Appleseed, it is free wood chips, I convinced a tree company working in my neighborhood to dump a truckload in my driveway. I have started putting down black fabric underneath the wood chips around my fruit trees to keep down weeding. I also have some wood chips under the fabric in a 2 foot circle around the trees. I have learned to put down a light coat of the chips of an inch or so on top of the fabric or else the weeds just start growing on top of the fabric as the mulch deteriorates. Champs, this will be my 1st Goldrush crop but from what I have read, they should ripen in late October here in Atlanta. I experimented last year that Goldrush tree bending over the central leader with rope while it was still flexible (see enclosed picture). The tree was growing so fast in its 1st year, and I wanted to keep it at 8 feet max. I am not sure if that has helped produce the nice 2nd leaf crop. I got the idea from Bob 6z, a regular poster on the site. It seems to be working so far keeping the height in check.

I think you did the best thing, Chris, but I must comment regarding your mentioning that bluebirds are portrayed as timid and lacking in skills to defend their territory. In the past, bluebird territory differed from that of house wrens. As someone who has been a bluebird enthusiast and monitor for many years, I must say that wrens are no longer reading the manual and are not following the rules on where they are supposed to nest! Bluebirds can and do defend themselves and their nests (Dave, you need to repost your bluebird/hosp battle photos), but house wrens are the sneakiest of birds. They are quick and can be in and out of a nestbox in a matter of seconds. BlueBars can tell you of the battle between a bluebird and a house wren inside a nestbox and I'll simply say that the wren left minus some feathers. Unfortunately, even an incubating female bluebird must leave the nestbox occasionally and that is when the wren seems to appear. House sparrows are another thing entirely. They are non-native and are extremely aggressive towards not only bluebirds but towards all other native cavity nesters. A bluebird, tree swallow, chickadee or titmouse is simply not equipped to battle a house sparrow inside a nestbox. I have witnessed the result of such attacks too many times and hope it is something you never experience. Since man, in his great wisdom, brought house sparrows to America to "help", house sparrows have wreaked havoc not only on crops they were supposed to protect (from insects), but on native bird species as well. House sparrows do not need cavities (nestboxes) to nest in but studies show that if a house sparrow is allowed to fledge from a nestbox, it will look for one when it is time for it to breed. That is why it is so important for people to monitor nestboxes when they put them up. In all my years of monitoring bluebird trails, I must say that the word timid is not a word I would associate with this beautiful, brave, determined bird. You will come to see this for yourself if you monitor your nestbox closely and let them teach you about their battle to survive. I promise that your heart will be broken now and then--Mother Nature will have her way--but you will also come to know just how precious their lives are and why we all work so hard to protect them. Kathy

Hi Donna and Congrats on both your 1st-nesters staying and your 2nd nest underway! That's a real sweet photo. :) Our 3rd-nesters should fledge this week-end and we do have fledglings from both previous nests helping to feed them in the box. It's a real treat! If anyone would like to see this, we have posted a video of the whole family feeding the nestlings (see link below) Here is a link that might be useful: Family Feeding Nestlings - Video

Thanks for your kind words Donna, we're glad you enjoyed the slideshow. I can't encourage anyone enuf to take photos of their yardbirds. It adds a great additional pleasure to birdwatching, and helps us observe their beauty in ways we can't see with our eyes alone. We are amateur photographers, and our Canon S3 is a very mode$t point and shoot model which anyone could learn to use. Getting close to your birds is really the key. To do this, you need a camera with a fair bit of zoom. The S3 has a very good 12x zoom lens built-in, and we also add a 1.7x teleconverter for many shots. The S3 model has been superceded now by Canon's S5 (for about the same price). This might be a good choice, but I've seen a lot of really good sharp photos taken with a variety of similar low-cost cameras. Check dpreview.com for more info than you'll ever need to know about digital cameras of every kind and price. I hope this helps, and that you can get started photographing your birds soon. best luck, Kenn