July 31, 2009 - 1
The white butterfly bush next to the garage came into bloom last week. While not as fragrant as the purple variety, the flowers on the white butterfly bush are much larger as if to even the score between them. Meanwhile, the purple coneflowers are reaching the peak of their growing season. More than a dozen of the festive flora seemed to smile back at me when I saw them all for the first time last Monday morning. Another pleasant surprise awaited my ears this week as I noticed the backyard night sounds increasing beyond the usual early summer silence. Although silence may be golden, it's a peculiar thing how I find it easier to sleep as the soft summer night sounds drift in through an open window.Backyard Tip of the week:
Keep an ear to your backyard at night this time of year. As we enter August, the nights get even wilder outside. You may hear crickets or katydids, frogs or toads, maybe even a passing train blowing its horn in the distance. A backyard walk on a cool August evening might be just the ticket to help you relax. Try it, you're sure to love it!
Backyard sightings for last week:
Including blue-jays, northern cardinals, brown creepers, rose-breasted grosbeaks, song sparrows, tree sparrows, American robins, Carolina wrens and Carolina chickadees. Catbirds, bluebirds, mockingbirds, ruby-throated hummingbirds, house finches, goldfinches. Red-bellied and downy woodpeckers. Northern flickers, white-breasted nuthatches, tufted titmice, mourning doves, crows, starlings, grackles, red-winged blackbirds, grey squirrels, red squirrels, chipmunks, skunks, bunnies, ground-hogs, a few white-tailed deer, a few hummingbird moths, still a bunch of fireflies and more butterflies are being seen each day.
Continued on next page...
July 31, 2009 Part 2 - Cool Sightings
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