Spring is really here! We are all getting spring fever and wanting to get in the gardens! I went to hear Arlene Reid of Glenhaven Nursery speak at the Plains Museum last month. She warned of planting before May 15, on the off chance there would be a frost. A good rule of thumb, although frustrating, but she was right – the temperatures dropped at least 2 nights, after Mother Nature had been fooling us with some really warm days!
Mr. Green Jeans got out there tilling my garden, putting in a section of box gardens for my perennials, and building a fenced garden for my daughter at her house. I put black garden tarp down in sections of another flower garden, to kill what grasses I couldn’t pull out. I am not a fan of weeding, as Mr. Green Jeans will attest to!
The fruit trees are flowering, the grape vines are getting leafy, and the wild things are flowering just in time to make dandelion, redbud, and lilac jellies. It is No Mow May, and the grasses around the house are almost as tall as those in the fields! You’d be surprised what is growing out there, when you don’t mow.
Our very old lilac bush, that was here when we bought the property, still has a few flowers, as do the white lilacs who were here also. Both need some serious trimming, so hopefully next year, they will bloom even more.
The peonies are sporting round little flower buds, with ants crawling on them feasting on the nectar.
Along with the long grass, come hidden nests of baby rabbits. Be careful where you walk! The pair of geese who return to our little Folly Pond every year, are now the proud parents of 6 lively goslings! A pair of robins have also returned every year, to a nest they built underneath our upper deck.
The barn swallows have returned- their joyous trilling fills my barn every day. There are at least 18 nests and counting in my barn. I have quite the colony!
The mockingbird sits atop the very same uppermost tree branch, trilling away, claiming his territory. He has quite the repertoire!
Male robins, and other birds, get into mid-air tussles, trying to claim areas as their own.
The redwing blackbirds have returned, and I’m awaiting the return of the hummingbirds!
One recent morning, I found a young mourning dove, who had gotten in the chicken coop run, but couldn’t figure out how to get back out. I netted him (or her) and after making sure she was not injured, let her go. I love the soft cooing of the doves. They are one of my favorites, and are regular visitors to my feeders.
Along with warm weather, come the bees. One small chicken coop has attracted borer/carpenter bees every year. I have never really minded, they never bothered me. This year though, it appears they brought their friends, and going into the tiny coop at night meant having these hefty bees hovering in front of my face or over my head, and I’m not sure the chickens were too thrilled either! I made a brown paper bag faux hornets’ nest, and hung it inside the coop. Posts on the internet swear that when bees see this, they will assume wasps or hornets have taken over, and will vacate. I read that these bees also abhor citrus, so I made a spray bottle of citrus and lavender oils and have been spraying the beams of the coop. So far, knock on wood, it appears to be working! The bees now hover around the outside of the coop, not inside, so time will tell. I may have to make a few more bag nests for the other coops, to keep the bees from moving next door!
The circle of life continues, as spring and summer approach, and I hope you all enjoy the warm weather to come.
All is well at Mountain Meadows this bright, sunny day…….
