Change of Scenery: Washington in May

I must have been kidding myself to think that I had truly adapted to Central Florida. The moment I came back to my family's house in Washington, I smelled the oxygen rich forest air and heard the frogs and instantly felt at home. Palmettos and Live oaks are nice, but nothing quite compares to the lush green vegetation in the Pacific Northwest. Leaving can be agony, so I'm hoping I will not have as hard a time when I go back later this month as I have had in years past. The following are some pictures that I took walking around my family's property on the Kitsap Peninsula the other day.

These are branches from 'my' cedar tree. It was already huge when I was little and here it is still standing.


Oregon Grape and Trillium plants


These are my mom's Comfrey plants that I just harvested leaves from today. I will be using them to make an infused oil for my skin soothing salve. Although I do have Comfrey at home in Florida that I started from my mom's roots, the plants really do not like the heat. They have never looked as healthy as these.


My next project is harvesting these nettles to dry for infusions. We have a nice dry day for it today.


This is red Elderberry. I needed a little help identifying it. I didn't recognize it without the berries.


New sword fern leaves are unfurling. The older leaves were flattened to the ground by winter snow.


These are the Solomon's Seal plants that my parents planted right before I moved to Florida. They seem to like the shady hillside very much.


This is an ornamental Magnolia tree that my dad planted when I was younger. As you can see it is quite stunning when it is in bloom.