Guest Contributor and HollyTrail Photographer:  Tomek Kleczek This summer I was fortunate to get a chance to fly out to Puerto Rico to be a participant in the Puerto Piano Festival in the capital city, San Juan. It’s a 10-day program with daily lessons, master classes, student performances, concerts by faculty and guest artists, and a […]

The list of garden troublemakers isn’t too long where we live, but it is worth noting via photographs.  Above is a tobacco hornworm (Manduca sexta) attacking our tomato plant earlier in the summer.  They grow to be pretty large as far as caterpillars go.  This one must have been 4 inches long and was pretty […]

Mid-day during the summer months, venturing out into the backyard can be quite an adventure.  I have to not only deal with the heat and humidity, but I also have to dodge flying insects!  When it’s lunchtime, it seems to be their lunchtime as well.  So if I try to pick some vegetables from the […]

Spring Flowers seem to be almost over as summer creeps closer to us.  We’ve had several hot days and summer-like thunderstorms.  I’d like to reminisce about the beautiful flowers that have come and gone this past spring.  Indoors, my mom’s orchid bloomed beautifully.  She gave it to my oldest son for safe keeping (above).  We’ll […]

Spring is here and the backyard birds are out and about searching for materials for their nests.  It’s easiest to catch them now on camera before the trees are full of leaves. Above is the elegant and sweet morning dove.  Last year, a cute pair made a nest in the cupola of our gazebo.  They […]