American Sweetgum balls (Liquidambar styraciflua)

Icy Sweetgum balls.

Last Thursday was a day of freezing rain and drizzle.  We feared the accumulation might be enough to break limbs or bring down power lines, but we lucked out and only received a light coating of ice.

The porch that stretches along the south side of our house was a little icy too.
There was enough wind to blow freezing drizzle most of the way across the porch.  

It's about eight feet to the ground on the high end.

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American Sweetgum balls (Liquidambar styraciflua)

Wren Update

The wren got her nest built in the birdfeeder and is now sitting on eggs -- and doesn't particularly care for having her picture taken.

Wren Update

Wren's Nest

We were a little slow in getting our birdfeeders down for the summer. Now, I reckon we'll need to leave this one up for a while longer as a Carolina wren is in the midst of building a nest. By day's end, she had all the nesting material inside and organized better, although neatness doesn't really count when it comes to a wren's nest.

Wren's Nest