Summer

A view of the hills above Sesto Fiorentino as the sky threatens to bring a downpour (which never materialized). The sunlit building is the convent and church of Santa Lucia alla Castellina. On the more distant hill a cluster of communication relay antennas.

wild carrots and wild garlic swaying in the summer fields. In the PIPS a wider view of the fields and close ups of the wild flowers and garlic seed heads.

On a bike ride on the hills just outside Florence, I found this uncharacteristically wide open gate and just had to investigate. A handwritten sign on the wall just outside the gate said: Doorbell out of order, go ring the bell at the end of the "viottola" (Tuscan for lane/path). That fully explains the open gate: it would be quite a trek to go open the front door otherwise :D

Plants move so much slower than us that it is hard to even "picture" them in motion ... I love it when a scene like this brings home the fact that plants are not only alive and moving, but are driven by a will of their own. :)

Way too hot to go fence hunting this week, so these are from last summer. In the main image: Cucumber flowers in the vegetable garden with fence repurposed as a trellis. In the pip: Japanese lanterns, cultivated as ornamentals for their bright red fruit HFF to those sweltering in the heat and those who are in the midst of winter on the other side of the world!

and everyone looks for a bit of shade ... :)

I just liked this "garland" of still-green passionflower fruit on a fence with the evening light dappled against the privacy screen. It reminded me of a string of light bulbs at an outdoor party. In the Pips other natural decorations on various fences. HFF everyone!!!

Still wearing a bit of the bright colors of its flower, a pomegranate prepares to be an autumn delight.

After successfully raising two chicks ("Woodito" and "Woodone" - We had to help Woodito out a little because he was the runt of the litter and managed to fall from the nest before he was quite ready to fly, but he's doing just fine now and was even smart enough to trust my husband, who had been feeding him, but no other humans ... including me :D) and then getting into some pretty spectacular (and noisy!) fights to defend their nesting territory, the wood pigeons are now busy building a new nest in the tree in front of our kitchen window. This time, however, they are building it in a more sheltered part of the tree, where we won't be able to follow the developments quite as easily. :(