The botanical name is important because there are two Monardas generally available at garden centers and in online catalogues – both have been hybridized. Monarda didyma and Monarda fistulosa. Monarda didyma’s common name is Scarlet Bee Balm and this plant is the hummingbird magnet – it is always red. Monarda fistulosa is Wild Bergamot. It […]
If you were watching the bird feeder livestream this morning between 9:15 and about 9:30AM Central Time, you saw no birds, but you did see a large, beautifully furred, well taken care of gray cat sitting on the ground under the feeders. I was upstairs talking on the phone and happened to glance out the […]
A hummingbird magnet! Native to parts of the U.S. – generally our southern states. It has also been declared a noxious weed in some areas so consult your state’s website that deals with plants. If you are going to grow a Trumpet Vine, then you must take care of it by regularly pruning it and […]
If you have been watching the livestream, for the last few weeks, you know that here in central Illinois, we are still in a deep freeze. As I am typing this, I am looking across the room at the computer that runs livestream camera and I see by the weather report it is 9°F. And […]
This 12-minute film was sent to me by Trish R. from California. I have placed it in Essays and Poems because it is both. A beautiful essay with poetic elegance about one man in nature. Observing birds. This is a quote: “Immersed in the songs of blue jays, yellow-throated warblers, and red-shouldered hawks on his […]
Is it cold or what! No matter where people live – be it Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Kansas, North Carolina, Alabama, or even California – most people are cold the moment they step outside. Temperatures just about everywhere are colder than normal. We here in central Illinois always have about 5-7 nights of below 0 in January, […]
Light: Full sun. Soil and Water: Average garden soil, but it must be well-drained. They do not do as well in a rich soil because they will become leggy and then the stems will not be strong and straight – the plants will fall over/flop. They do grow better when mulched. After planting, water deeply […]
It has been bitter cold here in central Illinois. When I went out to check my small greenhouse this morning at 8AM, it was 7°F with a wind chill of -11. Wow. A typical January day out here in the Midwest. But the sun is shining, the sky is a brilliant blue and cloudless, so […]
Cleon encouraged me to write this blog. Normally we are private people. We enjoy sharing our birding experiences with all of you and I did share with you our ant-nests-in-the-bathroom-wall story, but we do not share our day to day lives or intimate details. Probably a generational thing. We are older and we feel differently […]