Nifty things
Thursday and Friday i wrote some data analysis scripts. I know i need to understand when behavior changes month to month. I've some theories about the changes for different classes of customers, but i need to review the data to figure it out. I thought about a variety of statistics i could look at, like standard deviations, etc, but i'd still need to verify that i was identifying real signals. I finally hit on the idea of making sparkline-like plots using the unicode characters, "LOWER ONE EIGHTH BLOCK" through "FULL BLOCK." Strangely, the font i'm viewing in Dreamwidth has some of the blocks descending instead of all sharing the same base line. It looks better in my output.
Now to wait to get the actual data to analyze.
In outside news, i have a purple echinacea blooming in the meadow! Presumably this is from the many different wildflower seeds i scattered in that area. I'm delighted to see such a showy survivor. And under the black walnut, i see that Monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot) is sprouting from seeds i scattered last fall from the plant in the meadow. Also under the black walnut is a passionflower ... from birds? Only one blossom so far this year, but it helped me identify the vine that i was strongly considering getting rid of. I should make a log tripod for it to grow on so i have a chance at the fruit.
Pluchea camphorata, camphorweed, is blooming. I have two plants now, the first growing in a shadier thicket. If the one in a better location really takes off, i can be less protective of the other, which is not in a particularly good spot. Pluchea camphorata looks a little like Joe Pye weed, tall with a mass of small pale pink-purple disk flowers. (It shares a common name with another more daisy-like yellow disk and yellow ray flower plant - not that.) It does stink.
Elephantophus tomentosus (elephant foot) is blooming in the vegetable garden where i've let the plant be. I have a nice colony now, and i think i can try transplanting a few to the orchard and to other places around the yard. This particular plant and its descendants are a lovely purple, although the stalks are gangly. Someday i could see using it as a cut flower.
The theoretically common Sabatia angularis (rosepink) is in the Gentian family. I love the pink blossoms with the yellow star in the center. It was growing near the driveway the first year we moved here and this year has popped up in many different places. I will be delighted if i can encourage it to reseed everywhere.
A colony of golden rods is thriving, replacing other pollinator plants i tried to get established. I may need to dig out the yarrow, but otherwise the golden rods are just fine. Maybe i can key them out.
All this to remind myself that maybe it's not all perfect and what i planned, maybe there's a huge majority of goosegrass and stiltgrass, with horseweed and dogfennel towering everwhere, but progress for diversity is being made.
I may still be sick -- i felt exhausted after what seemed less than usual strenuous activity. (Miserably humid though.) I did get some potatoes dug and the sidewalk weeded from the huge goose grass colonies that were too big for the weed wacker.
Salting a number of places is so very tempting.
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Now to wait to get the actual data to analyze.
In outside news, i have a purple echinacea blooming in the meadow! Presumably this is from the many different wildflower seeds i scattered in that area. I'm delighted to see such a showy survivor. And under the black walnut, i see that Monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot) is sprouting from seeds i scattered last fall from the plant in the meadow. Also under the black walnut is a passionflower ... from birds? Only one blossom so far this year, but it helped me identify the vine that i was strongly considering getting rid of. I should make a log tripod for it to grow on so i have a chance at the fruit.
Pluchea camphorata, camphorweed, is blooming. I have two plants now, the first growing in a shadier thicket. If the one in a better location really takes off, i can be less protective of the other, which is not in a particularly good spot. Pluchea camphorata looks a little like Joe Pye weed, tall with a mass of small pale pink-purple disk flowers. (It shares a common name with another more daisy-like yellow disk and yellow ray flower plant - not that.) It does stink.
Elephantophus tomentosus (elephant foot) is blooming in the vegetable garden where i've let the plant be. I have a nice colony now, and i think i can try transplanting a few to the orchard and to other places around the yard. This particular plant and its descendants are a lovely purple, although the stalks are gangly. Someday i could see using it as a cut flower.
The theoretically common Sabatia angularis (rosepink) is in the Gentian family. I love the pink blossoms with the yellow star in the center. It was growing near the driveway the first year we moved here and this year has popped up in many different places. I will be delighted if i can encourage it to reseed everywhere.
A colony of golden rods is thriving, replacing other pollinator plants i tried to get established. I may need to dig out the yarrow, but otherwise the golden rods are just fine. Maybe i can key them out.
All this to remind myself that maybe it's not all perfect and what i planned, maybe there's a huge majority of goosegrass and stiltgrass, with horseweed and dogfennel towering everwhere, but progress for diversity is being made.
I may still be sick -- i felt exhausted after what seemed less than usual strenuous activity. (Miserably humid though.) I did get some potatoes dug and the sidewalk weeded from the huge goose grass colonies that were too big for the weed wacker.
Salting a number of places is so very tempting.