Flower and bird watchers "ARE YEE HERE?"

[tillyn]

Wanted to know if there is any flower or birdwatching fan-atics around the SKMB. What do you grow? Veges. or Flowers. Have you seen any farout birds lately? Were from all parts of the world on this site and i like to know what different things we grow and see!
[Double Post]
I've been feeding Downy Woodpeckers (buggers are tearing my crabapple trees apart, that's what i get for being nice!) Love peanut butter on bagels put on a branch. Also chickadees, Greyjays, Bluejays, Field sparrows, Grosbeaks, Slow right now because it's so cold. Can't wait for the humming birds to get back my favorites.

[Agincourt Concierge]

Love to do both....

Around here we have big*ss Pileated Woodpeckers, Chickadees, Bluebirds, Cardinals, Hummingbirds (summer), Purple Martins (they are so cool), Swifts, Kingfishers (down by the river), Great Blue Herons, Turkey Vultures, occasional Baltimore Oriole, Yellow Flickers, House Wrens, Phoebes, Cowbirds, Grackles, and Red-tailed Hawks....those are some of the common ones around these parts...

Now...for flowers.....love flowers....I grow award-winning daylillies; iris, peonies, daffodils (I have some real beauties...double blooms)...Japanese iris, Hosta, I have a gorgeous Chionanthus Virginicus (fringe tree) that has the most heavenly honey-smelling blooms in spring (my sons even like the smell)...I have a Dr. Ruppel Clematis around my mailbox and and a lovely Stargazer lilly in my flowerbed...plus various other periennials.....

[Kurt Rambis throwback]

I grow Peruvian torch cactus and peyote
does that count ? it flowers


also, I got flipped teh bird teh other day ago

[md10pc]

Present and accounted for . . . right now we are feeding doves, cardinals, blue jays, bluebirds and some little sparrows. A big red-tailed hawk has been hanging out but haven't seen it grab anything besides field mice. Also looking forward to the warmer weather when the finches and hummingbirds come back. Oh, and we have quail; you can hear the "bob white" in the summer.

Daffodil tips are up behind the office building where I work.

[tillyn]

I was wonderin if someone would put in peyote! I guess if flippin the bird is all ya got , than it counts!:biggrin2:

[JayneH]

I am a fanatic about native flowers and animal life. We have mostly nectar eating birds on our property - honey eaters mainly. Also fairy wrens, redbreasts, 28's (parrot), magpies and the most beautiful black cockatoos (both red and white tailed)

I grow mainly grevilleas and bottlebrushes for bushes and also a variety of native trees - all who flower - my favourite tree would have to be the banksia - and it is the parrots favourites as well !

[betsymae]

Not a big bird watcher, per se, but we have a hawk around our house that likes to hunt in my backyard. We see him occasionally, swooping in to get his dinner. We were pulling out of the driveway the other day, and he just came flying down into a pack of birds that were in the neighbors yard. My daughter said, "Look mommy! That big bird is trying to eat those little birds!" You dont realize how huge those guys are until they are on the ground!

[Todash]

My MIL has a hummingbird feeder. Those little suckers can be MEAN! Territorial about food, anyway. Living a bit out of the city now, I have seen a few birds I never saw before. One is at a storage facility where we have some stuff; they have gravel all over the place, so there are killdeer out there. I didn't even know those were around here. And then this winter we saw some ... I think she called them budges. Cute, fat little things. I guess they winter here and then fly back further up north.

[Liselle]

I love to feed the birds, we have robins, wrens, starlings, magpies, blackbirds, crows, rooks, chaffinch, green finch, gold finch, sparrows and the occasional hen harrier, ok not as glam as some of your birds but fun to watch all the same.

I like flowers but have two problems, one they make me sneeze and two I always seem to kill them.:sad:

[Anni M]

Yes, I am and proud of it. I got a pair of bichin' Bushnell binoculars for Christmas... can't wait for the warmer weather to come although I've had some good sightings this winter :)
I'm still growing my green thumb. I don't murdalize as many plants as I used to! :biggrin2:
And I have a real touch for roses, something I would have laughed at a decade ago!

[Spideyman]

Have all types of birds around my land. In winter all the northern ones come for food. Native ones too. Love the sandhill cranes and Bald eagle that fly over each morning. Even found a lost Emu once.

