Dead and alive

 There are so many sad-looking sights as a result of the dry spell that it's hard to choose candidates for this post. This is a bittersweet nightshade, which would normally be green and thriving at this time of year:

Even the sunchokes, usually indestructible, are looking more dead than alive. Usually they're flowering around now, but they aren't showing much sign of doing so at the moment.

This little frog is sitting in what is usually a year-round pond.

The brown cylinder in the lawn on the right of this shot is a sugar maple tree we put in two years ago. Needless to say, it shouldn't be brown! Hope it recovers. Today's generous downpours of rain may have come just in time...