Snow days are all about the birds

Okay, not only am I a plant freak, but I'm a bird freak too. It snowed, I don't know, maybe 7 inches today in the Kansas City area, and I had a great time watching the birds eating at my feeders and digging in the mulch outside my sunroom. I'm embarrassed to say it was almost as much fun as being outside yesterday tilling up the garden.

I have no idea why everyone doesn't get as excited about seeing unusual birds as I do, but at least today I know I'm not alone. In the process of identifying a bird I'd never seen before, I found this very fun website called Greensboro Birds with a great article about and photo of the very bird I was seeking. Reading that author's description of the bird made me smile. You know, when you read someone's thoughts and you recognize the funny things you think, but maybe don't say, it makes you happy. At least, that's what it does for me. Thanks Greensboro Birds.

Well, one of the birds digging for worms in the mulch in front of my house was the one I had never seen before. Turns out it was a fox sparrow. I actually saw two of them. I learned today that the fox sparrow is a fairly common winter resident. I mistook it for a thrasher or thrush that was behaving strangely and spent a long time trying to match what I saw with the descriptions of thrushes in my 3 bird guides. The definitive identification was the funny little dance one of the birds performed while its companion looked on. I was watching a robin throw my mulch around and dig a hole I had previously blamed on my dog when I noticed these two slightly smaller birds with spotted chests nearby. One was also moving mulch in search of food. Only this bird, instead of throwing mulch with its beak, was doing a two-hop shuffle and moving the mulch with its feet. I'd never seen that before.

The bird guides didn't mention the little dance at all, so I was stuck with the "iffy" descriptions of a highly variable species. Fortunately, the Greensboro Birds site as well as Cornell University's All About Birds site both described the fox sparrow's distinctive back and forth hopping habit. I think it's very cute.

It isn't a coincidence that I saw this bird on a snowy day, either. Both sites also mentioned that these birds are often not noticed until a snowfall. Funny that it has snowed before and I haven't noticed them. But today the two in my garden really stood out.

Anyway, I am yet again thankful that I'm so easily entertained. Usually I'm pretty grumpy when I'm stuck inside. But today I was excitedly running from room to room carrying books and binoculars trying to get a better glimpse of a little brown bird. My husband thinks I'm nuts. . . Like I said, it's good to know I'm not alone :-)

That bird wasn't the only one that distracted me from my household chores. There were tons at the feeders. The male goldfinches are rapidly gaining their bright yellow colors. There were several at the feeder or waiting in the bur oak for their turn at the feeder all day. I consider them my very own nearly care-free pet canaries.









There were also pairs of titmice. It's hard to know how many. They all look alike - gray and very cute with their big black eyes and little crest. The one here doesn't have its crest up because it's busy working on the seed in its mouth. They are very fast, like the chickadees, and often pick up a seed and take it to the tree to eat. Then the other in the pair will take a seed. They just keep doing that until another bird butts in.

And, of course, there were several cardinals visiting often throughout the day. The females came much more often than the males today. This one sat on the rail while others pulled seeds from the feeder. Other birds enjoying the snow and my newly-filled feeders were white-breasted nuthatches, red-breasted woodpeckers, downy woodpeckers, carolina wrens, lots of house finches or purple finches (I can't tell them apart), and the tiny chickadees. I think they must be carolina chickadees - just because they are so much smaller than the titmice.

If I have time I'll post again tomorrow. I found another good reference site for native plants and stumbled on what looks to be a really great plant!

Until then, happy first day of spring!

Water garden plans and sunroom update

There wasn't much opportunity for gardening this week. Rain has left the ground far too wet for work. So I spent my free time drawing a plan for the water garden that will occupy most of the front yard outside my sunroom.

Speaking of the sunroom, the walls are painted and the woodwork is stained. It's very pretty. Jerry is working today to finalize the wiring and install the lights and ceiling fans. And tomorrow the slate tile will be laid. Those tiles are really beautiful. The only thing that will be left then is cleaning and sealing the concrete floor. Yes, the delays have been painful and disappointing, but it's hard to complain with such a beautiful space just begging for plants.

Okay, now that I've gushed over the sunroom, back to plans for the water garden. Here it is. Outside dimensions, not including the waterfall (brown area), will be 10' X 12'. I've moved the pond out from the house to insure a good view when I'm seated at my desk. I may run the supply for the bog filter through the pond rather than around, but this is the basic layout.

