sorry

This post was edited by AndrewMonroe on Thu, Mar 28, 13 at 9:55

Which finches? House finches have been here all winter enjoying the sunflower seeds. I only put out bird seed in the winter.

sorry

This post was edited by AndrewMonroe on Thu, Mar 28, 13 at 9:50

Those are the goldfinches. They are beautiful birds! I usually only see them when my sunflowers are ripening and they are hanging all over the heads waiting for each seed to ripen up.

sorry

This post was edited by AndrewMonroe on Thu, Mar 28, 13 at 9:58

Andrew, I just planted the ornamental kind. Too small for people to worry about but suits them just fine. This year I am planting a long row of sunflowers with human-sized seed. I have no doubt they will be capable of eating those seeds and happy to raid my garden, but ask me next summer!

I hadn't thought about them eating zinnia seeds. I have a lot of open area where my landscape hasn't grown in and maybe I'll put in some zinnias for them.

Blooming:
Hellebores, Daffs, Crocus, Winter Jasmine, Winter Honeysuckle, Mahonia, Tulip Magnolia, Star Magnolia, Pansies.

One can't overlook the red and yellow berries of Nandinas and the red berries of Pyracantha and Holly shrubs/trees.

Birds at the self-closing feeders filled with BOSS (black oily sunflower seeds), at the suet and on the ground:

Cardinals, Goldfinches, House Finches, Wrens, Titmice, Carolina Chickadees, Pine Warblers, Mourning Doves, Downy WP, Red-bellied Woodpeckers, Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, Brown-headed Nuthatches, White-throated Sparrows, Chipping Sparrows, and one Mockingbird.

Red-bellied Woodpecker {{gwi:358141}}

Northern Mockingbird {{gwi:358142}}

American Goldfinch, male {{gwi:358143}}

One mockingbird - and it's northern? Well there goes the neighborhood! Maybe it's just a "snowbird"?

Seriously Doris, I couldn't help but notice your reference to the "red and yellow berries of Nandinas". I bought a N. "Yellow Berries" years ago at the Plant Odyssey here in B'ham and love it. It's rarely spoken of though, so your post got my attention.

I'm (im)patiently waiting for it to re-seed like it's red-berried cousin.

sorry

This post was edited by AndrewMonroe on Thu, Mar 28, 13 at 10:02

Andrew, I saw a female goldfinch this morning in Madison. They're still here but sneaky in their drab winter coats.

I think I saw one a couple of weeks ago, but didn't get enough of a look to be sure.

Erm, apparently this female went and called up all her friends, because I spent all morning with 20 goldfinches of various ages and sexes hammering the bird feeder.

One male was starting to molt into his summer coat already.

Nelson, I grew the Nandina domestica 'Leucocarpa' from seed.

Click on the thumbnail for a larger pic.

{{gwi:358145}}

Eastern Towhee, male {{gwi:358146}}

Eastern Towhee, female {{gwi:358147}}

terramadre, the picture of the Northern Mockingbird looks like the bird that makes bomber dives at my cat. A true cat pest and vice-a-verse for sure. They chirp rounds of sounds all night long. Always called them Catbirds. May not be the same-sure does look like it tho.

The finches will not only eat zinnia seeds but also Rudbeckia and Echinacea seeds - and no doubt many more I am not thinking of at the moment. I suspect they eat seeds of just about all daisy family members that are small enough for them.

The "Northern" mockingbird is the one that lives all over the United States and is the only one we have in Alabama. To us, they're just mockingbirds. There are other varieties, but they live in places like the Galapagos Islands and South America.

Catbirds are a lovely grey without the white breast and markings of the mockingbird. They also have a black cap and rust coloring under the tail. I love to hear them when I'm working in the garden (hence my gardenweb name). They don't have a set tune, but just sing a constantly varying flow of notes. The call, as distinguished from the song, sounds just like a cat meowing.

The mockingbirds and catbirds, along with brown thrashers, are mimids (birds that don't have their own songs and tend to mimic other birds or sounds). The mockingbird sings the same phrase 3 to 6 times, then moves on to another one. The thrasher sings the same phrase twice. The catbird doesn't repeat or break his song into distinct short phrases.

That 'Northern Snowbird' does not even like its own reflection. Perched on back of a rocker on the porch Tuesday, it took off and flew straight into the window. Was it trying to chase off his/her reflection or trying to romance the reflection (Valentines Days just around the corner)? If it was for affection , Cupid clobbered that love sick bird with a window pane. If it was to chase that reflection away.....that was one mean reflection and the Mockingbird has yet to returned to the rocker perch...... The St.Johnswort has leaves appearing. Magnolia liliflora is in full bloom , just in time for the next freeze. Fruit trees so far are remaining dormant. Preparing to move the Dahlias to a new location in April, sure hope the tubers overwintered.

