Photos: Saturday in Le Roy and Stafford

I believe the white flower is a weed called "Queen Anne's Lace." The red one is "Staghorn Sumac."

I have one of the Kite Man's kites too.

I love all of the nature pictures you post. Thanks.

Queen Ann's Lace- an invasive species often called wild carrot because of its edible root. It has a native cousin that is found in the western United States. Swallowtail Butterflies and bees are attracted to Queen Ann's Lace, but its ability to crowd out native species such as White Milkweed (essential to Monarch Butterflies that feed on it exclusively), Sweet Goldenrod, Hoary Mountainmint and White snakeroot place it on the list of noxious weeds. It populates dry prairies, abandoned fields, waste places, and road sides. It is a threat to recovering grasslands. A native of Europe and Asia it is pervasive throughout the U.S. The plant was used as a contraceptive in Ancient Greece. Studies indicate its seeds contain terpenoids that block progesterone synthesis and prevent egg implantation in the uterus.

Correct, Amy. The Staghorn Sumac berries can be brewed as a lemony tea. Trappers used to soak their traps in the same brew to lose the human scent.

I had to look up "progesterone synthesis", and although I don't get it completely, I get the gist & that's probably all i'll ever understand. Which I'm fine with. Biology was hard for me. But how did the ancient Greeks figure that one out? Do we even want to know how it was applied?

The car sure looks like a Pontiac GTO or a Bonneville but it's hard to tell exactly what year.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontiac_GTO

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontiac_Bonneville

It was a tough guess from the one photo !