milkweed - scented delight

Weeding the vegetable garden today was a pleasure -- what a delightful hour. The sky was partly sunny with clouds floating by to cool me when the breeze was not enough. The soil was damp enough from recent rains so the weeds came out easily. And the milkweed that Julie started downhill from the veggie patch is in full scented bloom. The whiff of milkweed blooms on the breeze is, to me, the best -- sweet and spicy with hint of honey. And the blossoms are beautiful! No wonder the butterflies adore this plant. Monarchs, in particular, lay their eggs on the undersides of milkweed leaves and their caterpillars feed on them.

toad - good citizen in the wild woods

This 3" American toad Bufo Americanus was hopping around today while I was working in the garden.
There are plenty of frogs and toads like this in the yard, especially in the wet swale and the grassy quiet dark places. They are important in the food chain -- they help control many insect populations and they are food for other creatures. The DNR web site has good information about amphibian species in this area. http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/reptiles_amphibians/frogs_toads/toads/american.html

borage - improves tomatoes?

Last year, I learned that borage (Borago officinalis L.) is not only a pretty flowering edible herb, but it also improves the flavor of tomatoes when grown within a few feet of them. I did plant some borage seeds, and they blossomed profusely. I don't know if it helped my tomatoes, since weather and other variables seem to be in control here. And, this year, the volunteer borage is coming up throughout the veggie garden.

sparrow spooker

House sparrows harrassed the bluebirds that were trying for a second brood in the bluebird box. We had tried a "sparrow spooker" with mylar dangles with some success. But the persistent sparrows got too aggressive. I installed a "monofilament line" spooker on the nestbox, and so far it has kept them away. Theoretically, the monofilament lines are arranged to prevent the ground-feeding sparrows from landing or perching on the roof or front entry area while bluebirds (aerial feeders) can easily navigate among the lines.
I found the instructions and information at
http://www.sialis.org/hosp.htm   scroll down to "monofilament".

chickadees - fledged

The first brave little Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapilla) left the nest on Friday, day 17 after hatching. The other 5 launched themselves out of the nest on Saturday after much coaxing from the adults outside.

tamarack - loaded with cones

This spring the tamarack tree must finally be established and happy; it has set hundreds of cones. They first appeared in the shape and color of little rose buds. As they enlarge they turn more brown and cone-like. Bill snapped this shot and captured the sap oozing from them in the sun.

chickadees - 11 days old

Watching the 6 chickadee hatchlings on the video cam is addictive. Amazing how fast they are growing. Expect them to fledge out of the nest at day 15 or 16. In addition to this video cam in roof of the snag box, we're adding cameras outside to observe and record their fledging.

bluebird - fledged first brood

We've been watching the bluebird nestbox for weeks as they brooded 5 eggs. The resulting 4 hatchlings are 17 days old. Today the parents coaxed the young birds, one at a time, to come out of the nestbox. Each in turn perched on the box opening with curiosity, watched and listened for danger, then flew bravely to the nearby maple tree.

Now we expect the adult pair to feed them for a few weeks while teaching them to hunt. Since bluebirds usually have two broods each season, we've outfitted the nestbox with a new improved camera.

NestWatch

This year I am participating in NestWatch, a continent-wide nest-monitoring program that aims to provide a unified scheme to track reproductive success for all North American breeding birds. NestWatch teaches people about bird breeding biology and engages them in collecting and submitting nest records. NestWatch http://www.nestwatch.org/ is developed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology in collaboration with the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center, and funded by the National Science Foundation. Currently I am monitoring a bluebird nestbox, a house wren nest, a chickadee snag box, and searching for the nest sites of hummingbirds, cardinals, catbirds, and red-wing blackbirds that frequent the wild woods.
During November to April I participate in FeederWatch http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pfw/

finches - summer breakfast

The finches enjoy the thistle seed while other birds enjoy the boxelder seeds dangling around them.

wren - twig nestbuilding

House wrens want to nest in the nestbox outside my office window, and they are determined to get twigs inside no matter what contortions are needed.

chickadee - 8 eggs

We used the plans from NestWatch to emulate a "tree snag" nestbox using a PVC tube. A pair of chickadees found it quite cozy and built a nest inside. Monitoring the snag box for NestWatch, we noted on May 23 their clutch of 8 eggs.

bluebird - first egg

This spring a pair of bluebirds (Sialia sialis) settled into the nestbox, and Bill’s camera system allowed me to get some amazing footage without disturbing the nest. Here the female is laying her first of 5 eggs.

Lights, Cameras, Action

The wild woods adjacent to our garden is full of critters and photo opportunities. With expertise in still and video photography, Bill is my resource for digital, electronic, mechanical, and other technical systems to observe and document the wonders in our wild woods.

cardinal - last snow

The male cardinal was emphatically singing this morning, despite the few inches of heavy wet snow we got overnight. He sat for quite a while outside my office window, stretching out his neck and erecting the crest feathers atop his head while turning side to side. Yes, there is snow on the ground but it is Springtime!

wild turkey - forlorn

woodpecker - morning seeds

The female Red-bellied Woodpecker Melanerpes carolinus was at the feeder this morning. She is among the guild of woodpeckers, nuthatches, chickadees, cardinals, juncos, finches, and bluejays that hang out in the wild woods.

Hoarfrost

Hoarfrost on oak trees, January 2009. The morning is so beautiful, it inspired me to start this blog!