Just coming up: crocus and daylilies and I thought I saw tulip foliage although that hardly seems possible

Greening up & growing: winter grasses, clover, vinca, dock, sorrel, garlic, spearmint, dichondra, creeping charlie, oxalis, wild lettuce

Getting ready to bloom: hazelnuts, star magnolia

Blooming: daffodils, quince, forsythia, dandelions, lenten rose, witchhazel, rosemary, candytuft, phlox, henbit, purple nettle, chickweed, bittercress

Getting loud and rowdy: all the birds and especially the crows, squirrels, and even the flying insects and spiders are starting to appear

alabamanicole, you make me dig through the Southern Living Garden Book looking to see what you have posted. Boy have I overlooked so much. Going to add crocus to my fall planting for next year. Have lots of garlic that my grandfather planted back in the 20s. Herbs, I am getting back into-slowly. Witchazel-- Loropetalum is looking better everyday...no blooms yet. Weeds like out the ya-zoo. If I ever learn to put pictures up( my children have tried) I want to post the Cedar, Tornado Bottle Tree that is growing here in the Chapel.

Ya, I forgot loropetalum. That's been blooming for about a month for me.

Most of the greens I posted were "weeds" but are quite edible if you like the whole spring greens thing.

May take on a couple of Hazelnuts if I can find them at a fair price. *Often wondered about the plant 'henbit'. *I stick to the common garden greens and veggies. *Have never planted peas. Beans yes, peas no.??? *Enjoy the input from so many different directions to help solve problems and make easier the FUN of gardening.

Henbit is an non-odiferous mint. It basically tastes like bland vegetable.

Some of our wild edibles are anything but bland, like dandelion (very bitter) or watercress (like horseradish).

Hazelnuts are not particularly productive in this area, or at least not like they are in the northeast. Still tasty, tho. I haven't seen any just plain hazelnuts for sale locally. You can buy Henry Lauder's Walking Stick, which is a contorted variety of hazelnut. Very cool looking, but rarely produces nuts and you need two varieties anyway for proper pollination.

Oikos Tree Crops has a good price on hazelnuts but the shipping adds a lot to the price.

I have the Walking Stick and thanks for the input.....no reason to look for the Hazelnuts if they are not going to be productive. Do you know of any miniature nut trees suitable for this area? 25-30 ft. tops.

You could try chinkapins or almonds.

Great...Never heard of the Chinkapin. Between the two, Chinkapin and Almond, the Chinkapin wins out, only because of the pest that attack the Almonds. IF I came across a couple of Almond trees locally, and the 'price is right' I would buy them, and hope for the best.

Chinkapin is a type of hickory.

Yeah, I wouldn't go for almonds either. Too high maintenance. If gardening space is a concern (when is it not?), the woods are full of hickories, pecans and walnuts.

The chinkapin I was referring to is Castanea pumila, Alleghany Chinkapin, a type of chestnut. Sorry I wasn't more clearn. There are a few other trees sometimes call chinkapin, but Castanea pumila is a native tree that gets to about 20' tall and makes dwarf chestnuts.

http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=capu9

At the moment space is not a big problem, but could if I plant trees that produce >juglone

Tulips are definitely coming up, as is my Sedum Stonecrop "Mr. GoodBud," and a few volunteer peas. My turnips and beets are sprouting up, too.

As of this morning, my whole front yard is suddenly blue with speedwell.

Turnips coming up is a pass due reminder for me to plant some. Collards too. Wish that I had divide the Sedum. The Brussels Sprouts still look like open leaf cabbages.

So nice to see the new 2013 seed packets in the stores. Never have I seen so many different varieties than at the local Home Depot. Picked up some beautiful sunflower seeds. Some new Dahlia tubers from Lowes and still preparing places for the spring rush. Trimmed what Crepes I have left and rooting more- -same with the roses. Sure has been a long wait for the Brussels Sprouts to put on....still waiting, but boy...the time is beginning to fly.

Radishes, lettuce, spinach... everything in the garden is coming up now although they are still tiny.

All of the tougher perennials, like aster, salvia, bee balm and hyssop, are coming up now, the maples and blueberries are budding and I saw a dogwood showing a hint of pink.

Yep, spring has sprung.

