"Bringing Nature Home"

 Lots of good books this summer..."A Sparrowhawk's Lament," "Trees of Eastern North America," "The Thing With Feathers," but first, "Bringing Nature Home" by Douglas Tallamy. Me and The Doodles have been working on making our gardens more wildlife friendly for the past few years and I just discovered this fantastic book!

It covers just about everything you need to know to change your habitat from harmful to helpful. So many nurseries focus solely on decorative species(otherwise known as "alien") because they're pretty and insects don't eat them. Well, guess what? If bugs have nothing to eat, then birds have nothing to eat...or frogs, toads, mink or people. No insects, no pollination. As Mr. Tallamy states, "...insects have done fine on this earth without humans and would continue to do so in our absence. If insects were to disappear, however, our own extinction would not be far behind."

I've been going through insect photos from our gardens from the past years, and the variety has steadily decreased. We have more and more neighbors using lawn services and "pest" control. They can't figure out why they aren't seeing as many bees or lightning bugs. They just don't get it.

"Bringing Nature Home" is a must read for all of us. It explains simply what you can do to help out mother nature in your yard and neighborhood. We have a few neighbors that now understand that our yard is a little crazy for a reason. In chapter 10, Mr. Tallamy talks about "Blending in with the neighbors" and being known as the oddball in the neighborhood.

He has suggestions for yard plans, like on page 135 and lists of plants that will support lepidoptera species. I learned that oak trees can support up to 534 species, cherry trees up to 456 species and hickory as many as 200. Those are three trees we have in our small yard already as I'm sure many of you do.

This is really a worthwhile book to invest in...not to mention our future and the future of the birds we so love and enjoy.

 Our Black Swallowtail caterpillars have eaten their fill and wandered off to grow into butterflies!

Those two little "horns" on its head pop out when they aren't happy that you're taking their photo.

 An adult Black Swallowtail on thistle...which seems to plant itself. 

I like that. No holes to dig!

 This is a female Bumble Bee with a healthy collection of pollen for the kids.

We have plenty of echinacea or cone flower in our gardens.

 When you don't use herbicides or insecticides, you get plenty of sweet delicious clover for the bunnies to feast on.

Plus the clover keeps them away from other plants!

More bunnies will be here soon...

This is an Eight-spotted Forester moth, on milkweed with a red milkweed beetle hidden away in there as well.

We have quite a bit of milkweed in a number of varieties to keep the insects happy.

 The aroma of milkweed is fantastic. Our whole garden smells great in the morning and is a magnet for butterflies like this Great Spangled Fritillary.

 I found this Katydid hiding under a milkweed leaf.

 I also found this single Monarch butterfly egg under a milkweed leaf.

It pays to crawl around in your garden searching under everything. 

You never know what you'll find!

 Here's a Monarch butterfly and a caterpillar on the same plant.

Monarch populations are down drastically due to deforestation and the flagrant use of pesticides.

 Butterfly Weed lives up to its name!

 We also have plenty of Black-eyed Susan in the garden.

This Orange Sulphur likes it as much as The Doodles!

 Pearl Crescents even seem to fight over these!

 Red Admiral.

I don't see his ship anywhere...

 Summer Azures enjoy Queen Anne's Lace and Spring Azures lay their eggs on native Viburnums.

We have plenty of both.

 This Eastern Tiger Swallowtail kept me company during lunch this afternoon.

I wonder if he enjoyed the cone flower? as much as I enjoyed my hot dogs...

 Yep, he was happier...

We also have Joe Pye weed which the Spicebush Swallowtail likes, wild violets for the fritillaries, spicebush and more. Remember every caterpillar becomes a new butterfly, moth or food for a hungry bird! Please look into changing the habitat around you and get a little help from "Bringing Nature Home!"

Silent Sunday...

Lots of Begetting Around Here...

Yep, it's all about the birds and the bees(even bumbly ones!)

Twas a very busy spring around our home and crazy gardens. The number of fledglings at our feeders is amazing. The amount of seed we've gone through is also amazing...yoiks! Not to mention jelly for the Baltimore Orioles, nectar for the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds and overly ripe bananas set out for the butterflies. A lot of the critters make it just fine without our help as well...you know, that circle of life thing. Insects eat nectar and each other. Frogs and toads eat the insects. Snakes eat the frogs and toads. Chipmunks eat seeds, nuts, insects...not too picky. Minks eat anything that can't run fast enough like pokey chipmunks. I eat TV dinners. Doodles eats whatever happens to be growing in the gardens, like garlic mustard! Ummm...greenie...

 This is one VERY tired American Robin.

 The first nest had three little piggies fledge.

One day we saw them, the next day gone!

These nests were right next to our side door. We put up with daily strafing attacks by the adults.

That was a big surprise for our mailman!

 They were so proud of the first nest they built a second!

Right next door.

We may run out of room here...

 It's hard work eating all them worms!

 It's even harder work catching all those worms to pack down these bottomless pits!

 I think it may be a little crowded in there...

 

 The brave one.

He decided it was too crowded and went wandering around the honeysuckle vine.

(Actually, I think he was kicked out for walking on everyone's heads.)

 It's amazing how fast they disappear and reappear all over the garden!

 We keep hoping the Monarchs will lay eggs on the milkweeds we have planted around the gardens.

 We haven't seen a Black Swallowtail, but it's obvious by the six(!) lil caterpillars chowing down on the fennel that they were here.

 

 The Baltimore Orioles have been at the feeders and gathering nest materail again.

It's close by, but I haven't spotted it yet.

 His job is to empty the feeders daily.

 This Black-capped Chickadee built his nest in that little house on our garage.

 The Doodles followed the fledgling until it slowed down enough to get a photo.

It was fun to watch him hopping down the drive, zig zagging, until he disappeared.

 

 I know this Eastern Cottontail by the notch on his ear.

He lives in the wildflower garden out front.

I'm sure there's more than a couple "juniors" out there!

 Common Grackle mocking our duck decoy.

They have been very prolific this year!

Yoiks!

 The Garter Snake has been spotted swimming in our little pond chasing tadpoles and frogs.

We are now short a few frogs.

 This Green Frog thought this hollowed out rock would be a good hiding place.

 I lost count on how many made it from tadpoles to this stage.

 The Gray Catbirds nest next door(at the nice neighbors.)

I'm still waiting to see little ones.

 This was a big surprise!

The Doodles came running down the drive as I was working in the garden screaming!

"Baby Minks!"

Holy cow! There's four baby minks wrestling behind our garage.

And there went one of the parents with a dead frog for snack time.

We got it all here in our little CrazyLand!

 Another high quality nest building job by the resident Mourning Doves.

By the way, that's not a ping pong ball.

 This is The Doodles fledgling friend.

It kept her company on the patio while Doodles watered the flowers.

 I know the Northern Cardinals are nesting close by.

 The Red-bellied Woodpeckers are living a couple of doors down and visit the nut feeder all day.

Must be some hungry babies out there.

 The Red-winged Blackbirds are nesting near a large pond on the other side of the railroad tracks behind our house.

 King of the feeders!

The female Ruby-throated Hummingbirds have been going at the feeders non stop.

Now there's a nest I would love to find!

I don't even want to think of what's going on down under our gardens...

Argh...more Bobbs running around!