Howdy Folks,
The past few
mornings have been quite humid, hot and still, so the fan in the barn had
whirred along, doing its best to move the heavy air. While Kessy's fan is great
for that, its steady whir tends to drown out the bird song, and since this
morning's air was bit lighter I switched it off. On my way to the barn I'd
heard a Mockingbird singing variations of at least half a dozen song-bird-solos
and wanted to listen to his entire show. So the fan needed a break.
As I puttered
around doing my morning's this-and-thats, tending to the chickens, Saturday and
Kessy the Mockingbird's soliloquy floated deftly on the air accompanying me.
Others joined in too. For the first morning in a while I heard a Scarlet Tanager,
he was some distance in the woods, but his notes filled the tree tops. Mr Wren
darted here and there chirping his delightfully busy chatter, and several
Phoebes called their names as if to make certain they were recognized as part
of the ensemble. A special treat was Mr. Bluebird's solo from somewhere high in
the big Oak.
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| Kessy, Saturday, Miss Kitty, Tigger and me |
Settled in my
chair next to Kessy it was delightful to take in all the birdsong, and Kessy's
slow, sleepy, hay munching. Other birds joined in as Saturday, Tigger and Miss
Kitty reclined with me. The squeaking of Chipping Sparrows, trilling of a Robin
and even the call of a passing Crow filled out the bill. Then as if by request,
the air rumbled gently with the low vibrations of a distant train. And then the
whistle blew.
I tipped my hat
to the Creator, gave thanks for the splendor of it all, and decided to stroll
about before heading in for my morning ration of boiled oatmeal. Ravishin'
Robbie had spent last afternoon and evening touching up her gardens and
everything looks lovely. First stop the wild looking patch next to Kessy's
bedroom just bursting with color from Brown Eyed Susans, Lilies and Daisies. A
brief pause at the back porch steps to say good morning to Mrs. Phoebe who
settled on our porch light as the most perfect spot for her second nest of the
summer. Any day now tiny peeps will be peering over the nest edge.
Saturday, Miss
Kitty and Tigger trailed along single file as I moseyed to our campfire area
where Robbie has 2 tranquil shade gardens. I must admit to not knowing all the
plant varieties there, but the border of Coleus is brilliantly red and orange.
Off we trekked to
the front of the house where Robbie's vegetable garden fence is sporting the
greenery and brilliant reds of Cardinal Climber. If you've never planted this
delightful climbing plant, do yourself, and your Hummingbirds a favor, and
plant some, the flowers are tiny cups of velvet red. The interior of the
vegetable garden is looking great too, but I'm a flower kind of guy, and since
this year Robbie decided to forgo the Marigold boarders, well it's boring to
me.
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| Robbie's Herb Garden |
Her Kitchen herb
bed is jam-packed with all sorts of hearty, happy herbs, many of them blooming
now too. Hummingbirds and butterflies love this garden and so many were there it looked like a convention! The Clary Sage has a
lovely light blue flower and the Yellow Swallowtails were loving it. I checked the Blue Bird nest there and it looks like
they are starting their next nest, too!
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| Robbie's Flower Jungle |
I lead our little
troupe to the big flower jungle next. This is a big bed where 7 summers ago we
had planted full of Zinnias and Cosmos. It was our first flower bed when we
moved here. Each summer plants reseed themselves in it, and it's been expanding
annually. The flowers are so thick it never requires weeding! This morning the
Larkspur was in charge creating a dense bouquet of sky blue. The Cosmos are just
beginning to open, and the Zinnias too, adding just the right touch of red,
yellow and orange.
Thanks for
joining the Coffee Clutch family on our morning tour. Hope you had fun!
Gitty Up ~ Dutch
Henry
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