All Birds Welcome!

Can You See the Flicker?

A few years ago the Captain commented "you know, that bird thing you got going".  He was right; I do have a bird thing going. Some people develop a passion for old plates, dog ornaments, vintage silverware or tea towels. Me...it's all about birds.

When my son sends cards, nine out of ten times, there are birds on them. Last year at Christmas, he gave me bird seed. Now HOW Sweet is that!! (well not just birdseed..he is simply, very thoughtful and knows my feathered weakness))) If you look around the house interior...Nova Scotia carved Folk Art birds watch our every move! So it goes without saying, the last few weeks have been pretty awesome in the garden, with Northern Flickers feeding their young, feasting on the bazillion ANTS... INVASION of the century! They love those tiny little morsels and I love them for that! Well not just for that..they are beautiful.

After having a drink at the pond, this one flew to the corner of the workshop and likely had 'afters' of spider and earwig. Yummmm.  Sadly, I never seem to have a camera in hand during opportune bird sighting moments, and, if I do, the photos are inevitably blurry like the one above. Still, I persevere. The bird cam has been a success but with our focusing on finishing the deck and finally having summer arrive....well you know (((.

We did have robins nest in the Wisteria but they made off without sharing their big day! Woodpeckers have been coming to the feeders, and all are loving the birdbaths. We lost one this year...birdbath that is, and poor ole Stink (our dog) just about got clobbered by the pedestal. Fortunately, he had just left the workshop when..ahem..."someone" on the upper floor moved something which knocked something causing a reaction and down the pedestal fell, through the lift hole crashing twelve feet below. Course no one fesses up to these things until one must...when weeks pass and the bird bath doesn't appear...  "Ah...well...ahem....I didn't tell you this...well you see...etc etc."  So there, I'm over it...you can tell.... right?

We've had a lot of American Gold Finches, Juncos (stalwarts of the garden) ....Crows with their young, Mourning Doves and Ruby Throated Hummingbirds but there is something about 'red' birds in the garden... they light up your eyes. Think this one is a male Purple Finch but heh..it's really RED!

Eating soft snails...as far as we could figure out anyway!

Birds love a fresh water source in a garden to drink and bathe...and if you are able to feed them all summer, they will reward you by eating lots of bugs as well as singing their hearts out.

p.s..I was mistaken..the Robins are still feeding their young..and they sure didn't like us near the pond tonight!

White Surprise

Foxglove with pink poppies in background

The garden seemed to be dominated with purple tones the last few days...hurt your eyes blue from Salvias, Geranium and Baptisia.... But it's funny how a walk around makes you take stock and appreciate new blooms gone unnoticed. I realized in fact, the whites had center stage..not the purples or blues.

First Peony

Peonies were corrupted by blight this rainy year, so, finding this bloom today (following my nose in fact) was heartening. The scent always reminds me of my first funeral...sad and difficult. They were held at home in those days...not at a proper 'funeral home' but in our home's front parlor. A black wreath hung at the entry so those in the neighborhood would know...the loss. Peonies, the scent of living and leaving.

 

Five years ago, our Yucca bloomed..just that once in ten..and this year..it looks to be the second coming. Am thrilled about that! Doesn't the bud look striking! The ants can't leave it alone though! Bad year for ants (

The most exciting of the Whites displaying....(we waited eleven years for our few scattering of blooms last year), is Wisteria 'Alba Longissima'....  In late winter, we did a big chop...rewarded as you can see below. They hang heavy and fragrant; ...magical!

Wisteria floribunda 'Longissima Alba'

Best news though...robins have nested among the blooms ...stand by for baby photos soon!!!

A Walk in the Rain........

Viburnum plicatum f. tomentosum 'Shasta', Cornus kousa 'National'  Dogwood, Diablo Ninebark

It's just the right amount of rain today....gently bending the dogwood branches so we can enjoy it's blooms at eye level. The Viburnum, on the left, glows even on this gloomy day... layered in white, like a bride's wedding gown. Every year I am delighted with it's beauty, especially punctuated by Diablo on the right, wet and slippery leaves, purple black in the rain. The urn was headed for the landfill when we dragged it home a few years ago; it's moved about, adding a little "something" to the garden when needed. Hey..it was free..what can I say ;-).

Temperatures are still fairly cool for this time of year, but, the sea is warming and soon there will be beach days and boat trips to enjoy. As you can tell from past posts, rain has been a revisited topic for a while now. "Too much", we complain, "too often" as well.

There is a garden in our back yard, I do not recognize.... blooms flow and float in wet ribbons bowing in the drizzle....rain drop jewels everywhere ....sadly, without an audience of honey bees...too cold. My understanding is, there are about 150 different weather pattern combinations! This year, we are experiencing one, not familiar to my gardening life.

