A singing Veery caught in the middle of a trill. It was a thrill for this observer and you can learn more over at my garden blog. 

The Crabapple Orchard

A Veery Lovely Funky Orchard

Days before were bright

Buds and blooms so full of light

Now wet and faded

Hummingbird dancing

A line leading to his mate

Wings fold and open

Dawn ushers in song

As an orchestra tuning

Hundreds of notes float in air

Spring daily unfolds

My thoughts are with butterflies

Drops of endless rain

Birds in Review Part XXXI 'A Bird Parade' Thrilling Thrushes

The word thrilling is not exaggerated in relation to the thrushes I encounter here at Flower Hill Farm during each spring, summer and fall. With every new days beginning and later its ending, I go outside or stand by the doors and windows and listen for the songs of the Veery . . .  along with the trills of the Hermit and Wood Thrushes.  Their otherworldly songs reach up from deep within the forest and along its edges, filling the time around daybreak and twilight with enchanting allurement. 

Allow me to introduce one of our resident Hermit Thrushes (Catharus guttatus.) Listen to his song and let me know if you agree that it is truly beautiful. All About Birds describes it as ". . .  a melodious, fluty warble . . . " and I would add that it seems to capture the magical essence of a fluid, ethereal dream.

The young Hermit Thrushes have more tawny spots about their chests, where as the mature birds will sport darker black marks. This youngster is posing quite nicely, displaying his slight, white eyering and brownish head.

Hermit Thrushes overwinter in much of the United States and into Central America. Some choose to remain throughout the year in parts of Arizona, New Mexico, California and even as far north as Pennsylvania and Virginia. They dine on insects and spiders during the summer months, then during the winter they supplement their diet with small fruit.

What luck the Hermit Thrush finds something of interest in the Crabapple, affording a greater view of his brown back and reddish tail. It is not the fruit of the tree that holds his interest but most likely some insect within the leaves.

This stance with his tail held up, assures with certainty this fellow is indeed the beloved Hermit Thrush, for this is uniquely characteristic of their behavior. 

Earlier in the year I eyed this adult Hermit Thrush foraging for food . . . perhaps for the immature thrush in my first photographs, who would have been a wee nestling back then.

Notice the darker spots on this Adult Hermit Thrush, who finds the ground suitable for foraging, as well as the preferred placement for her nest.

Another ground foraging and ground nesting thrush that delights this listener, particularly at dawn and dusk, is the Veery (Catharus fuscescens.) Before I knew what the bird was, I thought his song was like a computerized melody or phrase vibrating and repeating itself. Have a listen to his unearthly song. The Veery is an orange-brown above . . .  the color of dried pine needles, with buff underparts dotted in fuzzy, rufous spots. Veerys  have less spots than both the Hermit and Wood Thrushes, which helps in identifying them. 

A Veery looks over at me from the northern edge of the Crabapple Orchard near a large White Pine. These birds share a common diet with the Hermit Thrush and Wood Thrush. I will add here that I have seen a Veery eating blueberries in July, so I would guess that all thrushes will eat fruit, if it is plentiful, anytime of the year. All three passerines choose different ranges for summer breeding and overwintering. The Veery may be sighted during migration by many from the eastern United States across the deep south and up into the midwestern states. Veerys breed along the Canadian border and the northern states with some choosing to raise their young as far south as Colorado in the west, while in the east a thin breeding line is drawn down into parts of Virginia, North Carolina and Tennessee. Veerys winter in Brazil . . . sounds like a good idea to me.

I do not have a photograph of the Wood Thrush (Hylocichla mustelina), for they choose to stay hidden deeper in the forest and rarely come out.  They look similar to the Hermit Thrush but are larger, browner (no red tail) and have more spots on their white underparts. I hear their unique calls and moving songs but never see them. Wood Thrushes are more on the decline due to Cowbird predation, acid rain and deforestation. They build their nests in a tree and may raise two broods during the summer breeding season all over the eastern half of the United States. They are off to Central America for the winter months. I urge you to go to visit the link to see a photograph, read more interesting facts  and listen to this birds incredible song - All About Birds .

Meanwhile . . . March is nearing its end with colder than normal temperatures, that are causing the White-tailed Deer and humans here to wonder . . .  when we will ever see spring?

Birds in Review Part XVI 'Living Bird Feeders'

I want to thank you all so much for your kind words of encouragement and for welcoming me into my third year of blogging. Your comments mean a great deal to me, are saved like precious jewels and will be treasured forever. 

 Continuing on with the 'Living Bird Feeder' theme . . . let me share two berry producing shrubs growing along the upper garden edge, that I now find may be included on Massachusetts 'Prohibited Plant List'. I am shattered to discover that my beloved mystery honeysuckle is thought to be 'Lonicera japonica' Japanese honeysuckle, which is considered invasive and noxious. Truthfully I did not know the possible identity until a few days ago, when I called the local USDA Natural Resources Conservation Services and sent the same photos, as shown here, in an email. I am confused about the biologist's identification, however, as Japanese honeysuckle is classified as a vine. My shrubs are not vines and have no vine tendencies. (The carpet of green beneath this hedgerow planting is unmistakably Bishops Weed!) I love the two honeysuckles and have spent time and money over the last two decades pruning them into graceful shapes. I never see other seedlings around the twenty-one acres I call home. Still . . . 

this lovely floriferous form seems to be prohibited in the state of Massachusetts. After more research I am convinced it must be Lonicera x bella (L. morrowii x L. tatarica.) I came to my conclusion from seeing images on two sites. You can check on this plant atlas site and this site , to see if you agree.  I love how the soft pink flowers add to the French Lilac blooms. Together they create a wall of beauty and fragrance. Alas, what am I to do? 

