Warblers are migrating
Cleon and I have been working in our gardens – starting to get them ready for winter. We are pulling up weeds, doing some selective deadheading, and mulching bare spots. We are careful how much we deadhead as some plants winter better intact. These are the plants we cut to the ground in spring. And we also keep in mind the many birds and small mammals that feed on the seeds of these plants all through the winter. So we leave the seedheads intact on all the coneflowers (Echinacea and Ratibida) and Black -eyed Susans (Rudbeckia). After working for a few hours, we like nothing better than to sit in our Adirondack chairs on the patio that is close to the lake and relax. And for the last few early evenings, we have been surrounded by warblers. These small flocks are Yellow-rumped and Palm Warblers. For me, there are just no words to describe the peaceful feeling I get after working outside in the gardens and then sitting – surrounded by a flock of softly ‘chipping’ birds. All foraging. All purposeful. All simply lovely.