OK, now. I am ready to start, and would like to know what you do. Connie, I have your Hartwood program. The rest of you, what do you do? This spring has been a bad spring. We are coming off of a 3 week steady rain, and I am overwhelmed with work, but if I don't make some cuttings soon, it might be too late. I have over 200 bushes, and they are mainly teas and chinas. I'd like to know if you use a shortcut or what you do. At the top of my pile of papers I see Hartwood Roses, and that looks like a good start. The guy from ARE used a plastic bag method that someone said never worked. Sammy

Today = 18 days since 1st 3 baby bluebirds hatched in my frontyard birdhouse and 17 days since the other 2 baby bluebirds hatched. We had a rainstorm late yesterday, so I thought the babies would not come out until this morning. Fortunately, it was a "normal" rainstorm without all the high winds we've had in the last couple of months. I got up very early this morning and I think there is only 1 left in the box. I hear his lonely little sad chirping and have seen the dad bluebird 5 times since 7:00 a.m. come to this one. They could have come more times, but this is all I have seen. The next to last time the dad bluebird just popped his head in the box and did not feed the baby, or I didn't see anything in his mouth to feed as he went in, but the baby quieted down for a while. The last time, he did feed the baby and checked in on him 3 times, and "bonked" his reflection in my window 3 times. He doesn't see me as the room is dark and he sees only the reflection of what is outside. I saw 1 in the backyard kid's playhouse and this one was soaking wet. It could have been that he just got wet from the heavy dew we have here today. The babies seem to love the little shed and kid's playhouse we have because they are also made of the cedar that their house is made of. My husband said that they probably think they are in a giant birdhouse - lol. I hear at least 1 in the tall trees in the woods in back of our house making the same little sounds asking to be fed. I so much wanted to see them fledge this time, but I guess I missed it again. The only thing I can hope is that I can sit where I am in the bedroom window where I have a direct view of the birdhouse opening and hope that this last one fledges today or tomorrow. I'm really not sure he'll be ready to leave until tomorrow, so I've got a long wait in store, especially since I have to be getting ready for my son's wedding.

Donna, glad your dad is OK. OK, here is my vote..... they are fine! In MOST fledgings I don't see babies for a week. Now I do see the adults come in for a haul of mealies and take off farther than I can follow them even with binoculars but it is rare (in my case) for them to keep the babies close by for at least a week. On the first nesting (not in my box but in a street light that I could view) I watched papa blue take off to feed in one direction and momma in a totally different direction leading me to believe that they weren't together. That only lasted about one day till all four kids finally came to my yard. It does seem a little odd that you are seeing the adults take meal worms and perch rather than fly towards their fledglings BUT if I've learned anything in this bluebird thing it is to always expect the unexpected! Good luck and keep us posted!

Ohsoblue I will be pleasantly surprised if we get another nesting, but it could be in one of the neighbors yards, as they have all put up boxes, but I do not think they monitor very well. If they do come to our yard, I hope they choose the other box, as we have a camera in it. Mine are still coming back for meal worms, but the worms are just about gone and I doubt I will order more, unless I see a nest being built. It has been fun.