Spring is coming

So I was out the other morning and noticed this little guy/gal in the yard. 

This little robin has been hanging around trying to pick up any berries or seeds the hens don’t devour. the problem is since Robin does not blend with the landscape the hens usually chase her away.

This gorgeous springlike morning, the hens were not out yet. I had left some berries and she was enjoying them. My son and I watched her for a few minutes , then got the camera out.

Last year a robin made a nest in the lilac tree. I wonder if this is the same one.

I am hoping to see this robin all spring.

We had a break in the weather, plenty of sunshine and warm days(in the 60s).

Sadly a cold front came through last night and we are back to the cold with Gale warnings on my phone.  At this point , even the snow loving kids have expressed their readiness for warm spring days.

We have started seeds indoors and I have potatoes that have sprouted that are ready for the ground.  I had taken advantage of the warmer days and put  fresh compost in the beds for potatoes which encouraged the hens to scratch like crazy! the worked the soil much  more efficiently than me and my old back can.

The beds are prepared for potatoes and after that it will be carrots beets peas and radish and greens. I can’t wait for the break in the weather to just be true transition to the next season: SPRING.

 

Spring is around the corner

I had ordered my seeds back  in early February as I do every year. This year I added some seed potatoes. MY BAD! They are behind with those so my entire order is on hold. This kind of throws a monkey wrench in my plans.

I guess it will be interesting if starting my seeds indoors two to three weeks late will make a difference . The lady at the seed company did promise I’d get them before March 17 , which is potato planting day. The delay has given us time to work the outside beds. I just can’t wait for the seeds!!!

We are trying leeks this year, so excited.In other garden news, I saw the first bunny! I was coming home form a meeting late and she/he scurried past me directly to the potato bed.

I think this year I am going to try using Agribon to protect my garden from predators/and poachers of the furry kind.

 

 

I am hoping to avoid the avian death that occurred at the berry bushes last year.  Last year I had covered my berry plants with the fruit guard. This was like a plastic grid. But a  grey catbird  got caught up in there struggled and died. It made me sad.  So sad that I took the guard off and had only a few berries .

This year the berries will be covered in agribon and I will leave some figs for the birds!

You can get Agribon online mostly. If you live near a nursery, they would have it there. However, you can shop for deals on line.

So excited for spring.

Jules my oldest has decided to follow through and raise some chickens as pets( egg layers).

We are hoping to get chicks as soon as April.  Jules has researched this project for a few years. I think we are ready. There is a pretty interesting group in my area of backyard chicken keepers. It is nice to have a good support system. We have visited a few and gotten some good pointers.

. We are looking at Marin, Barred rock, Buff Orpington, and she also likes the Wyandote.

Marin

                 eggs More to come on our adventures in sustainable living. I know that living in the suburbs, I cannot get a cow for milk or broilers  for meat. However we will do this experience to see how much square footage in garden will save us money in eggs and veggies. All of us, except my husband , are excited about having chicks and hens as pets too! We are all trying out cool hen names. I told them to wait until we get the chicks and we may be further inspired by their characteristics.

I read Animal , Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver.

It was a wonderful book about her experience of a year of sustainable living. For a year her family ate only what was in season and what they grew. I felt sad for her teenage daughter who longed for a salad in March and rejoiced with her when in late April the baby greens appeared! It has inspired me to do what I can to grow what I can and make what I can and see how those measures will help with our home budget. I am not sure if I can make it through Jan-April without lettuce. Maybe I will cheat and try to grow hydroponically in the winter.

I will post more later with our own pics .

Happy Gardening!

 

 

Sad Bird news

So all the Cat birds had fledged. However they have been learning the ropes of birdhood in the hood. Their parents diligently still chirping about them and encouraging them.

I was so very sad to find one of the 4 fledglings caught up and dead in my blueberry netting.

Unfortunately the little catbird’s head got stuck in the netting and their he died with blueberry stains on his cheeks.

It made me sad because these catbird parents were so diligently feeding their baby birds while in the nest. They would be relaying , bringing food into the nest. We would see a little head pop up to get fed. Soon, we realized that there were four in the nest.  We were so excited to see their were four babies that survived.

Two of the fledglings before the big leap with one of the parents

The sadness I felt was tainted with  some significant guilt. I had covered the berries so that we could have the berries and so the birds would not. I certainly did not wish harm to any of the birds. I was excited to have them in the yard. I just did not want to share. So silly when I look back on it now.

My son was out there digging in the yard for a few days and watched as the parents nurtured the four fledglings. He was with me when I found the catbird. He was sad too. He had named a few of them as he watched them grow.  We decided to take the netting down. We did not want to  see another bird, baby or not, go down because of our “interventions”.  Rest in Peace little guy!

Luckily, the other fledglings are still fluttering around the garden with the parents still close by. They can eat all the berries they want.. and they have!