Clematis is up about an inch, Homestead Verbena is blooming, went down and took a look at the blueberries some are blooming others are dormant.

The Dogwoods that I have left (my tallest trees) will probably finish biting the dust this year, hope not.
Yeeeep......wishing my life away......come on spring!

..Prices....sky high...went by a nursery (off 459/Old Rocky Ridge Rd.)and a nursery on 280 Saturday .
..Seeds are still reasonable priced....just less seeds per pack.
.. Humus, cow manure , peat, fertilizer...etc. has gone up considerable at the BOX STORES.
.. Hope to get to Gadsden for their discount Plant Sale April 20th. The plant swap at Oak Mountain should be a huge success .Hope both has picture perfect weather.
.. All the Japanese Maples are putting out.....leaves. There is not another plant that can match the wonders and joy the Japanese Maple gives to me.
..One peach tree is blooming and the others will not be far behind.
** Looking for a used garden tiller.....I am beginning to need extra help , if anyone has one for sale. Rear tines, preferably. If I do not get one in the next couple of weeks- I will wait till fall and hopefully get a new one on sale. Never really carried for the tillers...they kill worms and pack the dirt, it seems.
..Planting a dozen more roses and more Japanese Maples, today.
..New USDA HARDINESS ZONE MAP is out..."I for sure" live in 8a now...who da thought it...Key West is moving our way, without the water.

This post was edited by bulzi on Wed, Mar 20, 13 at 8:35

Gardening, especially edible gardening, is trendy right now, so yeah, prices are high. They're also high because the growers are facing increasing costs in petrochemical inputs like fertilizers and treatments. All we can do is keep helping each other out and saving our seeds.

About half my wintersown containers are sprouting, and I'll throw a light remay over them Wednesday, as well as the lettuce. Still have kale and turnips from the fall, and snow peas are coming up. New growth on most everything, most perennials are returning - no sign yet of valerian, asclepias, or Joe Pye weed (I know that one's late, but not sure about the other two). The covering thing is getting old; I'm hoping temps get more reliably above 30 at night soon.

Drippy, the forecast next week for the Gadsden area shows several nights below freezing. Maybe you live in a warmer area but I am planning on keeping my stuff cobvered or indoors. This weekend I planted about 50 eggplant seeds, so that's a lot of stuff to keep indoors!

Yeah, I may have jumped the gun taking all potted plants outside. Thursday night looks scary. But exercise is good, right?

Blooming here, the good, the bad: Wisteria, redbud & tons of other trees, azaleas, Osmanthus fragrans, red & white clover, roadside Verbena, some Camellias still, Oxalis, Tradescantia fluminensis, spiderwort Tradescantia, creeping phlox, the later Daffs, lady Banks rose, vetch, chickweed, cleavers (Galium aparine,) Lamium & soooo many cute tiny lawn flowers, mustard ...

sorry

This post was edited by AndrewMonroe on Thu, Mar 28, 13 at 10:14

Hi Andrew, yep that's Opp. Rattlesnake rodeo was last weekend. Do you like that silly Joe Dirt movie? "Home is where you make it."

sorRy

This post was edited by AndrewMonroe on Thu, Mar 28, 13 at 10:16

Seedlings still covered; I even covered the rose bush, which has a lot of beautiful new growth. Grousing heavily about the weather; I wanna be outside! I am beginning to think the forum title, Alabama Gardening, is an oxymoron.

(I'll be alright in a few days...:))

sorry

This post was edited by AndrewMonroe on Thu, Mar 28, 13 at 10:20

I keep thinking of all those ladies who like to wear bright sunny dresses for Easter Sunday. It's not going to be quite the same this year, even if it is going to warm up a bit (and rain) for the weekend.

27F out there this morning, and we're well past the average last freeze date and nearing the average last frost date (next Tuesday). And yet it's been such a mild winter overall; I know I didn't drop below 20F here the entire season.

But spring marches on. Warm weather will get here eventually. I hope! The long term forecast suggests above normal temperatures for April, so I guess the NAO is heading back where it belongs.

Lavender stoechas budding, I think I see a few dianthus buds as well. Barn swallows are back, and lawn service showed up yesterday for the first shearing. I'm hopeful.

Brussels sprouts plants are huge and blooms have burst all over the tops.....NO SPROUTS yet.

False Almonds are looking good. Persian Shield got a freeze bite .

Hawk is finding his food around the bird feeders.The Doves are easy prey for him. Nature has its ugly side. Going to get me a slingshot to carry in my back pocket. Show that bird my side of nature.