Jeanne, O how bittersweet! I'm sure it was hard to finally do away with that well established tree. (Have you ever read the childrens story "The Giving Tree"?) ...I love the sliced tree trunk for stepping slices! You know once I saw a table top made with tree slices and it looked all so wonderful! ..I LOVE the pergola! It's absolutely perfect there in that angle! Seriously, you should send your story and photos to Birds and Blooms magazine. It looks like something they would put in it! With all the other bushes, trees, plants that you have planted it will be even more gorgeous in the spring. I'm sure that goldfinch was asking himself, " I know there WAS a tree here. Now, where did it go? Well, this feeder and this other thing here seem really nice too. Was I talking about something else? MMMMmm! Seed is so good when it's cold! " Planting bushes close to the feeder will give thos ebirds cover from the hawks and such....Can;t wait too fro your spring photos! Thanks so much for sharing! Love, Jules

I, too, read about the black sunflower seed's shells being allelopathic and inhibiting the growth and health of plants surrounded by them. After years of considering the shells to be good mulch, I got out there and raked most of them out and moved the feeders. I was amazed to see the difference in that bed in the next season - better growth, bloom and general green-ness on the mock-orange shrub, the hostas and the spring perennials. I'd tend to side with not hanging a bird feeder over a planted bed full of things I love (not a feeder filled with black sunflower seed anyway!)

sara_in_philly - I read your other post on this forum. After observing this beautiful creature over these past two days, I can see why people are drawn to their beauty. I hope you will get some hummingbirds in your area very soon! I spent some time over at my MIL's home this afternoon and observed this hummer some more. After reading the site about Anna's and Red Throated, I am not sure it is either one of those. I looked for any signs of white on the wings or tail and found none. Her neck and chest is mostly white with a few specks of brown and one larger spot of brown in the middle of her chest. When she stretched up to groom her body, I noticed a very pale orange (rust) color on her body next to her wings. The top of her body is a shiny emerald green. Another hummer came near her and hovered around for several seconds, went away and came back a few more times. He or she had some pale orange/rust on his or her body...a little closer to the base of the tail rather than the actual body. I don't know if this visiting hummer was the same specie or not. This visitor had green on it's back, but did not have any color on it's throat other than white.

Here is a video of an olde guy in England and his Collared Doves. You can easily see the squared-off tails with all the white on them. For me, that's a good identifier for these birds. He has some things to say about them but I can't hear well enuf to know what it is. Just a guy and his bird friends . . . Now about the birds this olde guy has seen in his garden! I was out in the dahlias Saturday and frightened a Mountain Plover out of them! This garden is probably a mile from open water (unless you count some swimming pools ;o). It certainly isn't out in the open. There are not only houses and other buildings around but quite a few trees. I've never seen a plover in my gardens! Kildeer but not shorebirds. . . Aaannd! There is a family of hawks near this garden! Not too unusual but this is quite an urban setting and I can't identify the species. I've always thought of the most-likely hawks to be seen as being Sharp-shinned but these guys are smaller. Not as small as Merlins and with an Accipiter look to them . . . so, I'm kind of at a loss . . . (noisy critters, too :o)! Steve Here is a link that might be useful: A few facts about wild Doves,(Streptopelia Decaocto) UK