Posted on in Birds, Gardening, Landscaping

Helping Birds Through the Winter

mountain-chickadee_blkforestco_20100324_lah_1150The tiny bird fluffs its feathers against the cold, while the north wind whips sleet into the pine branches surrounding its perch. With all water sources frozen, it has to use precious body warmth to melt the snow it eats. Last year’s crop of seeds is buried under a layer of white. Wild birds are amazingly hardy creatures, but even the sturdiest Mountain Chickadee (above) finds conditions like these a challenge.

There are a number of ways we can make our yards more hospitable to wintering birds. They need food, water, and shelter to survive. With increased urbanization, all three of these are becoming more scarce, so our efforts may make the difference in whether or not a bird survives until spring.

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Posted on in Birds

Amazing Insect Images

You have to see these photographs.

I am very aware that there are hundreds, if not thousands, of emails making the rounds, not to mention blogs and other websites, all with cute or unbelievable photographs in them. This is not one of those.

Well-known photographer Igor Siwanowicz is in a class by himself. If I can manage to create photographs half as incredible as his are, I will consider myself an unbridled success.

The above link takes you to just 60 of his close-ups of insects and other small creatures. Each one is a work of art. Please take the time to look. You’ll be so glad you did.

Posted on in Gardening, Landscaping, Surviving Winter

Blooming Seedheads

seedhead_emeraldvalleyco_20090630_lah_5364xc4x6Some are ephemeral, shattered by the slightest breeze into a thousand tiny parachutes. Others hang on all winter, beautifying the garden like subdued flowers. At this time of year, with most flowers past their prime, seedheads come into their own.

When creating a landscape, designers usually consider shape and form, colors, texture, flowers and leaves. Rarely are seedheads part of the equation. But in a climate such as ours here in Colorado, many plants are dormant at least as long as they are in active growth. Their winter appearance matters.

Plants with persistent seedheads abound. Just as when we combine flowers of differing shapes and colors to produce a pleasing synergy, we need to consider the color, shape, and texture of seed heads.

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Posted on in Conservation, Nature

Don’t Feed the Animals!

rmnp-co_rmnp-co_lah_2124

The large sign was front and center, but no one seemed able to read it. The scenic turnout was crowded with retirees, young couples, and other tourists. Chipmunks scampered over the rocks, gorging on Fritos, sunflower seeds, and bits of doughnut. Clark’s Nutcrackers swooped down to nab the handouts before the rodents could grab them. There was even a bird perched hopefully on the sign. What do you mean, “Please, don’t feed the animals”?

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Posted on in Gardening, Landscaping, Seed Starting, Veggies

Plan Now for Spring Sanity

garden03-plan-lahAre you tired of gardening? We’ve had a longer-than- average growing season this year, and the weather is still warm enough to encourage flowers to bloom and pumpkins to turn orange. If your kitchen counter is piled high with zucchini, and you’re actually getting a tad tired of vine-ripened tomatoes, this is the perfect time to plan next year’s garden.

Most gardeners wait until spring to decide what to grow. This is a dangerous mistake. In spring, we’ve been staring at a brown and dead landscape for the past many months. Anything green seems like a miracle.

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Posted on in Landscaping, Plant Profiles

Quaking Aspen in the Landscape

populus-tremuloides-aspen-fall-color-gleneagle-area-18oct2005-lah-018Stands of bright gold aspen shimmering in the sunlight are a spectacular sight, so it is no surprise that many people plant aspen in their home landscapes. Sadly, aspen is probably not the best choice for local gardens. The same qualities that make aspen perfectly suited for colonizing mountainsides denuded by fire, rock slides and avalanches create problems in more constrained spaces.

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Posted on in Bird Profiles, Birding Trips, Birds, Hotspots

A Lewis and Clark Day

lewiss-woodpecker_turkeycreek-ftcarson-co_lah_0107For the first time in recent memory a flock of Lewis’s Woodpeckers has taken up residence near Colorado Springs.  Only 11 miles south of Colorado Springs, they are busy harvesting acorns in the picnic area at Fort Carson’s Turkey Creek Recreation Area. These uncommon (at least along the Front Range) woodpeckers are attracting every birder in town. A couple of friends and I made our migration at dawn two weeks ago, hauling binoculars, spotting scopes, and at least 50 pounds of camera gear. We weren’t disappointed.

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Posted on in Birds, Conservation, Media Reviews

Ghost Bird

ghost_bird_01-1This Friday, the Aiken Audubon Society and Bear Creek Nature Center will be airing “Ghost Bird.” If you live anywhere near Colorado Springs, Colorado, I highly urge you to come learn more about the elusive Ivory-billed Woodpecker, believed to be extinct since the 1940s. Does it still exist? Here’s what the movie’s creators have to say:

Ghost Bird wades into a murky swamp of belief and obsession in this cautionary tale about birders, ornithologists and the citizens of Brinkley, Arkansas who are certain they keep seeing a giant woodpecker that’s been extinct for over half a century.

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Posted on in Gardening, Landscaping

Gardeners, Start Your Bulbs!

crocus-blackforest-27mar2006-lah-001-cropThe first crocus of spring. Sunny yellow daffodils naturalized under trees. Beds full of crimson tulips—it all starts now.

After gardening all summer, it’s hard to add yet another chore to the pile of things to do this month, but planting bulbs should be near the top of the list. Getting them in early not only affords you the best selection at the garden center, but gives roots time to grow in still-warm soil, preventing frost heave and providing the best start to next spring’s bloom.

Pick a location that gets plenty of sunlight, particularly if you intend for your bulbs to come back year after year. Most bulb species bloom well the first year, but here in Colorado they tend to diminish with each successive growing season. Especially in the case of tulips, assume that you will need to replace them annually for the best display. Even other species will need ideal growing conditions if they are to increase in size and number.

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Posted on in Bird Profiles, Birds, Conservation

Starlings Not Welcome Here

european-starling_lincolncityor_20090922_lah_1634Birders in the U.S. are supposed to hate European Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris), and there are plenty of reasons to do so.

The species originated in Europe, North Africa, and western-to-central Asia. While mostly abundant there as well, the species has been red-listed in England after populations plummeted by more than 80% over the last 40 years [1]. Other northern European countries have witnessed a similar decline [2]. We can only wish that would happen here.

North American populations have exploded since their introduction in the early 1890s. According to the USDA, starlings cost our country $1.5 million in damage to agricultural crops, the consumption of feed intended for livestock, and in property damage. In one winter, a million starlings can down 27,500 tons of livestock feed, not to mention what is ruined by their accumulated droppings—and latest estimates put the US population at over 200 million birds.

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