Backyard Scents

Isn't nature amazing?  We were just talking the other day about the eye testing that the Lions Club does, and some of the finer points of this important service.  My comment was, "You know what else is amazing?  Mosquitoes can see!!"

One animal that can't see very well is the bat, hence the old saying, "He's as blind as a bat."  But that doesn't stop bats from locating food or swooping here and there, their image backlit by the light of the moon.  That's because they have a magnificent sonar system that allows them to determine where objects are.

So the eyes represent one of the five wonderful senses -- sight.  But what about smell?

Spring is ALL about smell!!  A certain skunk, and I'm betting it is the same one, has been spraying nearby most nights.  It is a fearsome odor, and really annoying too.  We never see this critter, but he's around!!  Hope the cat doesn't find him or vice versa.

Then a little farther along into spring, the skunk cabbage come up.  They arise from the ground like their more presentable counterpart -- the jack-in-the-pulpit.  The latter are endangered, and we haven't seen any here.  But oh boy, do we have skunk cabbages.  The plant isn't the ugliest thing I've ever seen, but the smell is really noticeable if you step on one.  They like wet feet, so they flourish in the mucky area near our house.

The perfume fragrance of the lovely viburnum really gets thing going, along with their pinkish-white blooms.  I recommend them highly!!  The rather strange but somehow appealing smell of daffodils is yet another.  Tulips don't seem to have a smell.

Speaking of no smell, fawns don't have a smell.  This is how they are protected when they are wee and defenseless.  They curl up in some brush and blend in with their surroundings nearly perfectly, and would-be preditors just mosey right on by. 

The mosses have a mild scent, but the mosses along with the spring grass and some of the other flora are already starting to do "their thing."  I'm congested!!  Yep, it's those spring allergies that have everyone flocking to the store for sinus stuff.  Digging in the dirt is great, but I always pay for it.

Have a great day, readers, and if you get a chance walk outside for a bit and take in the smells of spring.