While I fully expected early blight would have struck the tomatoes by now, they appear to be thriving in this rain. Leader of the pack in size is OSU Blue, however Mexico Midget is the only one with baby tomatoes forming. The new dwarf Tasmanian Chocolates are growing steadily and it will be interesting to see how large the plants get and if the fruit is as delicious as hoped for.

Tasmanian Chocolates

Our water comes from a well...don't think I have mentioned that before.... and so, family is very mindful of how much we use, and how we use it. The downspout on the house has a fitting which diverts rainwater to a cistern  (out of sight on the messy side of the house). A small pump forces water up to the garden when we need it. In summers past, when we've run out of rainwater, we take a second cistern to a local stream and fill it up down there and bring it home, draining it into the permanent one. We have never run out of water in our well, but it is a system we put in place initially for hot long dry summers but now, we use rainwater exclusively in the garden.

She's not pretty but she does the Job!

A sad result of so much rain.... lilacs didn't have their 'day in the sun', and neither did 'Constellation' dogwood. It lacks fruit they say, although this is contested......... Goodbye to your fading, vintage muslin dress blooms....till next year, dear beautiful tree... but I will watch closely in case you do form red berries!

Cornus x Stellar series 'Constellation'

Veg Garden Roundup

A Handful of Spring

Today it's back to rain and more rain but...Saturday was spectacular and by that, I mean sunny and hot! Carrots, baby Hakurei turnips and French Breakfast radish were guests of honor at the supper table while spinach and Red Purella lettuce, buttery yet crunchy, made a comfy bed to lie on!

It's a perfect combo this three days of rain, one of sunshine! Tomato plants are leaping ahead, although peas lag behind. I expected them to be above the tomato cages by now so let's hope they catch up and aren't overwhelmed in Tom shade. Beans Fortex, Gold Marie, Lazy Housewife and Purple Podded are up about eight inches, starting to twine on the bamboo poles. The back Bean Wall, is a 'Tomato Wall' this year. We shall see how that experiment plays out, attempting also, trellising Tasty Jade cucumber and Trombino squash.

Tomato planting inside Veg Garden

It's fun to experiment and try new things in the garden don't you think? On another blog, someone used large plastic water bottles as cloches. So we have given that a try, putting them over two Ping Tung Long eggplants to see if they might do better for us with added protection and heat. It's hard to find discarded bottles and harder still to cut off the bottom, as we found out ! Wear eye protection....if you do attempt this.

Eggplant Ping Tung Long

The best part of sunny warm days however, is the sound we don't hear when it's cold and wet..... bees, buzzing happily, working in the garden.

Mourning Widow Geranium

Heaven on Earth

Wanting to find some 'fresh' inspiration...we set off to visit Faye's garden, just outside of Halifax, Nova Scotia. "Heaven on Earth"... the frame reflects the gardener and her artistic skill at succulent wreath making. Further, the garden reflected Faye herself...peaceful, delightful, interesting and generous. Winding our way through the bloom filled front yard, just past her vegetable garden, I was delighted to find, a small permanent apiary .... it being one of our first full sunshiny days, the honey bees were out in force. What a great sound............

The quiet walk, erupting in occasional squeals of "look at this", prompted us to slow down; plants said..."look at me, down here..yes come closer...aren't I beautiful!"

Primula 'Francesca'

Near the front of our property, there are alders and birch with a few evergreens which hide all sorts of lovely Nova Scotia  naturalized plants and I do refer to it as my woodland garden but it is not cultivated very much. I have thought about tucking in more plants, but would have to make pockets of rich forest soil first; ours is very thin. I liked how Faye did that...building on the natural slope of the land, the rocky outcrops and dips, laying stones and filling in behind with compost ( from their compost facility..sadly no photo to share but please let me tell you...serious composters) to give plants the opportunity to grow and thrive. She and hubby Yvon, have gardened for twenty eight years on this spot, and it shows....a truly developed garden, evolving as seasons pass, finding it's own place and pace. The view below, stole my heart away.

Click on Photos to Enlarge

Mystery, inviting exploration, delivering that most sacred of all, peace and tranquility. The many varieties of dogwood and magnolia as well as hosta and fern, provide canopy and structure;  gentle paths  and steps slow body and mind.  It's still with me, that inner peace ...that "Heaven on Earth".

Thanks Faye for your generosity. It was truly, a pleasure to walk with you discovering and learning how a Nova Scotia woodland could be developed to it's full potential. You gave me just what I needed...Inspiration!