Prairie buttercups are pretty to look at but have a terrible taste if you happen to be a hungry cow!
While they aren't considered poisonous, they have irritants that aggravate the stomachs of cattle that graze on them. But these flowers taste so bad that cattle generally take a few bites and leave them alone.
Queen Anne's Lace and Purple Vetch wave with the breeze as vehicles pass by along U.S. Highway 80 West.
Some people have identified this flower as Jacob's Ladder. However, it doesn't look anything like the 20 or so different flowers called by the same name on the Internet!
This is an old-fashioned bulb that resembles a miniature gladiolus, and it spreads. Well, the flowers DO look like a ladder, especially in full bloom.
This newborn calf thinks he is hidden in the grass and weeds. He was born on a stormy day, and I'm sure that today he appreciates the warm April sun. His mama stands in the background, wary of me and my camera.
Today is Confederate Memorial Day, a holiday in several southern states which honors the Confederate dead. A memorial service was part of the Battle of Selma events this past weekend.
Along with speeches, a march to Old Live Oak Cemetery and gun salutes, Civil War re-enactors paused to remember Private Henry P. Stone, a Selma native who enlisted in Co. A of the 4th Alabama Infantry when he was only 17. He later died in a bayonet charge during the Battle of Cold Harbor near Richmond, Va.
April 26 is also the anniversary of Confederate Gen. Joseph E. Johnston's surrender to Union Gen. William Sherman. Johnston lived in Selma for a while after the war.
Thanks for Christine Weerts for the photograph.
One of the often-overlooked events of Battle of Selma Weekend is the tribute given to the Confederate dead in Old Live Oak Cemetery.
Guest photographer Christine Weerts attended this morning's memorial service and shared her photo of seven-year-old Brian Phelps of Bay Minette as he participates as a Confederate solider in part of the ceremony.
Snowballs in April? Enlarge the picture and take a look at the burgeoning snowball tree in the background. Today's heavy rain will probably end the show of blossoms around Selma.
Skies are fair today, but what will they be like tomorrow night for the Battle of Selma Grand Military Ball? The ball is held outside in the main courtyard at Sturdivant Hall, and right now the forecast calls for rain and possible severe weather.
The event brings Federal and Confederate officers and their wives together for a dance before the Sunday battle. Non-military personnel can attend too, provided they have tickets and wear period dress.
See more Skywatch photos at www.skyley.blogspot.com.
How about a lovely, wide-open rose for Earth Day? I think every day is Earth Day, especially in the spring when there are new flowers at every turn, baby birds learning to fly, butterflies breaking out of cocoons and the urge to transform my yard into a garden like Eden!
Guest photographer Christine Weerts noticed this rose in an old garden while she was out walking her dogs.
Our azaleas are finally at peak, and this charming pink Victorian in Old Town Selma makes the perfect background. Thanks to guest photographer Christine Weerts.
Can it be summer already?
Not quite, but a few pools opened as April warmed into the 80s, and this young girl enjoys her first swim of the season.
It seems as if our weather fast-forwarded past one of the coldest winters on record straight into one of the warmest springs.
Thanks to guest photographer Christine Weerts for sharing this photo.
The Yankees are coming and headed toward Selma! Hide your gold, your silver and get ready to defend our city!
The Battle of Selma reenactment returns this weekend to present living history of one of the last battles of the Civil War, fought just days before the South's surrender in April 1865. Almost 2,000 school children have pre-registered for the authentic 1860's campground tours on Thursday and Friday that include the Alabama Division Headquarters. A skirmish takes place on Saturday as well as the Battle of Selma Ball at Sturdivant Hall Saturday night and the battle on Sunday afternoon.An article about the event is featured HERE.
I just might be a handsome prince, dirt and all!
This big ole bullfrog was the "Catch of the Day" for one of our cats. He played dead for a long time, then came around shortly after the cat gave up trying to get him to jump.
See more cute critters at the Camera Critter Meme.
April just keeps on blooming, and I found these wildflowers tucked away beneath some shrubbery and a shade tree in the Old Town Historic District.
Selmians are serious about butterflies as evidenced by this colorful mural painted on an Old Town neighborhood fence.
Ever since local garden clubs realized there weren't as many butterflies as there used to be, education and conservation programs began, and the Eastern Tiger Swallowtail became Selma's official mascot in 1982. Now considered the "Butterfly Capital of Alabama," Selma's efforts spread to the state legislature, which declared April 16 as "Save the Butterfly Day" statewide. Then, in 1989, the butterfly became the state insect.
