped into this same neighbour's garage workshop, three crows in wild pursuit.

Fortunately, the owl soon exited through the open garage door - then attempted to hide in our pine tree.

Eventually it flew away, still chased by the crows.

This little taste of wild animal life has reminded me that they all live here, among us, all the time... a fact I usually forget!!

Large (Mystery) Insect

I was sitting outdoors with a friend when I noticed a very large bug on the lawn chair next to us.

It was at least two inches long - and it moved along slowly, first backwards, then forwards.

Too heavy, apparently, to fly - though it had wings - it eventually fell off the chair and into the grass, where it was harder to see.

I took a picture, then forgot about it - until I felt something on my bare leg... and there it was, climbing up!!

Why didn't I take a picture?! Instead, I stood up and it fell off... We headed indoors.

But my little encounter with this large insect I don't remember ever seeing before, reminded me that the world is full of mysteries: I am but a small part of the natural world I live in. Around me live more bugs than I'll ever know!

And... another mystery: When it landed on the ground, the winged  insect could have walked in 360 directions - why towards me and up my leg?! Fortunately, there were no bites!

When I sent her a photo, my daughter suggested it might be a cicada.

Could it be a silent cicada? Is there such a thing?! It gave us no song.

Morning Surprises

I love getting up early, when the world outside is still. I never know what I'll see when I look out the window...

A skunk?! I saw him recently - heading home, no doubt, after a night's hunting for grubs...

An early morning sunrise?! My son - who catches the bus at 5:30 AM sent me this...

So beautiful! The world is full of surprises... gifts... at the break of dawn.

July Phenology Calendars

Anne - who introduced me to phenology calendars - has shared her July one with me.

So beautiful! A work of art! A mix of animal, insect and plant life she encountered last month - as well as temperatures and weather.

I didn't see as many bugs - or animals - as Anne did last month. Apart from daily black squirrel sightings, occasional small red ones and mostly female cardinals, I did see a solitary skunk wander through our yard early one morning. Terry also pointed out a young rabbit one evening.

Insect-wise, two moths - one very large, one small, clung to our screens but didn't get into the house. I also saw a few 🐝 bees in our flower beds... Then there was the wasp nest Terry got rid of.

Most notable to me this month were the sunny days and the hot weather!  It rained a few times, but only once was it cloudy all day. We had heat warnings and tornado warnings - but I only began to note those mid-month.

All in all, it was a beautiful month - hardly any smoke in the air from distant forest fires. But it was hot! I definitely appreciated our air conditioner!

How much of all this did I get on my calendar?! Not enough! But... I did get some. And I am so thankful to be surrounded by nature, even here in a city of a million people!

Anne's June Phenology Calendar

A few days ago, I posted my June phenology calendar - which focused mainly on weather, with a few brief notes about events that marked the day.

Later that day, Anne - who introduced me to this beautiful way of noting nature - shared her June calendar with me. As usual, her sketches of what she sees - bird, animal and plant life make me marvel that she can paint them all so skillfully, fitting them into the small wedge of paper allotted to each day.

She also sent me this photo she took of a black and white Eudryas Grata moth she noticed resting under an outdoor light one evening. (It's also knowh as "beautiful wood nymph." Its resemblance to bird droppings protects it from being eaten by them! Amazing!!)

Anne commented that she has begun checking "under the light" for beauties like this that often go unnoticed. She added some to her June calendar. (June 10, 22, 23, 28, 29)

I will be looking for more "under the light" creatures in her July calendar!

Beauty Everywhere!

Walking around in nature near my son's home in the country, I see beauty everywhere!

Every (random) grouping of wild plants - like these grasses in a ditch no longer filled with water...

These colorful flowers that "just happened" to be growing at the edge of the ditch - are all so beautiful....

These white daisies growing at the foot of some pine trees... 

No human gardener has planted or tended this - yet here it is! Beauty everywhere, if I just stop and look!

God's handiwork all around us - planted by wind and birds, tended by rain and sun... Just as beautiful as any garden planted by human hands.

Nature is innately - lavishly - beautiful!

Anne's Phenology Calendar

I learned about phenology calendars from Anne, who showed me her first one last November.

This is her new one...

This past month, she has been adding plants and animals she sees on her daily nature walks. So beautiful! 

Phenology calendars note changes in weather as well as animal and plant life...

How is our weather and climate changing? How are plants and animals being affected? 

In Britain, people can get involved (see above). I wonder if we have a similar program in Canada...