If You Hang It They Will Come

I am so excited. No, I have not shot all the Tulip
eating deers. I have some new visitors in the garden.
I use to see all the pictures from fellow gardeners of
their beautiful Blue birds and we had not a one in our
yard. I wanted them here so much because their coloring
just fascinated me.
So last Fall I put up a Blue bird house hoping to draw some
into the yard. I did not have high hopes of succeeding since
there were none around but I will try anything once.

I looked out the window one day to see if any birds were
going in or out of the birdhouse figuring that some kind
probably would move in but not the Blue birds I was hoping
for. I saw a couple of birds going in and out and decided to get
a closer look to see what they were.
I could not believe my eyes when low and behold I saw bright
blue and orange feathers. I was so happy. Naturally I had to
run back into the house and grab the camera.
They were a little shy so I got a few far off shots of them.
I am hoping that when they get use to seeing me out in the
gardens they will not be so leery of me and I can get better
pictures of them.
Since they are now here I may have to get some more Blue
bird houses to draw in more of the beauties.

One new visitor that I am not excited about is the Brown headed
Cow birds. These were new to me and I had to look them up to
see just what they were.
When I first saw them at the feeder I wasn't paying them
much attention thinking it was those old pesky Grackles,
but upon closer examination I spotted the brown head on the
male and he was paying court to a brown female bird and
I knew it was an all together different bird.
Finding out that they were song birds was fine but when I read
they are a parasite bird that steals the nests of other birds I
was not as happy to have another new bird in the yard.
Upon reading that they forage on the ground around cows and
horses and once followed bison on the great plains I was hoping
they would move on down the road to the farm areas.
Once where I had spotted just the two has turned in to half a
dozen or more.
They are a pretty bird but I hate to think about them rooting
out my Cardinals or Robins to get their nests.

Dang Varmints

#!@#!@# those cute deers. They came into the
yard and ate off about fifty of my new tulips that
were planted in a new bed along the woods that
I worked up last Fall. Makes me so mad.
I have Tulips in my other beds and they never
bothered them before so I thought they would leave these
alone too. Not! That is what I get for thinking.





These are not the guilty varmints that ate my the
Tulips but a deer is a deer. Or is it? These pictures
were given to me by a relative and they are not to clear.
They are copies and it was a cloudy day.
Notice anything strange about the one doe?
She looks like a very skinny-necked cow that
is all spotted. I tried to get pictures of her for
about the four years that she was around here
but could never get close enough.
She is not all albino but she sure looks strange.
She was around the area for four years and always
had twin babies every year and none of them got the
messed up genes that she had.
Last Fall a local hunter shot her during deer
hunting season and everyone here in the area
was really ticked off at him.
I am a country girl and believe in keeping the
populations thinned down and use to hunt so
we were not aggravated that he shot a deer but
we kind of liked having her around to watch over
the years.
Some eww and ahh when they see deers but they can
cause a lot of damage here in the farm lands.
My parents had to put a electric fence around their
garden to keep them from eating everything.
I sure do not want them eating my flowers no
matter how cute the little fawns may be.
So I may have to make up an old lady scarecrow
to put by the bed with some deer be gone on her.
Does anyone know of a good spray?





I have seen pictures of deers that were all white but I
have not saw any marked like she was.





The Forsythia bushes are blooming now. They
really brighten up the scenery. These were by an
old rambled house that I passed while out taking
a ride around the country side to see what was in
bloom. While I was in the city this week so many trees
were in bloom but out in the country there is not much
happening yet. The heat from buildings in the city
must cause everything to bloom sooner.



We have had one snow since the Forsythia starting
blooming so we are due two more.
We are suppose to have colder weather coming in
the first of the week with snow showers so we will
see if the old saying "Three more snows after the Forsythia
blooms" comes to pass.
I can live with the old saying being completely wrong
and forget all about more snow. Would not hurt my
feelings at all.

Squawking Squirrels

What a racket those squirrels were making down in the woods
yesterday. They got my attention and I wondered what they were
up to. I had been trying to get a close picture of the two that
have been playing around near the house for quite a while
but not having a powerful enough lens keeps me from getting a
close up of them. They're very wild here in the hills and not tame
like their cousins the city squirrels so getting close to them
is out of the question. I just do not sneak as well as I did in my
younger years when I hunted with my cousins and grandpa.
Anyway hearing their squawking I grabbed up the camera to see if I
could see what had them fussing so and hoping again to get a picture.

I spotted them easily because of the lack of leaves and
by then they had become as silent as church mice.
This one was sitting so still and watching the ground.




The other squirrel was also still as if it had gotten frozen
while going up the tree limb.
They both did not move at all. As I watched them the
reason for their squawking and frozen condition came
walking out of the under brush.