I was excited to learn about bog filters just a couple of weeks ago. There was a large article in Reflections, the newsletter for the Water Garden Society of Greater Kansas City. Nelson Water Gardens in Katy, Texas, authored the article that illustrated several possible layouts and explained the construction. It's actually called a gravel bog filter. I love the concept because it allows for a more natural looking planted area. You see, the plants are placed, dirt and all, in 12" deep gravel partitioned off behind a permeable rock wall. The roots absorb waste to feed the plants. By doing so they filter and clean the pond water in a way that mimics nature. So rather than placing my bog plants in water, I can put them in the gravel where water is pumped in at their roots. If you're interested in more details about the concept go to the Nelson Water Gardens website.

My builder will dig the deepest part of the pond for me. It saves us some money on fill dirt needed around the foundation of the sunroom and will save me a lot of hard work. I'll dig the shallow shelf and use that dirt to make the outside edge level, because my front yard has a gentle slope south and east to the street. Then I'll have the liner and rocks delivered. I think this will keep me busy for a while. I'll make sure to share pictures. Stay tuned - but don't be shocked at the mess!

Needless to say, with the weather as wet as it has been, the digging will have to wait a few days. But, if our weather man has it right this time, there will be several dry days this week. Of course, it will rain again on Friday but a few days of sun will dry things out quickly.

I have a few more plans to put together, so the extra time isn't so bad. The crocuses don't seem to mind, either. They are blooming brightly near the mud puddle beside my front door. They keeping me smiling in spite of the mud just because they're pretty :-)

Spring cleaning

The Kansas City area just experienced it's first weekend of 50/60-degree weather making it a great time to reconnect with the neighbors and with the garden. I spent all weekend outside and was surprised to find tons of bulbs under the leaf-covered gardens around my new home. It was also a good time to cut back a few small low-hanging branches that have been shading and impeding air-flow around the edges of the property.

My first task was tackling the low-hanging branches. On my property's perimeter are several pine trees of a very pretty variety with short needles and a top that weeps. Near the house on the west side of the yard are 4 of them. The needles on most are sparse and one of them is nearly dead.  I think they struggle beneath the hickory and oak trees behind them whose branches intertwine with the pines' branches. One was also nearly encased by an euonymus. That's the nearly dead one. They are free now after a couple of hours of sawing and clipping. I'll keep my eye on them this summer hoping for signs of recovery. There are a few on my property that are healthy. They're beautiful. So I'll keep my fingers crossed that I can keep them all.

Yesterday I tackled the island garden in the backyard. Here's how it looked when we moved in. I left the purple coneflower stalks standing over the winter, because I wanted to watch the birds eating the seeds. I wasn't disappointed. This garden is right outside my kitchen window. It was very smartly placed by Bob and Judy, the previous owners. You can see, though, that it hasn't been tended for a while and has become overgrown with coneflowers, walnut seedlings, and grass. Last fall I found that there are spring bulbs planted here, too.

As I cleared out the coneflower stalks it was difficult to avoid stepping on all the new green leaves sprouting from the bulbs. They are everywhere. It took nearly the entire day, but I got the space cleared - roughly. It still needs mulch, but it is a joy to see the promise of flowers to come.  Look at all these daffodils! But that isn't all. There are clumps of tulips scattered about this garden as well as a group of irises in the center. It'll be fun to find out what I have in my new garden. And I won't have long to wait for the daffodils :-)

Well here's what I have now that I've discarded the coneflower stalks. I left enough leaves to protect the plants from what will certainly be more cold weather. The leaves will soon be replaced with mulch making the garden look much neater. Last fall I pulled up some of the coneflowers on the east edge of this garden to plant several herbs and flowers from my old garden. There are two large clumps of thyme, a lovely blue-green lavendar plant, a yarrow with a terra-cotta flower, some moonbeam coreopsis, oregano, two large purple-flowered East Friesland sage, Russian sage, and a couple of others. They all seem to have survived the winter under the leaves and old coneflowers. Yeah!

The long-awaited spring arrived just a couple of weeks early. It may stay only a few days, but I was glad to see it and my neighbors. I know it's just the beginning and the cold is bound to return at least once, but what a great feeling. The birds were boisterous, the bugs were moving, and I'm was working in the yard. It was a tantalizing taste of heaven for this garden girl. Happy digging for all :-)

Common Dittany - that's what it was and here's how I found it

In a previous post I included this image of a plant I saw on my trip to Mount Nebo State Park in Arkansas. It was a small plant with these delicate little lavender flowers that I thought might be a nice native plant addition to my garden. I didn't recognize it from my plant studies in college, so I've been keeping an eye out as I research native plants on various websites. Well, I finally found it while cross referencing the wildflowers available at Missouri Wildflower Nursery in Jefferson City. Here's a link to the plant profile on the USDA plants site http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=CUOR. I found another even better description on this site http://www.missouriplants.com/Blueopp/Cunila_origanoides_page.html. This plant has an added benefit of producing frost flowers in the fall. That would be interesting!

