Monday, May 20, 2013

Friday Fun Photo: Rocket Cardinal

April 19, 2013

                        Birds & Blooms’ Friday Fun Photo for April 19, 2013: Rocket Cardinal by R. Guennel of Gilbertsville, Kentucky. What a great catch, to photograph a cardinal mid-flight, from this angle. Do you have a clever caption for this streamlined songbird? Please share!

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Hooded Orioles, so stunning

April 18, 2013

This male Hooded Oriole is truly eye-candy! It’s bright orange body is offset by contrasting black mask, bib and tail plus black wings with two white wing bars. I think they are just stunning. Hooded Orioles are primarily a southwestern bird species. It’s range is from the Rio Grande Valley of Texas on the east, [...]

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The Little-Known Cucamelon

April 17, 2013

When we ran the article on underappreciated vegetables by Heather Ray in the April/May Issue (the article was called “You Say Tomato, I Say Tomatillo”) one veggie in particular got a lot of attention. It was the cucamelon! Though it’s more properly known as Mexican sour gherkin, we think cucamelon is much more fun to [...]

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Why Birds Matter – To Me

April 17, 2013

The most recent issue of Audubon Magazine posed the question “Why do birds matter?” The whole issue was devoted to answers to this question, provided by a diverse group of people ranging from author Jonathon Franzen to birding expert David Sibley, and plenty of folks in between. After reading the magazine, I spent a good deal [...]

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A House for a Garden Toad

April 16, 2013

Last week, I showed you a ‘house’ located next to a vegetable garden and asked you to guess who lived there with a few clues to help you along the way. Did any of you guess who lives in this ‘house’? This house is the current residence of “Mr. Toad”, who makes his home in [...]

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Nesting Eastern Phoebe

April 15, 2013

I spotted this Eastern Phoebe last week in front of one of the cabins where I was staying. I was surprised when this bird did not flush from the area as I walked by. So I stopped to check it out. Aha, I spotted a second Eastern Phoebe sitting on a nest. As I watched [...]

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Confederate Jasmine for Outside and In

April 13, 2013

This time of year, one wall of my house is responsible for perfuming the entire neighborhood. My Confederate Jasmine is in bloom, and the scent permeates the air, especially on hot sunny afternoons and into the night. What’s in a Name? Confederate Jasmine, sometimes called Star Jasmine, has a very confusing common name. First, it’s [...]

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Who Lives Here?

April 12, 2013

Can you tell who lives here in the garden? Here are a few clues… – The roof of their house is made up of an upside-down terra cotta pot saucer with mud heaped up on the sides. – It is located next to the vegetable garden where there are plenty of insects to be found. [...]

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You Don’t Say: Curious Puppy

April 12, 2013

In our June/July  issue, we feature this snapshot from Don McRae of Minnesota City, Minnesota, of his granddaughter’s puppy, Miley, investigating a butterfly. Do you have a clever caption for this picture? Share it below and you might see your caption and name printed in the August/September issue of Birds & Blooms!

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My Biggest Week To-Do List

April 11, 2013

In just a few short weeks, we are heading to the Biggest Week in American Birding in northwest Ohio. This will be my second time attending and now that I know the ropes, there are a few things I MUST do this year. So I’ve created a little to-do list for myself. 1. Attend a bird [...]

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Super-sized swallows: Purple Martins

April 11, 2013

Purple Martins are, indeed, members of the family of swallows and the largest swallow. And boy are they a purple, at least the males like the one in photo above are. They nest across much of the central and eastern and some western parts of the U.S. and a small section of Canada but spend [...]

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Achieving Balance with the Perfect Palette

April 10, 2013

Vibrant colors, novel neutrals and dynamic brights — nothing catches the eye like the beautiful variations of color that spring and summer planting has to offer. One of my favorite reference points for eye-catching colors is the annual Pantone® palette. Each year, Pantone predicts the year’s hottest colors for interior design, home décor and fashion. [...]

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Advanced Backyard Birding: Purple Martin Houses

April 10, 2013

Purple Martins have long co-existed with humans. As early as 1831, John James Audubon noted:  “Almost every country tavern has a martin box on the upper part of its sign-board; and I have observed that the handsomer the box, the better does the inn generally prove to be.” Being a Purple Martin landlord has many [...]

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