One of the feral cats came slinking out.
They watched him move off up into the yard
and then they both took off through the trees.

The Talk of the Day

Peekaboo! I am hiding. I don't think he can see me.



You go first I'll keep watch.

You'd like that old girl. He's still there.

Storm Clouds Rolling In

Wednesday evening after a beautiful day in the upper
sixties, we had a storm roll in with high winds.
So soon after our previous Ice storm it brought down
those additional trees and limbs that were damaged by
the weight of the ice.
Without electricity and phones once again I started watching
the wind blow in the storm clouds and rain. It was fascinating
watching the different cloud shapes and colors.
Some looked menacing and others like dirty cotton candy,
but all were beautiful in their own way.





Dirty brown clouds started coming in towards my home.
They looked very intimidating and foreboding.





On the other side of the hill dark skies foretold what was
in store for us, but at the same time the sun was shining
under the clouds and lighting the tops of the bare tree tops
giving a sense of hope amid the storm.





After the dirty brown clouds rolled through there came
clouds of cotton candy or cotton ball shaped clouds.

And at last they past over and blue skies lay behind
them.

Note: After posting this article I noticed it was Friday the 13th.
I am not superstitious and the storm clouds posting is not in
anyway whatsoever to do with the day or date. ; )

I Don't Even Know Your Name

I had a new visitor to the bird feeder this morning
and I do not know what kind of bird it is or its name.
Looking through my usual research information did
not reveal the identity either.
Does anyone know who this beauty is that paid a
visit to my Ohio backyard?










UPDATE!!!

Thanks to all of you : Jan, Barbara, Richard &Kim
who were able to help me with the
identification of my new bird.
An Female Eastern Towhee!!
The females are brown on the back, while the males are black.

That means I have a pair staying around the backyard.
I did spot a male and was able to get a picture and
find the identity of it and write a post about the Male Eastern Towhee.

Thanks Everyone for educating me!



Male Eastern Towhee

Ash Cave's Ice Column

This is a picture that was taken last Autumn of Ash Cave in
the Hocking Hill's State Park area.
To get a prospective on just how large the cave area is
look at the steps in the picture. This is just one corner
of the rock overhang. It was very dry at the time so
there was no water in the bowl or creek area at the bottom
of the picture. Water and rain usually runs over the top
of the rocks at the split and collects in the bowl.
It is not a falls but just overflows when it is wet.



This is what it looks like now. In the Winter the dripping
water freezes and forms a massive ice column.





I estimated that the ice column was over forty feet high.







The column continues to grow as the water falls.

Blotanical Withdraw Symptoms

Where O' Where are you? Where have you Gone!

Are we experiencing technical difficulties?

Is my computer net working system on the blink?

Somebody's got to do something!!

I have not been able to get onto Blotanical for two day's now
and as bad as it may sound I do believe I am going into Blotanical
withdraw mode.




What is Blotanical you may or may not ask.
Founded by Stuart Robinson of "Gardening Tips 'n Ideas" from
western Australia.
It is a community and networking site where gardeners interact with
other gardeners from all over the world and put their gardens up for all to see.
It is the place where gardeners and garden bloggers go to interact and share
their experiences, knowledge, triumphs and even failures with other
garden enthusiast's. You do not have to be a blogger or even have a garden
to enjoy Blotanical. If you love flowers and nature or wish you had a garden,
then Blotanical will bring you all of this and photographs from every corner of
our world.
I joined in July of 2008 and since that time have been able to learn so
much from fellow gardeners who have shared their knowledge and friendship.
I have been able to see and learn about flowers and plants from all over the
world. I tried finding garden bloggers by search engines but few showed
up. Then I happened across a reference to Blotanical from an Ohio garden
blog and decided to join. I found it all and more on one site and did not
have to bog down my favorites feature with listings of blogs.
It is where the joy and peace that gardening brings is shared with
others and those who are addicted to plants get their fix.
AND I need my fix!
Hey, it is winter, cold, dreary, and snowing and the seeds have
been sowed to germinate for spring plantings.
What's a gardener to do?



What is going on in the gardens of all of my fellow gardeners from the states?
Is it still 108 degrees in Australia and are their gardens drying up and dying?
How is the winter sowing and seed starting going?
What are the Mediterranean or Desert gardeners doing?
Is Canadian, Swedish and German gardeners still snowed under?
What is happening to gardening in England, Wales and Scotland.
Who knew petunias were growing in Egypt.
Are there new plants blooming in India, Portugal, Sudan, South Africa,
France, Italy, Cyprus, Japan, Indonesia,and Malaysia.
There has to be pictures of flowers from China, Taiwan, Brunei, Thailand,
or the Philippines.

Hey, what is happening down on the Farm?

