Who invited the deer?

I spotted this deer hanging out too close to the veggie garden for comfort. I think this is the one who ate all of peas last year.

First Daisy

June must be almost here. Despite the cold weather the first daisy is blooming:)

orange mystery plant

Anyone recognize this orange mystery plant? It must have seeded and grew on it's own. I thought it might be butterfly weed, but it looks a bit different.

I've never grown peanuts before, so I fell for this cute peanut guy sign. Should be fun to see how they do.

I'm trying Totally Tempted Cuphea in one of my window boxes. It has not enjoyed the wind and cold weather we have had here this spring. It is starting to look a bit better now. I hope the hummingbirds will enjoy it this summer.

More images from Oregon

Beautiful Oregon

I'm back from my brother's wedding in Oregon. It rains alot, but what a beautiful state. These were taken at the Columbia River Gorge.

Nice Day For A Walk

Despite all of things I needed to do today it was too nice of a day not to take a quick walk. I snapped some pictures along the way.

Busy Day

Since I am getting ready to head to Oregon for my brother's wedding, I decided to plant my seedlings. It is a bit on the cold side still and dry here. I think they will have a better chance in the ground than left alone in their little pots while I am gone. So I spent many hours yesterday and today planting and am posting some random pictures from the week.



The top picture is of the female oriole using the nesting material I put out. Last year the goldfinches used this material all the time for their nests. I bought it at Wild Birds Unlimited. The next is of one of the ducks who comes into my yard to eat bird food. The third is a dove. I'm not a huge dove lover, but I thought the close up was kind of cool. The last is my herb barrel. The chives come back every year and then I add various herbs to it.

Columbines, Apple Blossoms, Alliums and Lilacs

I've had bad luck with Columbines for some reason. This one lone plant has managed to come back from last year.

Our 3 small apple trees have alot more blossoms this year. I hope this means we will have alot of apples. My son counted over 40 blossoms.













Last year was the first year I planted Alliums and I loved them. In the fall I remembered my post from May 19th and planted tons. http://thehummingbirdgarden.blogspot.com/2007_05_01_archive.html
They are just starting to bloom now, so more pictures will follow shortly. Things are blooming a week or so later this year due to how cold it has been.

I also got the first lilac picture today. Lilacs do great here in Wisconsin. I love lilac season.

The End Of The Tulips

The tulips have put on a good show this year. Looks like their end is drawing near. The red ones are on their 3rd year blooming. Hopefully they will be back again next spring:)

Images from the Middle Of May

The trees are blooming, lots of birds and even a chipmunk. May has to be one of the best months of the year.

Mrs. Oriole is Making a Nest:)

I spotted Mrs. Oriole gathering nesting material yesterday. I'm hoping she is making her nest in one of the trees on the edge of our property. I've never seen an oriole nest before.

White-Crowned Sparrow

There are so many different kinds of birds migrating though here right now. The White-Crowned Sparrows have been here a couple of weeks. I've read they nest in Canada and Alaska, so I bet they won't be staying for long.

Red-Winged or Orange-Winged Blackbirds?

When my mother was visiting the other week from Vermont she noticed our red winged blackbirds around here actually had orange wings. Is it a color variation? A Wisconsin trait? The bird below looks like it has slightly more red in it's wings than the others. Anyone else have red-winged blackbirds that look more orange-winged?