MAKE A HAVEN FOR THE BIRDS

 Use your empty summer flower pots to make a haven for the birds this winter. . . and invite a child to help.


Collect pine boughs and other greens and insert them deep into the soil of the pot. If it is already frozen just add some hot water until it softens enough to insert the branches and it will freeze again to secure them tight. 

We were lucky enough to make use of a young holly tree that our neighbor had cut down in his yard and had thrown on our shared burn pile to set ablaze in the spring. We were actually quite sad that he cut the beautiful tree and made sure it went to good use . 

So it become part of our bird haven and we will decorate with loads of holly this season.

The haven is in the corner of our deck opposite one of the kitchen slider doors, where we will have constant viewing of our feathered friends while we gather in the kitchen.

Two cattail feeders were inserted into another pot next to the holly and filled with shelled peanuts. The birds love them and it's great energy source for the colder months. The feeders can also hold sunflower seeds. We bought them here. White pine boughs complete the pot offering birds cover and a place to land .

Our haven wasn't even complete and we already had visitors! Peanut lovers!

There was even a "sweet birdy" walking around the pot waiting for any fallen remains. 

We set this up for the ground feeders, filled with Safflour seeds, which squirrels do not like.

Another pot we just filled with greenery for now. The birds can hide in there.

We also used a cedar branch we had saved, 

inserted it deep into a five gallon bucket filled with soil. We covered it with rocks and added greens. We wired it to the deck rails to keep it upright and sturdy in heavy winds and concealed the wire with pine boughs.  And now it holds suet feeders.

It is another terrific spot for viewing and we have easy access to refill the feeders.

I am especially excited to relax in the kitchen with my coffee or tea while watching the various birds.

 The Bird Haven also makes for some great entertainment for others in our household.

See if you can set up a Bird haven at your house!




Below is some helpful information about the different bird seeds and who likes what:

- Black Oil Sunflower Seeds are a premium feed.  Most birds prefer them to the striped sunflower variety. Sunflower seeds a high energy and nutritious food source packed with protein and fat and leave less waste than some other seeds.  

(Gold Finches, House Finches, Purple Finches, Cardinals, Bluejays, Scrub Jays, Chickadees, Nuthatches, Titmice, Mourning Doves, Buntings, Grosbeaks, Juncos and Sparrows eat sunflower seeds.)

-Thistle seeds (Niger) : nutritious seed  rich in protein and fat.   Thistle feeders with tiny openings limit attracted birds and squirrels do not like Thistle (it's debated). 

 (Goldfinches, House Finches, Purple Finches, Redpolls, Siskins, Juncos, and even Mourning Doves eat  thistle seeds.)

          
         -Safflower Seed: High in protein and fat.


                Cardinals, Mourning Doves, Finches, Grosbeaks, Jays, Chickadees, Nuthatches, Titmice, Song Sparrows, and White-throated Sparrows like Safflower.   Squirrels dislike safflower seeds. So this is a good option for those wanting to discourage unwanted "visitors".


       
       - Peanuts: Feeding shelled unsalted peanuts isn't messy and they are highly nutritious for the birds that can eat them.    Most birds can shell whole (unshelled) peanuts, with varying degrees of effort.  


Squirrels love peanuts. However, do NOT feed RAW peanuts to squirrels and other animals because it can seriously hurt them. Raw peanuts and other legumes contain a trypsin inhibitor or substance that inhibits or prevents the pancreas from producing trypsin, an enzyme essential for the absorption of protein by the intestine. Squirrels fed a steady diet of raw peanuts, soybeans. other legumes, and sweet potatoes could easily develop severe malnutrition. 


Roasting hulled raw peanuts for 20 to 30 minutes at 300 degrees Fahrenheit, stirring them frequently, will destroy the trypsin inhibitor and render them suitable for feed. If that sounds like a lot of work, buy roasted peanuts but be sure they aren't salted. (Salted nuts of any kind should never be fed to wild animals.)


(  Bluejays, Scrub Jays, House Finches, Cardinals, Woodpeckers, Magpies, Chickadees, Nuthatches, Titmice, White-crowned and White-throated Sparrows eat peanuts.)




                                          happy day!

JUST WANDER

Take some time for you in the next few days. . . in nature. . . whether it's on your large acreage or your tiny city lot. Nature is all around you. 

Just wander . . . in nature or in your thoughts. . . outdoors.  


Breathe and take in what you see . We need this time, again and again, especially during the holidays when life can feel like it's running ten yards ahead of us and we seem to be standing still.


It's a glorious time to wander as the seasons start to change, especially in our area, New England, where the air is invigorating and we need to start dressing in layers for warmth. 


The bold colors are starting to disappear but don't let it fool you. The world may appear barren, but look closer and focus in, there is still beauty abound . . . 

       to discover and delight in. 


Our eyes tend to gravitate toward the bold colors, but once they have dwindled we are able to see the little things, the intricacies of the natural world. The little things that can bring us joy.

Go ahead. . .  just wander and focus in. . .  and rejoice in the little things all around you. 

The world is mud-luscious and puddle-wonderful.  

~e.e. cummings

                                       
                             happy day!

OUR NATURE GAME

It is a game to me, and one I like to pass on to the children, to become more knowledgeable about the plant and tree life around us, especially the ones we come in contact on a daily or weekly basis.  


As time goes on, it is no longer called a tree but becomes a Shagbark Hickory, a Grey Birch or a Red Oak . . .  not a shrub but a Winterberry, Serviceberry, or Forsytheia. You get the picture. 


The game:
~ Choose something in our natural world that we have exposure to.
~ How many of its kind can we discover as we explore?
 ~How can we describe it? Let's observe up close and use magnifying glasses and all our senses.
~ How can we draw it? Let's just draw what we see.  
~ How can we make something with it or incorporate it into our play?


This is not a game with rigid rules with a *you have to do this* kind of thing. This is just how it has come to be and it flows.


You might think this is not a game, not a fun game. Ahh but it is. The children have exposure to nature in the real world and they want to know more. It has meaning to them because all of it is part of their world. They can see, touch, hear and smell all the wonder around them.


We played a cattail game recently. We have seen them in each season, from the young new green growth which is spread in the damp soil by rhizomes, 

to the fluffy cotton the catttail turns into in order to disperse of its seeds.    

                  
First we discover all the places we find them . . . 


                                        in the pond

in the marshy earth

                        Then we look and touch and observe from all angles, using all of our senses.

And we draw what we see. You might see something different than me.

and we color in and make it our own.

 We learned that the cattail leaves are used to make woven chair seats and backs and also as rugs and mats.  The children collected some leaves and realized just how long they are.

They braided them . . . 

and made headbands, 

necklaces . . . 

and bracelets.

When we have a personal connection to something in nature, we want to know more and more and more. It has meaning for us. It is only then that we delve deeper, to learn even more about our *nature finds* in our game.


Perhaps you would enjoy this game at your house  :)


                                      happy day!