March 26, 2010 - 1
Spring has arrived and the forsythia bushes are beginning to bloom here on the mountain. I even spotted a pair of downy woodpeckers the other day while engaged in their courtship display on the branches of the willow tree. I love the lilting song of the tufted titmouse on these early spring days, so sweet and sleepy that I want to take a nap, but then I hear the cheeseburger, cheeseburger call of the northern cardinal and I get hungry so then I’m wide awake again. Go figure.Meanwhile, sunrise occurred in the backyard this morning at 6:54. Sunset will arrive at 7:19 this evening. Having gained an incredible 22 minutes this week, we’re up to 12 hours, 25 minutes of wonderful sunlight today.
Backyard Tip of the week:
The rainy spring season is a perfect time for working outside, I always say. Take stepping stones for instance, I mean literally, on one of those days when the ground is so saturated that you wonder when it will ever dry out enough for you to mow it again, take your stepping stones and place them where you want them in your yard. Soggy ground makes for easy placement as you can just set the stones and either push them or stand on them to set to the desired depth in the ground. Remember to set your stepping stones low enough to allow for mowing when the ground does finally dry up, but do take advantage of this easy and time saving way to set stepping stones as appropriate in your yard. It’ll also make it easier to get around… Try it, you’re sure to love it!
Backyard sightings for last week:
Including northern cardinals, dark-eyed juncos, blue-jays, brown creepers, song sparrows, tree sparrows, white-throated sparrows. American robins, Carolina wrens and Carolina chickadees, catbirds, mockingbirds, house finches and goldfinches. Red-bellied and downy woodpeckers, yellow-bellied sapsuckers, northern flickers, white-breasted nuthatches, tufted titmice, mourning doves. Red-winged blackbirds, crows, common grackles and starlings. Also chipmunks, skunks, bunnies, an opossum, a ground hog, and a big bull frog in the pond!
Continued on next page...
March 26, 2010 - Part 2 - Cool Sightings
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