Common Nature things -for all places where you lived

[shootingstar]

What things from Nature do you tend to compare and have the fondest memories for living in different parts of your region or country (ies)?

Would it be how you experienced (and enjoyed) a particular season, certain types of plants, animals, topography?

Now that I've lived in Ontario, British Columbia and Alberta...the common Nature thing that I compare and enjoy for all those different regions ..would be the early-mid autumn season.

I wish I could compare spring flowers or similiar, but so far have had a tougher time being inspired by the flowers that I see here in Calgary unless I go into the Rockies...which is not where I live at this time. I'm down in the flat prairie area.

[goldfinch]

Until I retired I lived most of my life on the edge of Lake Superior. It is a cold and daunting body of water. My memories and both fond and frightening. My husband sailed ore carriers on the Great lakes, and was on a boat following the Edmund Fitzgerald when it went down. November was not a good time to be out on the lakes.

In my working years I would watch storms out my office window, seeing the waves break over the piers of the ship canal. I lived very close to the lake and one winter the lake effect snow dump caused our garage to collapse.

And the ice is blue:



I miss the big lake.

[jyyanks]

I love seeing blue hydrangeas. I live in the East Coast and vacation often in Cape Cod. When I see the classic new england homes with the blue hydrangeas out in front, I feel like I'm on vacation. I tried to grow blue hydrangeas in my front yard but they turned pink!

[Tokie]

You need to give hydrangeas something special to make the blooms blue - ask at the nursery! It is common, I just don't recall what it is. Tokie

[Koronin]

For hydrangeas it has something to do with the ph lvl in the soil if I remember right because we do get them to bloom in a blueish color.

To the original question. I grew up in Ohio and I have fond memories of spending a lot of time at Lake Erie growing up. We had a cabin at the lake in the gated cabin community with a private beach (Astabula area of Ohio). I know live in North Carolina. The past 10 years was in the Charlotte area and now I live at the coast. There is so much I can contrast, but not much I can compare. So many of the plants are different (really only the annual flowers and some of the large trees are the same), the weather is so very different. In Ohio I remember 4-5 months out of the year with snow on the ground, where in Charlotte we got 1-2 snow falls a year and the snow wouldn't last more than a day. Here at the coast if it snows everything totally shuts down. Ohio has 4 seasons of a real length, whereas here we have summer and winter with very little fall or spring. There are some things I prefer about the north and other things I prefer about the south. I must say I am so thankful that Sugar Maples will grow in the south, as they have always been my favorite shade tree. I bought one to Charlotte and it was doing very well when we moved. I'll be getting another one next spring to plant here from my parents. Although it does grow in NC it's not nearly as common of a tree here as it is up north.

[NbyNW]

I'm a southwestern PA girl ... so for me it's trees, and the presence or lack of hills.

Been living on the west coast for some years now, and it's a different mix of trees.

Every place has its own unique, beautiful features. It's how I know where I am.

[lph]

Trees here too! While I love spending time in the mountains and work on glaciers, I've always lived surrounded by or very close to trees, lots of them. I felt... unwanted, almost when we visited Iceland. It felt so barren, because there were no trees, hardly even bushes. Even in the high mountains here you usually can see lush vegetation further down, but in Iceland it just felt empty. Like there was nowhere to hide or seek shelter.

In general I feel happy living with my back to the forest. I'd like to live closer to the sea, but I'd have to give up my backyard woods.

[Crankin]

I used to miss all of the seasons, the bright blue sky, icy winter days playing in the snow, and fall of Massachusetts when I lived in AZ. Since I've been back, I have sworn not to take the beauty around me for granted. And, I don't. I love everything about each season, certain smells, the feel of the ocean, walking in the woods. The air before a big thunderstorm.
I miss nothing about Miami. I hated the weather there.
I do occasionally miss the smell of burning piñon and cool desert nights.

[Velocivixen]

I have lived my entire life in the Willamette Valley in the Pacific Northwest. For some silly reason I assumed that everyplace else was like here. It was when I traveled to the Midwest, south, southern Calif. And Nevada that I realized that I love all things GREEN & lush. It is earthy, rich, luxurious, primal and wild here. I love this.

[bmccasland]

I lived in the AZ desert for 20+ years. "Spring" starts in February, and depending on the winter rains, there can be terrific wildflower blooms out in the desert, California poppies, lupines, and owl clover. Then as it heats up, the octillo (aka Devil's Coach whip) blooms, then finish off in June with the cactus blooming - cholla, prickly pear, saguaro.

So years ago, I was in Boulder, Colorado for a job interview with Boulder Parks, and had to prepare a "Park Ranger" talk - so I did what I knew, "Desert Spring." This was back in the slide show days. Made quite an impression on them - but what I remember was that when I walked out of the office, it was snowing, in June. I left the desert where it was hotter than blazes and would be for easily 5 more months, fly up for a job interview, and it was snowing.

[jyyanks]

Kronin and Tokie - It seems that I can change my pink hydrangeas to blue. Might be my spring project for next year

[bmccasland]

Kronin and Tokie - It seems that I can change my pink hydrangeas to blue. Might be my spring project for next year

They like acid soil. My grandmother would mulch hers with pine straw (pine needles). As there were lots of pine trees around the house, the straw was easy to get, and grandchildren were tasked to do the job.

[shootingstar]

True that I do notice the trees ...or where I am, the lack of them. However, I live in an area that's alot more trees than other neighbourhoods...which still doesn't compare to the thicker cover, even in the middle of Toronto ,which has a more "lush" greenbelt because of its large swath of ravine parks.

Here, there's a provincial park, protected land within the city...and I can't quite get used it: alot of it is GRASS. It feels wierd to me..like being in a semi-wild..lawn. I am so accustomed to provincial parks as places with a ton of trees/rock.

When I was in VAncouver, I missed the maple trees and other deciduous trees that gave so much autumn colour.
But then B.C., gave back with more lush /bigger trees, flowers, etc....at least along the Pacific coast.

I also notice some differences in birds... I missed seeing the red cardinal, Blue Jay (I realize there are different ones) in southern Ontario.
While along Pacific coast, it's the bald eagle and other similar eagles.

And here, in Alberta..it's the magpie bird with touches of brilliant blue, white and rest black/grey.

[Crankin]

When I lived in AZ and flew anywhere in the east, or to San Diego, the first thing that struck me was how green everything was. The brownness of the desert got to me. Of course, we are talking about the desert that was destroyed by humans, not what Beth described. I'd wager to bet that most of the people who live in Phx have not seen the cacti blooming. Just reading that list of saguaro, cholla, and prickly pear made me nostalgic.
I'd bet that most of the people I hang out with around here don't know how to pronounce those names!

[skhill]

Except for time away for college, I've lived in central KY since I was 5. I love the black walnut trees and the mulberry trees flourishing in the city, and the nuts and berries free for the taking. I take for granted the lush grass around here; when I've visited other parts of the country, the grass looks so sad.

And I have seen the desert in bloom-- one year in the mid 80s my family took a spring break trip to Arizona, and it rained and rained, bringing on the flowers. Beautiful!