Visitors to our deck and birdfeeder are fun to watch, and sometimes, even hold still long enough for getting some pictures through the sliding glass doors. The birds have already eaten one seed cylinder and we decided to move a new one a little closer to the deck and birdbath. So far the squirrels have not been able to get to it.
eastern bluebird pair
We have a large red mulberry tree which has been tagged for removal. 🙁 I think the birds will miss its branches, where they perch waiting for their turn at the feeder. From the nuts and blossoms deposited on our deck, from way up high, I know we also have a sweet gum tree and a tulip tree, but they don’t have nice eye-level branches.
Blue has always been my favorite color, and I love the blue and brown color combination found on bluebirds. Up north, I got my fix of blue from the blue jays who came for peanuts along with the squirrels on our balcony. Down south here I rarely see a blue jay. But the lovely bluebirds are everywhere!
A bluebird finally sat still long enough on our deck railing for me to get some pictures through the sliding glass doors! He seemed to be waiting for a pair of goldfinches to finish splashing around in the birdbath.
As my chronic illness is making it harder to plan long walks and spend much time away from my home, the way we spend our days is changing. Most of my walks are now taken on a new treadmill, so I don’t have to worry about the weather or ticks or the location of the nearest restroom. I’ve fallen in love with tai chi and have also started resistance training to strengthen my bones. Tim gets plenty of exercise at cardiac rehab three mornings a week.
None of those activities make for good photo opportunities, though! We still try to visit the botanical garden once a week, as it has bathrooms for me and benches for Tim. But since we have so many birds right outside our windows we have started trying to make our garden even more inviting for them. We now have a birdbath and a suet feeder and a cylinder feeder, all of which are visited often.
We even hung up a little birdhouse. And much to our delight we have both seen a chickadee flying into it, on two separate occasions, but have yet to witness anyone coming out of it, even though we wait patiently.
a goldfinch and a male flower from the sweetgum tree
I so wished I could attend one of the Hands Off! protests on April 5th! I was there with everyone in spirit, but my illness prevented me from being there in person. It was very encouraging to see from news reports and social media posts that a sizable (5.2 million protestors) resistance to tyranny exists and my hope is that we will find a way to prevail.
Freeze warning this morning. I brought my new potted geranium inside.
3.29.25 ~ Eno River Farm, Hillsborough, North Carolina
I had never gone tulip-picking before so I was excited to visit Eno River Farm for a new experience. What a unique place this farm was. The first thing to be seen was a giant troll, half-buried on top of a grassy hill. We should have walked up the hill to investigate because I later learned that you can climb up the troll’s leg or go inside of his head.
head, hand, leg, and foot of a giant troll
This picture illustrates how incredibly tall some of the trees down here are. And the people in the picture highlight just how big that troll is. But we were here for tulips! We passed an ice cream parlor with plenty of outdoor seating overlooking fields of organic strawberries and made a note to return with the grandchildren when strawberry-picking season arrives.
my favorites ~ these rosy pink ones I cut three of them to take home
We went inside a nursery to pay for the tulips we cut and came out with an additional, but unplanned purchase, a big red potted geranium for the back deck. We’ll have to see if the squirrels and deer will leave it alone. In the meantime, I’m enjoying the simple beauty of these large tulips on the dining room table where I sit with my laptop most mornings.
3.21.25 ~ North Carolina Botanical Garden sandhills pyxie-moss
Last year the sandhills pyxie-moss was blooming on January 28 and was still blooming on March 7. This year we saw only one flower on the clump on February 26, but finally, on this March 21 visit we found a full bloom! We will keep checking on it. You may remember that this miniature shrub is very rare and found only in a couple of North Carolina counties.
trailing arbutus
hepatica
little sweet Betsy
When our eyes are graced with wonder, the world reveals its wonders to us. ~ John O’Donohue (Beauty: The Invisible Embrace)
rue-anemone
purple cress aka limestone bittercress
bloodroot
It seems reasonable to believe that the more clearly we can focus our attention on the wonders and realities of the universe about us, the less taste we shall have for destruction of our race. Wonder and humility are wholesome emotions, and they do not exist side by side with a lust for destruction. ~ Rachel Carson (Silent Spring)
eastern red columbine
eastern redbud
sassafras (redbud in the distance)
After enjoying this wonder-filled morning, a pleasant surprise was waiting for me at home in the evening. As I went to close the drapes in the living room I noticed a pretty mourning dove sitting on the edge of the birdbath on our deck. She was watching me. We made eye contact and we gazed at each other for the longest time. Tim finally went and got the camera and took this picture of her, still looking at me. Years ago, and shortly after my mother died, a pair of mourning doves used to keep me company in my garden while I was out there weeding it, but it’s been many years since I’ve had one make contact with me like this. I felt comforted.
mourning dove photo by Tim
Things have been pretty discouraging around here since Tim had his stents put in. Thankfully he seems to be doing well in cardio rehab. But my dear sister has been diagnosed with the same kind of endometrial cancer I had back in 2017, and her prognosis may not be as favorable as mine was. Also, due to osteoporosis I’ve had to give up my beloved yoga practice. I’ve replaced it with tai chi, which I am liking well enough, but I still find myself grieving for yet another loss. I was very grateful for the solace the mourning dove was offering me.
1.11.25 ~ red mulberry branches and twigs coated in ice
We experienced our first winter storm down south here last Friday night, getting just an inch of snow, followed by sleet. When I woke up Saturday morning I didn’t see any birds, but there were little icicles dangling from the red mulberry tree branches and the rhododendron leaves. My little indoor owl ornament looked pretty in the bay window and the whimsical mushrooms in the garden looked different surrounded by white stuff with their own tiny icicles.
On Sunday we were supposed to attend a reception at the botanical garden for the Birds of North Carolina: A Community Photo Exhibit, but it was postponed until January 26th due to the inclement weather. I’ve been pretty excited because they accepted all four of my submissions, which I’ve added below. They’ve been posted here on the blog before, but they look even better hanging up in the gallery, enlarged to 8″x10″ size from the original number of pixels.
American Robin 3.17.24 ~ Coker Arboretum
Carolina Wren 3.20.24 ~ North Carolina Botanical Garden
Yellow-rumped Warbler 3.29.24 ~ Bolin Forest
Hermit Thrush 3.30.24 ~ North Carolina Botanical Garden
I couldn’t help noticing that all the pictures I selected to submit were taken in March. Looking forward to another spring month for bird photography!
This might be Fred trying to chill out by splooting in the dappled shade under our dogwood tree. The moss probably feels nice and cool on his belly. As the earth keeps warming it’s going to get more and more difficult for this method of lowering his body temperature to work effectively.
Feeling so guilty sitting here in my comfortable air-conditioned abode while outside my window this young robin tries to cool off with some open-mouth breathing. We do have a couple of birdbaths and lots of shade trees, but it’s still hot, hot, hot out there!