Flowers and veggies- I used to have gardens for both, but with developments springing up all over, the wildlife has gathered to what is left of the woods. Especially the fox, and coons. The coons think anything not tied down is theirs. I've had potted plants disappear only to find the pot when walking in my woods. Thus, I have given up. Dear neighbor Virginia used to grow huge veggies. Must be that horse manure:wink2: But I don't think she'll plant this year as much.
I do have many native plants which attract birds and butterflies.

[danie]

I feed chickadees, juncos, sparrows, cardinals, and titmice (or is it titmouses?) here in KY. My favorite bird is the red-winged blackbird that I see in the spring. It's distinctive call makes me feel everything is gonna be alright...
My favorite flowers are daffodils (send me some pretty pictures, AC!), and I love the smell of the beautiful four o'clocks that bloom by my front porch.

[dragafari]

I grow coca plant, cannabis, opium poppy, datura stramonium, hyoscyamus albus, mandragora autumnalis, scopolia carniolica, brugmansia candida... you know, those kind of harmless bushes. :wink2:

Do you want a spliff or cigarette? (no, they haven't any burundanga)

And about birds, good and beautiful birds like: ravens, crows, rooks, jackdaws, gyps fulvus, vultur gryphus, etc.

[BlackEye]

I haven't seen many birds lately. I did get a visit from a bluejay this morning when I was out in the hot tub. I like hummingbirds also. A couple pictures below are of the hummingbirds that feed at my front porch. I like flowers too. My favorites are the daylillies in front of my porch. I love tiger lilies too. But I wouldn't consider myself and expert at either birds or flowers, but I can appreciate the beauty of both. I'll throw in the lily too. :)

http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk62/blackeye_2008/2008_0817Camden0011.jpg

http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk62/blackeye_2008/2008_0817Camden0010.jpg

http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/kk62/blackeye_2008/2008_0727Camden0054.jpg

[Srbo]

Nope.
No Stan Uris here.

:smile2:

[Sundrop]

I love both. Last fall, we had a huge red headed woodpecker that liked to visit one of our old trees. I wondered if he was one of those almost extinct woodpeckers that I had heard so much about. We also have a pair of cardinals that live in our trees. I have planted lots of lilies, trumpet vines, wisteria, roses, tulips, and my favorite wildflowers all around our house. I usually have lots of humming birds and butterflies paying visits---a few bees too! :)

[brownmouse]

I take care of my birds:smile2:- As of late all I have been getting are tons and tons of cardinals, sparrows, grackles (I don't really like them- they scare off the rest of the birds- they comes in gangs, I tell you, gangs!!), goldfinches, wrens, (I don't know where my chickadees and tit mice went) and some little downy woodpeckers and hairy woodpeckers-OH- I forgot I did see a flicker a few days back - very impressive looking. And a few Blue Jays who love when I put out almonds.

I like to grow butterfly attracting flowers. But I am a novice. I love wildflowers.
Oh, darn, I miss Spring!

[phidgt]

Right at the moment I have a bunch of Chikadees and Pine Siskins. What is really weird this year is that the Robins, Mountain Bluebirds and Northern Flickers have stuck around. Apparently we had a gigantic berry year and they have been finding plenty of food. It's so bizarre to see Robins bouncing around the huge snow mounds in my yard. Our winter hasn't been too terribly cold so far, either.

I usually have a couple of Downy & Hairy Woodpeckers, but I haven't seen them this winter. The whole season seems out of kilter a bit.

[Patricia A]

One thing that I really enjoy about living in NW Wa. is the number of hummingbirds. They are beautiful little buggers. You have to watch fast though cause they don't stick around long.

[aussiewonder]

We have all kind of birds here, bluejays, robins, cardinals, tons of little house wrens, woodpeckers, chickadees, I have seen one painted bunting,very pretty! Some years we have lots of hummingbirds other yrs not so many.

We have heck keeping the squirrels out of the bird seed, but they need to eat too, and we enjoy watching them.

[mojomofo]

I am not a bird watcher, but I love to grow things. (Hence the two kids:smile2:) Nothing as good as Draga's garden, but lots of flowers and some veggies. There is nothing like a tomato or cucumber fresh from the garden and still warm from the sun.

