And Enjoying Bird Watching Snow is still on the ground, a residue of the snowfall a few days ago. It’s very peaceful watching snow falling and the quietness afterward as the snow absorbs sound pretty well. Though it was too cold to go outside, a joyful moment was still there. We hang bird feeders along the patio roof during winter which makes it much easier … Continue reading House Bound
The Loudest Performance Of The Year It’s still a little cold out, not freezing though close enough. But it’s warm enough for birds to migrate back to this area. The ones that take residence year round and group together for winter survival start to de-group now. They all sing to make their territory known, and to attract females. This time of year they usually sing at their loudest. … Continue reading And the Orchestra Resumes
Enjoying The Hospitality Winter temperature has finally matched the season and there is not much of anything out there. Snow has not yet paid a visit. The birds have picked most of the seeds off the buds I left in intact for them: Echinacea, Black-eyed Susan, Goldenrod… So now they enjoy the additional food we put out for them. On cold days they can enjoy a heated birdbath too. We … Continue reading Birds of Winter
The Only Time We Compete This time of year is the only time we, the birds and us, compete for fruits in our garden. We have wild cherry, ornamental cherry, white mulberry, wild raspberry, Golden raspberry, strawberry and blueberry on the property. We gave up on the wild cherry since it’s too tall for us to harvest; the birds always get the fruit first. Our … Continue reading Summer Feast
And A Busy Yard Winter hit us very hard this year. We already have more than two feet of snow on the ground and, as I’m writing this blog, it’s snowing outside. The temperature has also dropped down below zero for a couple of nights and hanging below 20ºF most days. As much as it is harsh for us, it’s much more difficult for our winged … Continue reading A Brutally Cold Winter
Crucial For A Harsh Winter I spent most of New Year’s Day watching birds in our garden. It was cold outside so I mostly just watched them through the glass of the patio door. I took the camera out for only half an hour at a time, until I felt numbness creeping into my fingers and toes. Since there wasn’t any snow on the ground, though it was very … Continue reading Birds And Water
And Snow, Right On Schedule Today is the official first day of winter and it has been snowing lightly on and off all day. It’s very peaceful and quiet outside, the only sound the birds singing. The birds are the only bright colors in the garden at this time and without them it’s a plain brown and gray everywhere we look. We couldn’t fill the feeders … Continue reading First Day Of Winter
And More To Come A snow storm hit us again today, starting about 5:00 AM. It was very peaceful because no one was out, the town plows didn’t bother to come around early and not a snow blower in sight. It was the type with big fluffy flakes falling down early on then became very light rain before stopping in late afternoon. It dumped close … Continue reading Snowed In
Taking A Clue From Birds There has been one snow storm after another and the official spring date is still more than a month away. Our garden is covered a foot deep in snow crusted with ice. The cold frame we put up last fall has become an igloo at this point. I have no idea what has happened in there since I can’t have … Continue reading Spring Is Around The Corner
And Frigid Cold We got hit by snow storm Hercules last night to midmorning today. The snow itself accounted for little accumulation, only six inches or so, but the frigid wind was another story. The temperature is around 3ºF now but the strong wind makes it much colder. I’m really concerned for our honey bees, that they may not survive this winter. I left the … Continue reading Taking Refuge From the Snow Storm
Petals and Wings 