Selma's Mallieve Breeding is recognized as leader of the efforts and is known affectionately as "Madame Butterfly." She says that an abundance of butterflies means there is balance in nature, but if they are scarce, then their habitat is threatened, most likely due to pollution, mosquito control and aggressive lawn care. What to do? Plant flowers, trees and herbs that are butterfly friendly. This Saturday, Butterfly Day will be recognized with the third annual "Butterflies & Bridges Run" to benefit Selma schools.
A profusion of white azaleas.
March showers brought April flowers this year, and here is one of the prettiest spring gardens in Selma at a private residence in Old Town.
The Lady Banksia roses are back in bloom. These dainty, thornless blossoms contrast with the bright, bold azaleas. View more about these roses HERE and HERE.
Bluebonnets in Alabama? Or is this a lupine or something else?
We noticed this one clump of blue wildflowers down the hill in our backyard recently. Now, I want more! They are beautiful!
It's rare that we find this pair playing together. But I recently snapped them in a jovial mood by the recliner. Most of the time, one of them harasses the other. Why can't they just get along?
See more Camera Critters pictures HERE.
Renovation on the building that will house the future Selma Interpretive Center recently began downtown.The former bank and retail building at the corner of Broad Street and Water Avenue will become the first point of the Selma-to-Montgomery National Historic Trail. The second point is the Lowndes Interpretive Center at White Hall, which is already open. The third point will be at Alabama State University in Montgomery.
To view more photos of the building, visit the City of Selma, Alabama Facebook site.
The cats have spring fever! They are staying out most of the day and night! I snapped a photo of this one at dusk as she surveyed the yard from our ginkgo tree.
See more Skywatch photos from around the world at www.skyley.blogspot.com.
A small model of the Brooke Cannon at the Old Depot Museum caught the interest of Truman Shaw, right, of Montevallo. Shaw was among a group of 15 people from Montevallo's First Baptist Church Silver Club who toured the museum this morning. At left, museum curator Jean Martin explains the history of the cannon, which was manufactured in Selma during the Civil War. In fact, the cannon and other Confederate munitions have a Montevallo connection. The iron used by Selma's arsenal and naval yard was shipped by rail from ironworks at Montevallo and Tannehill.
Read more about the Brooke Cannon HERE.
I took this photo for the spring blossoms, but the house is "almost home." It's architecture is very similar to that of the 1890 Victorian in which I grew up. The main differences are that the porch on our house was wider and had a turret above a swing on the left side, and the decorative trim on this house is a bit fancier.
After the Bradford Pear and forsythia, the glorious redbud arrives in full regalia to ring in spring! Apparently all the rain this winter is treating us to abundant blossoms...just waiting for the azaleas to peak now. (Yes, due to the extreme cold late this winter, spring is running behind, at least by three weeks!)
A young boy places a flower on the cross in front of Elkdale Baptist Church on Easter Sunday. The decorated cross has become a tradition at Elkdale and other churches in the area, signifying the joy for believers in Christ's sacrifice and resurrection.
Hallelujah! Christ the Lord is risen today!
The Good News will be repeated in Christian churches around the world this morning in celebration of a living Savior.
In Selma, I thought the butterfly above a bed of pastel pansies at St. Paul's Episcopal church just looks like Easter! The butterfly was sponsored by the church during the 2008 Butterfly Project and still stands in the church's courtyard. Thanks to Christine Weerts for submitting this beautiful photograph.
The preschoolers and kindergartners at Leika's treated Selmians to an Easter Parade Friday morning. The annual event gives them a chance to show off their decorated hats of ribbon, Easter eggs, grass and net.
Thanks to Christine Weerts for submitting this cute photo!
There probably aren't many independently owned retail stores that can claim 50 years in business, but Gray's Furniture in Selma can!
Margaret Gray Cogle, right, owner of Gray's Furniture, talks to a friend and customer Tuesday during the 50th anniversary open house of the store. The business was founded in April 1960 by her father, Charles Gray.
A stained-glass window in the Pew House (which was on this year's Pilgrimage tour) is quite appropriate for Holy Week.
The center panel shows Jesus praying in the Garden of Gethsemane just before his arrest by the Romans. In the prayer, Jesus said, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done."