[rjt65]

I grow Bonsai..see profile for 2 pix and a link to my indoor collection. also like unusual plants--got some rare one off the internet and in my backyard.

bird watching nada--and i have a gripe with our local bird watchers.... when i used to jog (not so much nowadays) in the large preserve whenever there was a group of birdwatchers 10-30 peeps)..they would park themselves in the biking/running path--a no no not paying attention to bicycles or runners ...

this went on for months...finally i just would run into some... they eventually learned... to move when i came thru....

yes Achmed teaches... ;-)

[Agincourt Concierge]

I grow coca plant, cannabis, opium poppy, datura stramonium, hyoscyamus albus, mandragora autumnalis, scopolia carniolica, brugmansia candida... you know, those kind of harmless bushes. :wink2:

Do you want a spliff or cigarette? (no, they haven't any burundanga)

And about birds, good and beautiful birds like: ravens, crows, rooks, jackdaws, gyps fulvus, vultur gryphus, etc.

Cool.....I would so love to grow opium poppies.....THEY ARE GORGEOUS...but don't wanna get busted .....can't even order seeds for em! Datura..got those pesky things...Henbane....?? Mandrake..??(who you planning on doing in???) heehee scopolia (good for spasms and hallucinating):)....now...Brugmansia is a beautiful plant...Too cold here..unless I grew it indoors over winter....but then my cat would chew on it and fall over dead! .....Great garden dragafari!!!! I'm impressed!!

[Agincourt Concierge]

I feed chickadees, juncos, sparrows, cardinals, and titmice (or is it titmouses?) here in KY. My favorite bird is the red-winged blackbird that I see in the spring. It's distinctive call makes me feel everything is gonna be alright...
My favorite flowers are daffodils (send me some pretty pictures, AC!), and I love the smell of the beautiful four o'clocks that bloom by my front porch.

Deal....when they bloom I'll snap some pic!

[Kurt Rambis throwback]

tillyn

heres my current progress (6 yrs old)

http://img502.imageshack.us/img502/103/picturegp8.jpg

[tillyn]

Brown Mouse, use globe feeders, the bigger birds cannot perch on these (crackles, E. Starlings.) You can put up to 1lb of seed in them. (round , make of plastic with holes on bottom.) You can go to Duncraft.com and they have them there , if you wish to get any.

[tillyn]

Right at the moment I have a bunch of Chikadees and Pine Siskins. What is really weird this year is that the Robins, Mountain Bluebirds and Northern Flickers have stuck around. Apparently we had a gigantic berry year and they have been finding plenty of food. It's so bizarre to see Robins bouncing around the huge snow mounds in my yard. Our winter hasn't been too terribly cold so far, either.

I usually have a couple of Downy & Hairy Woodpeckers, but I haven't seen them this winter. The whole season seems out of kilter a bit.

Their smart, i wouldn't want to come to Canada yet neither, still friggin cold, and we have your Downy, Hairy woodpeckers here. LOTS. I know spring has sprung when the Robins show up, everyone on the block cheers when that happens!

[tillyn]

Nope.
No Stan Uris here.

:smile2:

Sirbo, with all our snow, even S.U. couldn't grow diddli.

[cocomajo]

love to see birds. so happy a few years ago started seeing bald eagles in the area. this winter one was on my property. love identifying wild flowers/ plants

[TBlack]

I grow everything you can imagine outside & keep a year round indoor greenhouse(Grow Lights-Fans & Humidifiers...) off the Shop/Studio.
I raise Fantail Pidgeons with Araucana & Silky Chickens...
I can do numerous birdcalls & can gather flocks of chickadees to where I'm standing... try that---it's the 1st two notes of "I dream of Jeanie with the light brown hair"
I also can do a decent Red Cardinal that seems to really piss off the males this time of year---I wonder what I'm saying.:eyebrow:

[Kim L.]

I also can do a decent Red Cardinal that seems to really piss off the males this time of year---I wonder what I'm saying.:eyebrow:

I always thought they were saying "Reefer, reefer, reefer..."

[phidgt]

The Red-winged Blackbirds are here in full force. I get a flock of around a hundred of these birds on my property. They love hanging out in the willow bushes around the creek. They really make a lot of noise and go through some serious sunflower seed.

A bunch of Juncos showed up the other day along with some Cassin's Finches and American Goldfinches. It sucks that we had a blizzard today.

[tillyn]

I'm waiting for the friggin snow to leave my neck of the woods, so i can get to gardening. If you SKMBer's like to grow stuff but have no room , try cucumbers in a big pot with a trelis in it. Works like a charm good for tomatoes too. (pickling cucumbers work good and taste great.)

[tillyn]

Saw my first Robin today sure sign Spring i finally here, (April 20) the snow is finally going so the poor things hopefully can find some worms.