London, "John's Bird Restaurant" (my place) has 7 regular Blue Jays that visit daily with a variety of foods to choose from. My choice is to keep them around. Jenny's suggestion to use netting is called "Bird Block" that you can get at Home Depot; it should do the trick! (I use it on the top of potting mix in some containers to keep squirrells from digging). Since they will probably rturn, if you don't want them, use the netting and don't feed them other foods. If you want to keep both the Blue Jays ad the blueberries, use the netting and serve the birds dry cat food, bread, and/or raisins. In an experiement, I saw the Blue Jays went for the dry cat food, raisins, and bread - leaving the blueberries for the Gray Catbirds, Rufous Tohees, Mockingbirds, etc. Jenny, you always have such great info and pics! Thanks so much, although as you know it's impossible to respond to every thread we read and then keep up with all the responses. That would be a full time occupation. LOL. I went all out this spring for the 3 regular Ruby Throated Hummingbirds that have come around for the past 4 years. They are not shy of humans! After planting tons of red Salvia, Canna 'Red King Humbert'(and other Cannas),etc. - plus the nectar feeder I clean every 3 days - not a single humming bird showed up after all my "special efforts". I'm really disappointed.

I am trying to catch up on the last 2 day's posts so I will comment on both your posts. From the other one, I think that 1st seedling is exceptionally beautiful and I love big blooms. The gypsy cats are precious and I want to hug them all (even though some of them wouldn't like that...LOL). Of these, what's not to love? They are all wonderful. I am glad to see a picture of Jay Farquhar because mine has scapes but no blooms just yet. I got it last fall from Maryotts so this will be it's first season. Your photo is gorgeous. English Lavender and Willow Dean Smith are to die for!! What beauties they are. I also really love Red Slippers. I think that one is amazing. I just love it. Celeste

The hostas seem on track. Can hardly wait to receive my new hostababies plus the new heuchies. Now for the VACANT SPACE in the Neighbors Plot garden: I have, I think, selected the mini-rose to plant in the space vacated by the death of my little heather plant. I have done research and I think that Rainbow's End mini rose will go great with the colors of the adjacent Neon Flash (very pink!) dwarf spirea bush and the beautiful heuchie Marmalade. I think I'll be ordering it from Heirloom Roses on the west coast, as they have own-root plants vs. the grafted ones. My greatest concern is whether the mini-rose will get the dreaded blackspot. Here are the 3 plants. Do you think they go together? Heuchie Marmalade: Dwarf spirea Neon Flash: Mini-rose Rainbow's End:

I like cats....a lot. They are good companions but are entirely independent unlike dogs. I like dogs, don't get me wrong. But if I have to be away from home, I can leave them plenty of food and water and they are fine. Can't say the same for dogs. If we gave our dogs a lot of food, they would eat it all in one day and ultimately be very sick. Cats don't do that....or mine never have. I guess they are a reflection of me. I am an independent person, too, and I like that they don't demand attention constantly. Right now we have Wild Kitty and Lady George, both pregnant, Claude, Black Tom, Valerie (a misnamed male), and Zena (another misnamed male), who are the stray cats in the neighborhood. I really dislike people who move away, leaving their cats behind. But they do, and that's another story entirely. We all take care of them in one way or another. The two females are being fed well right now since they are expecting. Wild Kitty has lost most of her 1 or 2 kitten litters. Lady George is a new stray so we don't know how her delivery will go and whether her kittens will survive or not. What can you do? I can't see them suffer so I feed them. Last year a pack of 3 dogs came thru the neighborhood and grabbed a cat from across the street, and ran off with it in his mouth. There was nothing I could do. I screamed and yelled, but that did not deter the dog. It was a traumatic experience. We've not seen those dogs since, so don't know if Animal Control got them or not. The main dog was a Pit Bull, of course. My cats don't go outside; they are strictly indoor cats. I couldn't stand it if something got them so I take responsibility for having them as beloved pets.