I've added links to the Missouri Wildflower Nursery, USDA's plant profile search, and the Missouri Plants site to my links list. These seem to be the sites I've used the most in my recent research. I've had literally hours of fun browsing these sites.

Progress toward Spring

There's nothing wrong with being so close to nature that your moods swing with the weather. Is there? I read in another blog I follow that it might not be healthy, but I think just the opposite. I love the outdoors and spring is one of my 3 favorite seasons. Winter is the only one I struggle to enjoy. Although occasionally it does provide glistening beauty that stops me in my rush to get on with life. Frozen mornings like this one last week is an example. Sparkling crystals hung everywhere as the sun rose and it looked like an ice garden :-)

The snow has nearly melted now bringing muddy tracks into the house and new birds in the garden. We have robins year-round, but this week
I saw my first robin in the yard picking through the wet leaves looking for, and finding, worms. With highs in the 40s we are still below normal, but that hasn't stopped the bulbs or the birds. The cardinals, chickadees, and titmice are calling loudly, determined to set up territories and begin nesting. In spite of the cold and mud being out in the yard is a treat for my ears.

This weekend I built a prototype for my benches that will be placed under the windows in the sunroom. My sunroom, which will be my haven next winter, is still in progress. But in a couple of weeks I should be able to begin moving plants into their new home. I'll need to have the benches ready to raise the smaller plants up to the light. Last week I found commercially built "light stands" that were pretty pricey and too tall for my purpose. So I came up with a plan that would fit perfectly and give me space for starting seeds next winter. This bench, including the trays and light bulbs for the fluorescent fixture cost a little less than $60 to build. It measures 22"H X 52"W X 12"D. The fixture uses 2 T-8 bulbs and can be adjusted to hang at different levels as seedlings grow. The wood will be stained and sealed to match the trim in the room, so it will eventually be a little prettier and water resistant.

As I wait for the construction to be completed and spring to officially arrive, I've been planning and gathering information like crazy. The Metropolitan Lawn and Garden show left me with information overload. My challenge right now is to focus on some realistic goals for my new garden. The area just outside the sunroom, the front yard, is just mud. I think that's where I'll start.

My first newsletter from the Water Garden Society gave me a great solution for the pond that will occupy the front yard. This issue had a large article about gravel bog filters. I had been trying to figure out how to make a more natural edge to my pond and how to configure the filter. This is the solution I've been looking for. Now I just have to decide what type of layout to use. The pond will be roughly dug by my builder. He has agreed to use the dirt from the pond to fill around the sunroom foundation rather than having new dirt brought in. Cross your fingers that the digging happens before the spring rain begins!

The pond should take up most of my time and energy this spring, but the rest of the year will allow time for observing what surprises are hiding in my sleepy new garden. I am already anxious to see what flowers will top the hundreds of bulbs I see sprouting in the overgrown garden spaces. Everything is in sore need of tending, trimming, dividing, and mulching. So I will probably have no need of new projects. But my list of native shrubs is growing and the hedge row at the back of my property looks in need of some serious attention. The road just beyond is clearly visible through the spindly Althea that has self seeded in the shade under the walnut, box elder, redbud, pines, and other shrubs. That may be a worthy effort before next winter.

I guess in spite of my distaste for the cold and uninviting winter, the time it gives me for dreaming about the fun I'll have outside is a gift. And the occasional beautiful sunrise is admittedly uplifting even for this seasonally sour gardener :-)

Cooped Up

Okay, like all the other gardeners out there I'm battling cabin fever. Luckily I've had some opportunities to get out recently. And that's kept me somewhat sane but still grumpy and unfocused. As usual, my rambling weekend thoughts turn to plants and plans for my new garden.

There have been several days lately when the streets were clear enough for my pre-dawn jog and yesterday the snow was melted completely. So I took time to explore a little of the woods around the lake to spy likely spots for finding native spring plants. There was a lot of evidence of deer, but no spring plants sprouting yet. I think I have about 2 more weeks to wait. That is, if the sun would come out to warm the ground.

As I explored the muddy ground there were some encouraging signs of things to come in my own little patch of woods. I saw some bulbs beginning to sprout. Late last fall I planted a few crocus bulbs that I dug up from my old house. Knowing how silly I look with my binoculars searching the ground for signs of their flowers, I planted them very close to the walkway that leads to the new front door in my sunroom. Two have spiky leaves showing already. They need a little more mulch, I think, because in one or two cases, they have been trampled by our builder. I'm hoping the freezing rain and snow falling today will protect them. Neither the builder nor the workers he contracts to help seem to notice what's planted under their feet.