The lesson that I learned is that sometimes we need to work in tandem with nature. My son asked me if I thought the adults in my life when I was growing up would have taken the netting down. I think and hope they would but I don’t know.  We talked about it and he understands that things happen.  I felt very bad and he understood my regrets about the netting and the results.

It was a  very good  demonstration of  “for every action, there is a reaction” or “everything you do affects others” or “be a good steward of the earth”. These lessons are things I teach the kids regularly.  It is good for them to see it in action. Another lesson, “admit when you are wrong and try to resolve the problem”. Mom makes mistakes too. Mom admits it and tries to make amends.

 

 

 

 

family hike

This morning after my overnight shift, we had a nice breakfast then a family hike.

We did talk about how today is memorial day and you need to think about the people who have made sacrifices, served, fought , and died for our freedoms. Freedom comes at a price.

We talked about the different wars and how things have changed throughout the years in regards to wars, the draft, women in combat, etc.

I wanted to make sure they understood  that it wasn’t just an extra day that Daddy was home or that we didn’t “school”. We don’t go shopping.

We go on a hike.

We went to Rock creek park and took one of our off the beaten path routes. It was a warm slightly humid morning. Everything is  green  and the trail is muddy.  There were others out. We found a few swimming holes or wading pools. We spotted a lot of birds. the water was flowing a bit more rapidly as it had stormed last night.

    We observed these birds first in early spring.  The Kingfisher swoop back and forth across the creek with their unusual call.

Phil and I taught the kids how to skip stones. We found little clams and Julia had little minnows tickling her feet under water.

Waded around and resisted to lay down and let the current take us down stream. There are so many fallen trees, rocks and broken glass we need to be cautious.

We moved on and found a treasure. this little guy was curled up near the trail we took. I remember seeing the deer near this area.

We first spotted a doe and two others.  My oldest said look. I could see nothing. Finally she said look down! There was this little fawn. I remember when we monitored Blue birds at a local golf course, the groundskeeper who was a naturalist as well said sometimes, they “hide” like this near a tree.   This little guy’s Mom was close by.

   It was a treasured moment. We all agreed that was most unexpected and wonderful surprise.

Weird weather 0 Birds 2+

Well despite the crazy weather, both Robin and Cardinal families have survived and thrived. I regularly watch Poppa Cardinal return to the nest to help feed momma C and babies.

  I love to hear their chatter.  They built such a deep nest most of the time you can only see Momma C’s tail feather out the back of the nest. Clever!  It is a little frustrating for us bird watchers because even when we use a ladder form about 3 feet away, all I see is a beak:)

 

Robins have been less modest. I can see the babies’ heads popping up when the parents bring home some supper.

The Robins are tolerant of Anthem when she is in the back and fly in and out of the nest without hesitation. But when Jack the overgrown puppy is back there, Robins are more cautious and don’t hang out on the fence. They wait in tree limbs  until the coast is clear.

 

   There are two babies that I can see. One robin baby is waiting for food with his beak pointing northward. The other is bobbing his head around trying to figure it all out( his is the bump behind the beak:)

 

I guess the birds know what they can handle.  It has been fun to watch but I think the robins are close to fledging!

 

 

weird weather affects momma birds!

  When I took this pic , it was sunny and 70 degrees out on a gorgeous April day.  The Cardinal pair were building a nest. They chose the fragrant Lilac bush right outside my kitchen window. Lucky for the kids and I. We have been watching her daily progress. It seems the momma cardinal spends more time building the nest.

Yesterday it was breezy and sunny. A big gust came at one point and almost tipped the nest over. I checked as far as I could see and there were no eggs yet. Today I worked in the garden mos of the day. I could see her adding dried grasses to her nest.

I  had finished digging, planting, and transplanting. I was tired and thought Id wait for the heat of the day to be over before I watered everything. As I was grilling dinner, I noticed the air changed. The Sky darkened and the temperature dropped a good 10-15 degrees.

So the breezes got a bit rougher and now it is raining steady.

I am not sure if Momma Cardinal will keep this very fragrant pad. The lilac branched she chose are a little flimsy.

Watching what happens next.

 

Meanwhile under the upper deck, Momma Robin built a sturdy little nest with ample coverage (as our grill is right above  the spot).  We have spied a few blue eggs in the nest. The only trouble this robin family faces is the vocalizations of our two GSDs.  Jack and Anthem go on the deck to get to the back yard where they hang out sometimes. Everyday without fail, the local rescue squad and  fire department go down the street lights and sirens. We have a nursing home down the street so it is rare when they don’t go down once a day.

So Momma Robin is treated to the musical howlings of Jack and Anthem.

Are birds deaf? I don’t think so.

I must say she has nerves of steel. A morning dove built a nest and laid an egg but she couldn’t take it. She never came back I saw her nesting in the neighbor’s tree.

Nature is funny. I am so lucky we get a chance to observe it on a daily basis.