Friday, May 24, 2013

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Nature Projects

Flowers Following the Sun

by Noelle on May 23, 2013

There is one type of flower in my garden that I plant every year.  I can count many reasons for adding this flower to my garden, including its large flowers, the birds that come to perch on its stems enjoying the shade from the leaves, the pollinators it attracts to the garden and the shade it provides for my tomato plants.

But, I think the thing I like most about this flower is it turns it face to greet the sun as it rises in the east.  As the sun continues its journey throughout the day, the flower follows the sun’s movement.  At the end of the day, the flower faces west as it says goodbye to the sun as it sets.

Do you know what kind of flower this is?  You may have grown it in your own garden.

I bet you thought that sunflowers were only known for their delicious seeds.  How about planting some sunflowers in your summer garden and watching how their flowers follow the sun.

Sunflowers will brighten your garden, provide food for you and the birds and are very easy to grow – all for about $3 for a packet of seeds.  Learn more about how to grow your own sunflowers in the following Birds and Blooms article,  “Tips for Growing Sunflowers”.

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Mother’s Day: Last-Minute No-Cost Ideas

by Jill on May 11, 2013

There’s not much time left to plan for Mother’s Day, but what most moms really want is your time, not your money! Here are some ways to spend time with a mom this weekend while indulging her interests.

Bird-Loving Moms:

  • Offer to spend an hour or two giving her birdfeeders and birdbaths a thorough cleaning. Clean feeders mean healthy birds, but it can be a pain to get into all the nooks and crannies and get them really clean. Get cleaning tips from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology here.
  • Grab some binoculars and take her for a birding walk through a local park or botanical garden. Many places have barrier-free  nature trails, so even moms with mobility issues can enjoy the fun. Try this site to find birding hotspots in your area.
  • If you’re more comfortable with technology than your mom, help her learn to use internet birding sites or smartphone apps so she can identify the birds she sees. Some of our favorite sites include All About Birds and WhatBird.com.

Garden-Loving Moms:

  • Every gardener would love some help in their garden. Give your mom an hour or two with your hands in the dirt, accomplishing springtime chores. Build a raised bed, plant spring annuals, sow seeds for a vegetable garden, or just pull weeds – your mom will be grateful!
  • Visit a local botanical garden together to see gorgeous blooms. Many of these are free or have minimal entrance fees. Find a fairly comprehensive list of gardens and arboretums here.
  • Love photography? Get out in your mom’s garden and capture amazing shots of her springtime blooms. Download them to your mom’s computer and set them up as her wallpaper or screen saver.

How will you let your mom know your love her this weekend? Share with us in the comments!

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Pinterest Roundup: Mother’s Day DIY Projects

by Jill on May 8, 2013

Have you checked out our Pinterest boards yet? They’re a great source of ideas and projects for gardeners, bird-lovers, butterfly folks, and more!

Mother’s Day is just a few days away, but it’s not too late to get busy and make her something she’ll love! Or do one of these projects together with the mothers in your life, since nothing is more valuable to a mom than spending time with her family. Here are some of our favorite DIY projects from our Pinterest boards. Click the links or images to visit Pinterest and get more info about the item, or to pin them to your own boards.

Recycled Backyard

 Gifts for Gardeners

Hummingbird Haven

 Bird-Inspired Interiors

 Backyard Projects

Need more ideas? Click here to visit the Birds & Blooms Pinterest page for many more! 

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A House for a Garden Toad

by Noelle on 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 my mother’s Arizona garden.  He is a Sonoran Desert Toad, which is one of the largest toad species.  They are found throughout the Southwestern US.

Mr. Toad recently relocated from his previous residence, which was next to the chicken coop…

As you can see, he likes to spend time in muddy holes.  At times, he is completely buried and you can’t see him at all…

It is hard to see him, isn’t it?  One winter, years ago, I was digging a hole in my own garden when I got the shock of my life – I dug up a hibernating toad.   Needless to say, I quickly put him back in the hole and covered him back up.

In the twilight hours, toads will come out and start their search for insects.  In addition to eating flies, toads are also voracious eaters of mosquitos, slugs and beetles, which make them a very popular occupant of the garden.

Toads can live up to 10 – 20 years.

