As I stepped off the front porch and onto the front walk, I heard the fluttering of wings and looked over at the large spruce just in time to see... A large bird—a hawk, an owl?—fly off and around the corner of the house. He or she had been sitting in the spruce, patiently waiting for dinner to arrive in the form of one of the little birds who come to my feeders. Then I saw all the feathers in the lawn and realized this wasn't this hawk-owl's first meal at my feeders. And now the … [Read more...] about Wildlife Living the Wild Life, In My Garden
birds
I Had No Idea Birds Would…
I had no idea birds would nibble at the celosia until earlier in the day when I saw a rustling outside on the patio while I was inside. At first I thought it was hummingbirds sipping nectar from some salvias in another nearby container, but then I saw the rustling of the celosia. Moving closer to the window, I saw several birds perched on the flowers, pecking away near the bottom of the blooms. I assume that's where seeds were developing. Some of you might now rightly point out that … [Read more...] about I Had No Idea Birds Would…
A letter about bird feeding
My Dear Flora, I was so excited the other day to find a nest in my bluebird box that I thought straight-away about writing to tell you about it. I was out planting some onion sets in the gardem—a little later than I had planned—and decided to peek inside the bluebird box. To my surprise and delight I found a nest inside, already. I just put it up a few weeks ago. You can imagine what I did when I discovered the nest, can't you? Yes, I ran down to the local bird feeding store and bought … [Read more...] about A letter about bird feeding
Enga: Enemy of the Garden
The other day, I had a close up encounter with Enga, short for ENemy of the GArden. Enga a fat squirrel who hangs out around the bird feeders, trying to steal the peanuts I've been putting out for the blue jays. The blue jays love the peanuts. At times I've counted six or more blue jays hanging around the crabapple tree, waiting for their chance to get a peanut from the peanut wreath. Then I saw Enga climb down to the wreath and grab a peanut for herself. One day, she actually knocked the … [Read more...] about Enga: Enemy of the Garden
They say only the best trees are chosen
The birds flew away when they saw the camera. They say only the best trees are chosen... Oh, pardon me. Before I get too far along with this blog post, let me introduce myself. I am Malus 'Guinzam', but most folks just call me Guinevere®. I'm a flowering crabapple tree. Having said that I know just what you are thinking. Diseases! Crabapples dropping everywhere! But that's not me! I have the prettiest dark pink buds that turn pinkish-white as they open around the middle of April. … [Read more...] about They say only the best trees are chosen
All my thoughts are in the garden
Where are my thoughts these days? I never have to wonder too much about where my thoughts are because most of the time, I can find them in the garden. I've been thinking lately about attracting more birds to the garden, not by setting up "fast food" stations like hummingbird feeders, but by planting more plants that provide food for them. One such plant is a Sundenia® Dipladenias. It's in a hanging basket and likes to vine up and all over. I've seen one hummingbird enjoy its blooms and hope … [Read more...] about All my thoughts are in the garden
