Maybe I should let the squirrels plant my garden. They seem to do a better job. Every spring, stuff pops up in our yard and garden beds that we didn’t plant. We find dozens of baby sunflower plants and if I didn’t mow my grass, my backyard would be a cornfield. If I toss out a hundred corn kernels for the squirrels, they will eat 10 and bury 90. One year we had a mysterious plant in one … [Read more...]

  Why? Why would anyone want to attract amphibians such as frogs and lizards or reptiles such as snakes and turtles to their yard? Simple. Because these critters eat tons of insects and rodents. According to Virginia’s DNR, amphibians and reptiles are a vital part of the natural world, but urban development and landscaping have caused their habitats to be lost or degraded. By making … [Read more...]

  My wife Nancy got balled out this week. Not by me, of course. I’ve got better sense. But she did receive quite a scolding from one of our resident catbirds. Nancy was trimming an azalea bush and must have gotten a little too close to one of Mrs. Catbird’s babies. The catbird really let her have it. I’ve only had catbirds visit our yard for the last 7 or 8 years, but now they’re … [Read more...]

The plague on my yard is gone. The grackles have finally flown the coop. They arrived back in March this year, earlier than ever. And they came in droves – 20, 30, 40. Then they thinned down to a couple of dozen and ate most every speck of decent bird food I put out. I hate ‘em, and I can’t afford to feed my backyard friends and them, too. I would put out a $4 bar of peanut suet and they … [Read more...]

  It seems our hummingbirds show up later and later each summer. We used to have a few flitting around our sugar feeders in May, sometimes April. But in recent years, they arrive later. In this case, almost July. We saw one this week. I had seen one across town the week before. Other birders have told me they are just starting to show up. You can understand how the little fellows … [Read more...]

  Just when I think I have the little guys figured out, they throw me a curveball. My backyard buddies were fairly predictable this spring. After poking around in various available houses, they chose the new house I had installed on a short pole with an aluminum baffle. They were a tad late getting on the nest – around April 10, but things went well. The three chicks fledged in a couple … [Read more...]

  It is estimated that Americans spend over $41 billion (with a “b”) dollars each year on birding, and I do my share to keep keeping that lofty number in the stratosphere. I spend a ton for birdseed, bird feeders, and birding supplies. But it’s a hobby, sort of, that I truly enjoy. Nonetheless, it’s important to get the most for your money and in my book, the absolute best value in … [Read more...]

    I have figured out how to keep deer out. I built a fence around my yard, then an enclosed fence for my garden. So, I don’t worry about deer. I also have squirrels reasonably under control with my garden fence, baffles on the seed poles, and the use of Red-Hot Bird Seed. But with squirrels, you never know. They are wily so-and-sos. But grackles are another story. They drive … [Read more...]

  Squirrels! How do I hate thee? Let me count the ways. I hate thee when you chew the top off a $50 birdfeeder because there was once a seed inside. I hate thee when you gnaw on my $20 plastic lawn chairs in the back yard for who knows why? I despise thee when you sneak into my garden somehow, take one bite out of plump tomato and leave it there for the ants. I hate thee when you … [Read more...]