Today the weather is dreadful and luckily I'm forced to stay inside and finalize plans for my new growing space. The sunroom is now open to the house because the former entry to our home was removed. Jerry and I are experimenting with balancing the different heating systems in the two spaces. Even with no sun, the space is bright, warm, and open. I'm sure it won't seem as spacious when it's filled with my plants. But, for now, it's an echoing cavernous room. Just standing in it makes me smile :-)

My plans for my "benches" to lift plants up to the windows and for starting plants next winter are almost complete. I did some research and found this light stand on Harris Seeds' website (www.harrissseeds.com). I'm using it as a model for my bench design. As you can see the light fixtures here are adjustable rather than the shelf as I had originally planned. And in looking at fluorescent fixtures, I think making the fixture adjustable will be simple as they come with chains for hanging.

My benches will be wooden instead of aluminum like this one, and they will have only one fixture. The "shelf" on the bottom will actually be a frame into which I can drop 2 trays like those shown here. Only mine will position the trays end-to-end instead of side-to-side. The light fixture will be suspended from the bottom of a similar structure 20 inches above the bottom shelf. I will drop trays into that top structure and sit potted plants in them. I should be able to build one bench before I post again next week. I'll take a picture to share.

There's a good possibility that painting and staining will begin in the sunroom next week. So my space is almost done. I think in two, maybe three, weeks my large tropical plants can move into the new room.

They are suffering like me from the close quarters imposed by winter cold. In their current crowded condition watering them is difficult because I have to crawl on my hands and knees to reach the smaller pots. As a result a bout with scale has resulted in some serious pruning of one plant and the total destruction of another. I hate killing plants, but I haven't found a way to curb the infestation on a beautiful gardenia my husband gave me several years ago. It's huge, but it had to go before every plant around it became infected. If it survives in the garage, perhaps I can revive it next year outdoors where I'll be free to spray it with dreaded chemicals. But I would be surprised if it makes it until spring. Yuk.

I'll be glad when my space is done. Even if spring hasn't come, the sunroom will make those last days of winter easier to bear. I'm sending encouraging thoughts to my builder and I won't even mention my trampled bulbs. I'll just grit my teeth and put down mulch... and draw an occasional calming breath... and meditate a little. "Oohhmmm...ohm..."

Indulging my flower fetish- KC Metro Lawn & Garden show

What a fabulous way to spend Valentine's day! At the invitation of my husband I visited the KC Metropolitan Lawn and Garden show. Of course, being an introvert and near-recluse, it wasn't easy to drag myself out on the last day of my stay-at-home weekend time. But, I'm so glad I did. Running into plant freaks like myself around every corner was pretty thrilling and enlightening.

My favorite exhibitor was the Orchid Society of Greater Kansas City. Oh my gosh! This is the closest I come to being like a kid in a candy store. I can't believe what a weirdo I am, but my heart beats faster in my chest just thinking about all the flowers. My little Phalaenopsis has been in my home for 6 or 7 years and has only bloomed 4 times, but maybe with a little more education, I can have more of this kind of eye candy in my sunroom next winter. In any case, I'm hooked for now. They'll have my membership money soon. Even if I never attend a meeting, it's great to know there is a community of people who have a freakish attraction to plants similar to mine. I don't mind supporting their fetish at all. Giddy? Yes, I think that's exactly how I feel about it. I mean, there was even a guy who likes our native lady slipper orchids!

Here's another photo just for fun. It's a tree covered with orchids. There are also some little balls covered with Tillandsia bromeliads. One of those little "air plants" was my only purchase today, by the way. The guy selling the little plants had a great booth inside the door and sold the "pups" for $3 or $4. They don't even need a pot or soil; just a bi-monthly soak to keep them growing. I'm thinking I can grow those on the interior wall of my sunroom. There would be plenty of room for a collection if I get good at it.

A close second favorite exhibit was the Water Garden Society of Greater Kansas City. In their case, it wasn't the display that impressed me as much as the person with whom I spoke. Maurice was great. He told me about all the projects the Water Garden Society has in the community, particularly in conjunction with schools. The organization does so much to share the love of gardens, plants, and the outdoors with children. It's good to know there are so many doing good work out there. I talked with Maurice about my intention to build a larger pond just outside my sunroom near the entry to my home. The edges, just outside of the pond liner, are usually dry, but I have been mulling over how to create a bog garden near the edge. Maurice suggested I let an area spill over and discussed the way to flip the liner out rather than in to allow water to fill the space occasionally. I was hoping that would work. Since my pond has yet to be dug, I think this is the perfect time to get to know this group. They will be getting a membership application from me as soon as I have time to fill out the paper. Maurice says I'll get a discount at the House of Rocks with my membership. That should come in handy. Rocks aren't easy to come by or cheap. And I'll need a lot of those for my pond.

Maurice, and you guys at the Orchid Society exhibit, thanks so much for sharing your time with me. I had a great time. You really made a cold day in February fun :-)