A Garden Nursery

This little flower bucket hangs by the front door. I change the silk flowers seasonally. The other day, I noticed someone else had taken possession of it.


Can you find the three babies snuggled in there?

These are house finches. Mom is rather drab, but dad has a colorful red neck. They get mighty nervous when we head out to the front porch. It is a special blessing to have babies on the place.

Sorry I've dropped off the planet for the last week or so. We moved Nathan's graduation up a few weeks to the third weekend in May. Once we made that decision, we had to get in high gear to get senior portraits created (boy, am I out of practice!) get invitations done, addressed and mailed. All while maintaining our standard crazy baseball, work, and church schedule. Being the vain gardener gal that I am, I also felt like I *had* to get some plants and seeds in the ground so they'd look good for the shindig after the ceremony. Had, I tell ya, had to.

Thanks to those who've checked up on me. I appreciate your caring!

Purple Martin Adventure

Field Trip Day

"Hey, kids, wanna have breakfast out?"
'Sure, mom,' they chirp.
Mom hustles everyone out of the nest. Reluctantly and awkwardly they flutter and fly a few hundred feet to a nearby porch.

'Whew, that's hard,' the little fledglings chirp.
Mom flies off to find breakfast.
After a few minutes of being alone, the young birds shiver in apprehension. The sky is sooooo big. The wind is blowing and many strange noises and sounds flood over them.

"I'm scared," said one little bird.
"I'm hungry," said another.
"I'm tired," said the third.
"I want to go home," said the fourth.

Mom arrived with breakfast, flying away and returning again and again with a tasty insect morsel for her offspring.

All the day the young birds clung to the porch gutters. As the sun settled over the horizon, mama bird gathered her small flock for an evening flight lesson. After soaring and swooping for a while, all returned to the nest.

The next day, the field trip happened all over again, but mama scooted everyone off the porch several times.

By the third day, the young birds only came to the porch area a couple of times to rest.

The fourth day, they soared like grown ups in a blue, blue sky.

Birds of the Neighborhood

Are you lucky enough to have purple martins living nearby? These handsome birds are the small jets of the bird world.

Yesterday, as I was mowing the lawn, five of them kept me company. They swirled and dove, glided and swooped, sometimes coming within a foot of the front of the mower. All in search of a feast of insects stirred up by mowing. My own personal air show.

I've seen sea gulls following fishing trawlers begging for scraps and hawks will follow a tractor in hopes of catching a startled mouse or rabbit. In the last two years, I've noticed the purple martins working the yard as we mowed, but this year they are really taking advantage of the mower, perhaps because our spring has been cool and there are not many insects yet. I thought a time or two one of them was going to misjudge and crash into me. I wasn't worried really. I've been around too many pilots and know that the flyer generally knows how far he can take it.

We enjoy having these guys as neighbors. Where they patrol we have fewer mosquitoes. Always a good thing.

In addition, a pair of cardinals have made this area their home. For the last three winters, cardinals have enjoyed our winter hospitality, but moved on in the spring, I think because we haven't had much cover for them. We live on a former cattle pasture, after all. This year, one pair seems to be staying, telling me they are appreciating all the trees and shrubs we've planted. I love seeing his bright flash of red across the tree's green background. She visits the feeder near my writing window, otherwise I might not notice her because she is comparatively drab next to the mister.

We've also got some sparrows I need to identify. They have black and white striped 'helmets' on their heads.

All the sparrows have discovered a dirt 'spa' in our backyard. In an area where we don't have grass, they come to wallow in the dirt. They fling dirt on their backs, fluff their feathers, and all but roll in the loose dirt. They leave small depressions behind. It is fun to watch them cavort. Anyone know why they do this?

Of course, then there are the mockingbirds. Loud, musical, flashy. I really enjoy watching them swabble and strut.

What birds sing in your yard?