I love the baby bats clinging to their mom's belly as they fly and nectar. And the amazing detail of the faces of the bees. And the music fits so well. I never get tired of seeing this film. In the speech the creator mentioned that these were "exerts from the film". I'd love to see the entire thing. Martha

Thanks, Penny. I guess it's just hard to imagine from my wintry location that there could actually be blooming flowers in a place as far north as Tennessee. If, as you say, the redbuds and buckeyes are blooming there, plus tree sap, and insects, and the occasional nectar feeder, I can see how they are subsisting. Looking at their northward advance from cold, still barren western PA, it just seems amazing. My concern wasn't so much that they couldn't stand the temperatures, (I know they can) just that it didn't seem to me that much would be in bloom before average high temperatures started to get into the 50's or 60's. On the other hand, when I think about it, Tennessee must be at least 2 and probably closer to 4 weeks ahead of us in their weather. When I think of where we will be by early to mid April, I realize that there will be quite a few more things in bloom like early azaleas, and some of the early flowering trees like plum, and the buckeye you spoke of that I have never actually seen around here. I knew about the ability of hummers (and caprimulgids like whippoorwills and nighthawks) to go into a torpor to wait out bad conditions, but it still amazes me that something as small as a hummingbird could be so tough and manage to find enough to eat in a landscape that still seems pretty cold and barren. I do realize that even tropical birds can stand surprisingly cold weather, as long as they have enough to eat. I guess the hummers are somehow managing to find it.

ali, what about putting an arbor in and growing a honeysuckle up it? From the edge and in from the driveway to the tree, I'd edge out the grass from that area and curve slightly to the end of the concrete pad in front of your home, the patio area. All the way to the end. Let's give you some curb appeal ;) Put the middle of the arbor in front of the edge of the concrete pad where the car is sitting, about 3 feet in. From the middle of the arbor to the drive and then going up your house, you could create a path that would curve over to the sidewalk and to the front door. For right now, using newspapers and a 5 gallon bucket filled with water, cover up all grass with layers of newspapers you've plunged into the water. Lay them down, overlapping as you go. I typically use about 10 layers of paper. The more, the better. If you can create your path first, either using stepping stones or gravel, lay down something like visqueen and lay the stepping stones or the gravel over to create the path. Remove the grass where the path will be so that nobody trips over stepping stones or gravel. Take out a V shape where you're going into the lawn from driveway to tree and up and over to the end of your home. Remove the dirt and the grass from the V, so that you've got a drop off of sorts and lay your wet newspaper to curve down into the area where the dirt is. Cover the area up with mulch or mushroom compost if you can get your hands on some, except for the path area. By next year, the newspaper will start to decompose and the grass will be dead, but it adds to the organic matter of newspaper and the dead grass. Worm heaven. From now and thru winter, study up on various perennials and possibly a few shrubs that produce berries for our other feathered friends. Next year, push back the mulch or mushroom compost and dig holes to plant. There should be enough room to the right of the path up to your front door, to add in a shrub. Then the other shrubs could go in front of the poles, under planted and going out to the edge with perennials. I prefer natives. They're adapted to our weather, our soil, they make up our ecosystem. Find a list of native plants for your area, and research those plants as to what hummingbirds like and also which ones make seed that other birds will like to eat on. The native plants won't require dead heading, don't need pruned or cut back so they look better....I just prefer them over all. Now an iris in there isn't going to hurt anything ;)...or a peony....both left by the previous owner that I decided to leave and a friend of mine from TN also gave me a beautiful iris that is sentimental to me. But again, those 2 are easy plants. Hummingbirds will love to sit and rest a spell on shrubs you provide and give you a closer look at their beauty. Too much?? Where do you live? Zone 5, but where? lovefornature, you're doing a wonderful job! It's people like you who join GW that make it an enjoyable site to visit. If you like butterflies and are interested in attracting some of them to come to your yard, you could plant a Aristolochia tomentosa or Aristolochia durior. Another plant I love that I don't know draws anything in, but blooms in late summer, is Clematis virginiana. Another neat native clematis is Clematis glaucophylla. I also answered the e-mail you sent, I hope you got it.

Well, all, I don't think it is the lack of rain, Kay County has had a bunch this July. One storm dumped just under 4 in. I think it might have been the dangerous weather here. 100mph winds. I don't have the woodpeckers this year either, the old maple tree, that they usually nest in, lost two big limbs, one last year, one a few weeks ago. Woodpeckers have used that tree for about 20 years. They must have known something we didn't. Buuuuut I did see a hummer in my Mimosa tree day before yesterday, made me so happy. First one this year. Also haven't seen many Cardinals either. Oh, the butterflies, have only seen white ones and have lots of flowers for both butterflies and hummers. Must tell everyone that the birdhouse that I got at the herb festival in Jenks, south of Tulsa,last year, had baby finches in it this year. Anyway, I think they were finches, tiny little dark colored birds. Very fussy parents while I was filling the finch feeder next to the birdhouse. So funny.