Now you see my dilemma. Now to find out what the problem might
be that is causing Blotanical not to appear on my web server.
Somebody's got to do something!

Feisty, Raucous Blue Jay

This large, beautiful Blue Jay was in an old Oak tree that is in the
back yard. It is probably searching for some acorns that may be
found lying on the ground. It will look in vain because we had
very few acorns here in the Fall. I read a report that there were
in fact very few acorns in all of Ohio this season.
What there were would have been taken long ago by the
squirrels to be horded for the Winter. It will have to make do
with the sunflower seeds from the bird feeder. The Jay's swoop
in and the smaller birds take flight.
Sometimes I throw out stale bread which I tear up in pieces
for what ever may be hungry from the possums, raccoons or
the birds. The Blue Jay's and the Crow's try to out do each other
in who can get to the pieces first. The Blue Jay will stuff pieces
in its cheeks and take another piece in its beak for good measure
before it takes off.





Blue Jays are called "raiders" and have a very aggressive nature.
The bird has a variety of raucous calls and songs which often serve
as alarms for other birds when a hawk or cat or some other predator
is in the area. They have a variety of calls and can even mimic other
birds.

The Blue Jay measures 9-12 inches.
There is a pronounced crest on the head, a crown of feathers, which
may be raised or lowered may be fully raised. When frightened, the
crest bristles.

Its plumage is bright blue to mid-blue in the crest, back,wings, and
tail, and its face is white. The underside is off-white or
grayish and the neck is collared with black which extends to
the sides of the head. The wing and tail are strongly barred with
black, sky-blue and white. The bill,legs, and eyes are all black.
Males and females are nearly identical; males are slightly larger.




Some Cool Facts:


Blue Jays can make a large variety of sounds.
They may learn to mimic human speech.
Their alarm call, which is a loud, almost gull-like scream.
There is also a high-pitched jayer-jayer call that increases
in speed as the bird becomes more agitated. Blue
Jays will use these calls to band together to mob
potential predator such as hawks and drive them away
from the jays' nests.

Blue jays are very aggressive and noisy birds,driving
other birds away from food sources and their territories.
In the winter, Blue jays hide far more food than they
can eat.

Blue jays will actively defend their nests against predators.
Both parents will attack and chase hawks, raccoons, cats,
snakes, squirrels, and even humans away from their nests.

Blue Jays have strong black bills used for cracking nuts,
and acorns and for eating corn, grains and seeds, although
they also eat insects such as beetles, grasshoppers, and
caterpillars.

Many people dislike the Blue Jay because it is known
to eat the eggs and nestling's of other birds.
Most of the diet was composed of insects and nuts.

There are no direct negative effects of Blue Jays on humans,
although they may act as a reservoir for West Nile virus.

Sassy Tufted Titmouse

The Tufted Titmouse is so sassy.
When I go out and fill the bird feeders they will set on a branch
and chirp away at me.They almost sound as though they are
sassing at me to hurry up and move out of the way.

The males and females look alike.

Cool Facts

• Beginning in the 1940s, the Tufted Titmouse began
  expanding its range northward. Previous to that it was
  found only as far north as Iowa, Ohio, southern Pennsylvania,
  and New Jersey.
  
  Explanations offered for the expansion include global
  warming, the maturation of abandoned farmlands to forest,
  and increased number of winter bird feeders.
  
  
• The Black-crested Titmouse of Texas and Mexico has at
  times been considered just a form of the Tufted Titmouse.
  The two species hybridize where they meet, but the hybrid
  zone is narrow and stable over time. They differ slightly in the
  quality of their calls, and show genetic differences as well.
  
  
• Unlike many chickadees, Tufted Titmouse pairs do not join
  larger flocks outside of the breeding season. Instead, most
  remain on the territory as a pair. Frequently one of their
  young from that year remains with them, and occasionally
  other juveniles from other places will join them.
  Rarely a young titmouse remains with its parents into the
  breeding season and will help them raise the next year's brood.
  
  
  
  

Specks of Red in the Woods

I am so thankful for our Northern Cardinals.
Is it any wonder that it is Ohio's state Bird?
Well all right it is six other states State Bird also,
but come on the male Cardinal with his bright feathers
adds splashes of red to the woods and gardens.
It is especially welcome on the dreary, cold days of
winter.




On snowy days they are like red flowers amongst
the branches of white.




It is one of our most common birds, and a species that
everyone is familiar with.

The females are mixed with a duller red and

brown mixed into their feathers.





Northern Cardinals sing throughout the year their
cheery songs. This is one of the few species in which
the females can and do sing on occasion.

The male birds are more colorful and can sing!
Somehow that is just not fair at all.





Female Cardinal





Male Cardinal