Hummingbirds @ Home

     I blogged about hummingbirds last year (check out Hummingbirds Are Coming ~April 2012). This year I’d like to add more involvement for myself to the experience & help out their survival at the same time. Check out the link below:

     Audubon is now helping the hummers by getting us involved at home. The project is called Hummingbirds @ Home. It is the first all-digital mobile citizen science network. The at-home website & app availability for smart phones will make it fun & easy to keep track of the hummingbirds you see. You will be collecting valuable data that helps Audubon in their efforts to protect them. I visited & (just go to Sign Up) signed on for this. It looks like it will be easy to navigate your info & check out info for your area. The initial photo is worth clicking on this link!

http://www.hummingbirdsathome.org/

     To get started all you need is a feeder & some sugar water. You can make your own by boiling water & mixing one part sugar to four parts water. Store what you don’t use in the fridge. No need to fill your feeder to the top at first. See how much they drink first. With the hot summer you need to clean & refill every few days. Hang your feeder at a window where you can really enjoy the antics! As for plants in your garden, I have had the most success attracting these gems with bee balm, coral bells, honeysuckle, trumpet vine & various other red flowers. They are attracted to the color red, but there is no need to color your sugar water. Be patient, they will come!

    So get your feeders ready & let the flying flower fun begin!

This video was filmed by my Teenage Tester a few years back. We were both standing inches from the feeder. They were so active that evening I knew it was time for her to get “up close & personal” with them. They are very territorial & feed one at a time here. In the video you can hear their soft, little squeeks.

   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EE4o5lqjKW4&feature=youtu.be

PS. I will be on holiday next week (woo hoo) & would love you to check out some of last year’s Spring garden blogs from Jan-April while I’m gone. The Mediterranean Heather is in stores now for you to buy – it’s wonderful. Cool weather Vegetables, Early Spring Flowering Trees & Flowering Ground Covers for Spring all discuss items you can find right now. Happy Spring planting!

L'Oreal Paris Colour Caresse Lip Shine Stain

    I don’t often blog about a single beauty product. (Unless it’s fantastic!!) And this product is! L’Oreal’s Colour Caress Shine Stain for lips is that wonderful a product and for only $7.97 (Walmart – before coupon!) a real steal. O Magazine calls it a triumph of technology. This water-based formula goes on so smooth & light. It feels moisturizing & isn’t super glossy. If you wait a minute you can layer more color on top of the first coat to intensify the color. I’ve never had such a great result doing this before but now you get more for your money because you are essentially get more colors for your single purchase. It stains your lips at the same time without leaving them dry later on. It now comes in 12 shades. It really has turned me away from ‘the tube’. I am forever hooked with this reasonably priced, fantastically glamorous feeling (& looking) lip color! I have been using Rose On & On but look forward to perhaps some coral shade for the Summer perhaps? Enjoy!!

Get Your Bird Feeders Ready!

    If you read my blog from February, Feed the Birds, Not the Squirrels!, you should be all baffled & ready to go for the Spring & Summer bird feeding season. Now is the time to clean the feeders & get them ready to go. I usually take advantage of a warmer day when I can drag out the hose & get some good water pressure going. I try to use as few cleaning products as possible. So begin with some water hose pressure to loosen up dried & caked on seed. Then, if necessary, use a little dish soap & a scrub brush for the stubborn stains. Your suet feeder can be trickier. I find there can be some mold there from the moist suet cakes. In that case, a little bleach in a bucket & a good soak is necessary. Then, rinse with soapy water & rinse, rinse, rinse. Last year I gave my suet feeder, which is sun shaped, a fresh coat of spray paint. Let it air out a few days of any remaining fumes & then load it up. Your hummingbird feeder should be ready to go from last year (because we always clean them before we pack them up!). If not, a little bleach in a bucket soak will work well here on mold, but be sure to rinse well. A bottle brush will keep the glass portion sparkling. If you have a thistle feeder or thistle sock, replace all the old food with new food. Goldfinches are very finicky about having fresh food. I use the socks because I find the feeders tough to clean. And get those clean birdbaths out & ready to go also! Not all birds come to feeders, but they all need a drink & a dip now & then!

    Keeping all your feeders clean will keep your birds healthy, happy & keep them coming back for more!

Gardener's Block

   We’ve all heard of writer’s block, but have you ever heard of gardener’s block? Well, readers, this is the year of gardener’s block for me. Mostly perpetrated by the inability to shake winter even though I’m a zone 7a-er! Yes, winter is hanging on tooth & nail or should I say snowflake & cold wind. Easter is usually the gateway to Spring but not this year. Again, tomorrow, it will be in the 40’s. So how does one get psyched to imagine their garden beds, containers, trellis plantings? Well, I did receive the Proven Winners Idea Book a couple weeks ago. (Again, a free book, just go to www.provenwinners.com/create ) It really is full of great new plants, lists of easy annuals, perennials & shrubs. Exciting color combinations too. So, yes, this is helping, but it is all I’ve read so far. For me, that’s pitiful. So hard to get inspired when it’s in the 30s every night. Yes, the lettuce is in the ground but barely… So knowing my readers are looking to me for ideas & a push is helping ~ but… So, this weekend order up this idea book if you haven’t already from my Proven Winners blog a few weeks ago. Then, get out pictures from last year if you have them. So close your eyes & in your mind, (and inside where it’s still warm) walk yourself around your property & jot some hopes & dreams down for this year. You may have one area that you’d like to focus on this year more than you ever have. Dream big! There are single annual plants that can get big & fill a container or bed easily. One plant – lower costs. I will be trying more of this in 2013, especially in my containers. As my block goes by the wayside as the warmer sun visits my yard, I will be sharing ideas with you to simplify your plantings this year. I may not have dreamed all my garden dreams yet this year but I do know I want to simplify ~ to keep with a theme for us busy women!