Although, toads are a help in the garden, eating damaging insects – you do need to be cautious around them.  Don’t touch them yourself or let your dog get near them.  Sonoran Desert Toads secrete a toxic substance on the surface of their skin, which enters through a dog’s mouth, eyes or nose.  The toxins can cause an irregular heartbeat, excess saliva and uneven gait.  In some cases, dogs can be killed.

Toads are a benefit to the garden and fun to watch as they come out during the warm season.  Learn how to attract these helpful amphibians to your garden by reading, “Attract Toads to Your Backyard”.

How about you?  Have you ever seen a toad in your garden?

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Fill a Suet Cage With Nesting Material

by Noelle on March 5, 2013

Spring is on its way and the birds are getting busy building nests in my garden.

Have you ever had the opportunity to see a bird’s nest up close?  It never ceases to amaze me how they create nests from different materials.

Every year, I like to help the birds that visit my garden by setting out  nesting material to help them build their nests with.

One of the easiest ways that I like to do this is to put it into a suet cage, which is an easy way to provide nesting material within easy reach of birds.

A suet cage us normally used to place suet in to feed birds.  But, they also make great containers for nesting material.  Suet cages are very inexpensive and are available in many places where bird seed is sold.

Fill the suet cage with different nesting materials and hang from a tree.

It is easy to find nesting material to set out and you probably most have many of these items already.

- bits of yarn, twine or string

-small twigs or pine needles

- grass clippings

- pet or human hair

- cotton batting

Make sure the nesting material is in small pieces that birds can easily pull from the suet cage and carry in their beaks.  Avoid using any material that has been treated with chemicals.

Put the suet cage up in a tree, shrub or hang from a pole where you can observe birds taking bits of nesting material for their nests.

What type of nesting material have you seen nests made out of?

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Mini Message Vases for Valentine’s Day

February 9, 2013

After my wearable vases project from earlier this week, I had a bunch of little brown bottles left over and decided to try doing something different with them. This second project idea is as easy as the first, and is a great gift for moms, grandmothers, teachers, friends, and co-workers this Valentine’s Day, since you [...]

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DIY For Valentine’s Day: Wearable Vases

February 6, 2013

Here’s an easy craft that’s a great gift for Valentine’s Day – wearable vase necklaces or brooches. Using small bottles, a few embellishments, and Water Gem water-absorbing vase fillers, you can create a unique piece of jewelry that the recipient can use to wear their favorite garden flowers every day!  What You Need: Small bottles [...]

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Holly Berry Wreath Ornament for Newlyweds

December 12, 2012

Back around Mother’s Day, I wrote a post about the Victorian “Language of Flowers”, and how you can use it to customize your floral gift-giving. Some of the most common blooms and plants associated with the holiday season can be found on the Language of Flowers lists, including poinsettias (“Be of Good Cheer”) and holly, [...]

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Last minute birdy gifts for kids and adults

December 10, 2012

This is a great gift for children or grandchildren: Birdsleuth Holiday Gift Kit. This fun and educational gift kit from Cornell Lab of Ornithology includes the following (basket and pine cones shown in picture not included): Two scavenger hunt cards; Kid’s Bird Log Journal; new Common Birds poster; Pocket Naturalist Guide; two bird bingo cards; [...]

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Candlelit Planter Project

December 5, 2012

If you live in a warmer climate, this planter project can be a great holiday gift for a fellow gardener in your life. Although poinsettias might seem like the logical choice, I wanted to accent blues and silvers instead, so I chose blue lobelia and white alyssum, and embellished the candleholders with blue and silver [...]

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Mini-Vase Holiday Tree Ornaments

December 1, 2012

One of the great advantages of living in Florida in December is that our gardens are still merrily blooming. I’m decorating for the holidays now, and I love to use pieces of nature wherever I can. This year, I devised these simple hanging mini-vase ornaments to hold live flowers (although you could of course put [...]

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Homegrown Evergreens: Coontie Wreath

November 28, 2012

Here in Central Florida, our native pines aren’t suitable for Christmas trees; most of our holiday trees get shipped in from further north. We have lots of interesting native pine species, some of which work very well for holiday decorations like wreaths and garlands. This year, though, I wanted to experiment with a different kind [...]

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Decorative Birds for Your Holiday Display

November 23, 2012

It is hard to believe that Thanksgiving is over and Christmas is on its way. I typically begin decorating my home for Christmas the weekend after Thanksgiving.  Each year, I like to add to my Christmas tree ornaments. This year, I found some great decorative birds that would look great on any Christmas tree or [...]

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