Crabapples, Roses, and Dogwood -- a noontime walk

On Avalon Hall's side porch, across from Lipscomb's campus school, a group of young boys were enjoying their noon recess, adding the loud laughter of playtime to the scene. Meanwhile I walked along the edge of the campus, photographing the brilliant colors of the young ornamental crabapple's ripe fruit and trying to show the struggling October roses to best advantage.









Notice the large gall on this aged elm tree on the corner of Avalon Hall's side yard.


From the Ruth O'Brien Rose Garden at the back of Avalon Hall:






And so, home again, to the dogwood nextdoor, in my sister's front yard:

Save Cummins Falls

The Tennessee Parks & Greenways Foundation is a cause well worth supporting. They are trying to raise a million dollars to buy this beautiful place and preserve it as a state park. (September KnoxNews report here )

I learned about the Cummins Falls project when Mack Prichard gave an informal talk to the Lipscomb-Lea Garden Club on October 1.

He holds the title of Tennessee State Archaeologist and State Naturalist Emeritus and is the holder of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Tennessee Environmental Council . Their words of praise are a fitting tribute: "Mack has been preserving the majestic places of this state from the time he was 16. From his work protecting Radnor Lake to the South Cumberland State Recreation area and the Forever Green Tennessee initiative, Mack Prichard has become a treasure among the Tennessee treasures he has worked so hard to protect."

I can say just from the time our small group got to spend with him that he's a very knowledgeable and compelling speaker, and, additionally, excellent lunch-time company.