My resident wild honeybees will be very disappointed not to have the nectar-rich blossoms.

When I bought these plants I had no idea I was introducing an 'exotic' that would later be classified as noxious and invasive . . . then later still - Prohibited!

Birds will miss the luscious red berries. And here is the rift . . . for it is the birds, who spread the seeds across the landscape. This Honeysuckle does not spread by runners or suckers, it is only spread by the seeds cleverly hidden with the alluring berries. This is why growing native plants is so important, for birds will carry the seeds further afield and the non-natives can, and often do, overtake the natives. When these plants were purchased, over twenty years ago, I did not think enough about native plantings. There was not the awareness there is today. Well, I am sure there were many crusaders for natives but I was not aware of the importance then. Mostly, I did not know to ask or do the research.

This native Swamp Rose (Rosa palustris Marsh) survives under one of the large Rock Maples and offers lovely single fragrant flowers just outside the wild honeybee hive. They do delight in dancing within the soft pink corollas. I plan to dig up some of the suckers and begin creating a hedge along the edge of the south field. Birds also choose to build nests in the arching branches.

The rose hips are great treats to the birds . . . especially the Cardinals.

Cedar Waxwings love the berries of the Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana.) Snow damage keeps the growth of this native to only about ten feet . . . not allowing it to reach the possible 30 to 40 feet most stretch to. I have known it for many years growing happily in the blueberry field. There is a problem with allowing Eastern Red Cedar to grow here, however, for it is near my apple trees. This conifer is a host for cedar-apple rust, a fungal disease that can spread to the four apple trees just up the hill in the lower garden. It is often called a 'pioneer invader', for it may be one of the initial trees to sprout and repopulate recently cleared land.

 Deer enjoy chewing on the bark and Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers are often seen drilling.

Surrounding the Red Cedar, both wild High and Lowbush blueberries thrive. They were not planted by this gardener but by mother nature, once the environment was to their liking. For centuries wild blueberries have been important to North America, her indigenous peoples and later immigrants. Native Americans were known to call the berries "star berries" due to the perfect five pointed stars that form at the tip of the florets before they open into bells.

Native Highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum) grow in an open field along the eastern slope of Flower Hill Farm. Over a decade ago, I began a practice of clearing some of the field, that was really more third or fourth growth white pine forest back then. The blueberries began appearing soon after, so I took this successful trial and expanded on it. I now have nearly one hundred bushes growing below the lower garden. The dainty, dangling bells attract bees and the bushes are quite beautiful in the landscape, when abloom with flowers and berries, then later with their showy red and maroon fall colors.

The delicious fruit is highly prized by a diverse wildlife community, including many birds. I believe this is a Veery about to swallow an unripe berry. It is comical to see the excited anticipation of the birds here. They can hardly wait for the berries to ripen and often I see them eating even the immature green blueberries. 

A Rose-breasted Grosbeak is eyeing just the right berry to pick. I think he has his eye on me too!

Blueberries are also a favorite of Wild Turkeys. One sultry summer day, I joyfully watched as this flock of hens and young poults were leaping up into the bushes trying to peck off the berries. They had more luck with the ones that were not wearing nets. I do cover about six bushes, so that I might have some yummy berries to harvest too.

I wrote a guest post for the wonderful blog 'Wildlife Garden' about my process of cultivating this part of my land for wild blueberries and the wildlife, that would benefit from this kind of habitat. If you would like to learn more, you can visit by clicking on the link. You will find many inspiring and informative articles about wildlife gardens featured on this important blog.

Stands of Gray Birch ( Betula populifolia) grow in the southeast facing field, along with the blueberries and Eastern Red Cedar. All require a more acidic soil to flourish. 

Goldfinches particularly benefit from the plentiful, pendulous catkins later forming seeds. Insects are aplenty within the bark and later leafy canopies, making these stunning landscape trees terrific 'living bird feeders' for a variety of birds. 

My gardens are largely made up of 'exotic' or 'alien' plants growing happily along side natives. I will continue to add more native plants each year. In fact I believe I will only add natives from here on out. If I were just starting out, I might choose to plant mostly native plants. I will be certain in future to only purchase plants that I know to be non-invasive. I now buy most of my shrubs and perennials from a nursery that only grows natives . . . native to North America that is.

Now I must have the plants I fear are invasive verified and then decide what to do. Somehow the expression "Ignorance is Bliss!" rises to the surface. Then again I do not follow that way of thinking in any aspect of my life. My conscience must be my guide here.

I try very hard to correctly identify my shrubs and wildlife. Thank you in advance for any corrections that might be called for.