Amenities In My Garden For Visiting Birds (Including A "Water Cooler")

Juan V was here today to work with me in my rooftop garden. The results of our labor can be seen in an aerial view of my urban garden atop this blog entry. The picture was taken by Juan. Fortunately we finished our work before the severe thunder storm hit NYC. The kiwi vines that wrap around the railing that surrounds my garden were beginning to grip both my Crabapple Tree as well as my Chelsea Larch, which could ultimately have uprooted those trees! I truly needed Juan's help doing this as I'm still recovering from the accident I had in mid May.

Visiting Birds & the "CB" Feeder (FOLLOW-UP)

Two weeks ago, May 29th 2013, here on Blogger, I posted an entry about a bird feeder (which I call a CB feeder and is pictured above) that I had procured to allow my smaller visiting birds like house finches, as well as Cam and Mac (the cardinal couple who visit my garden on occasion) to be able to nosh in peace, as the mourning doves that frequent my rooftop garden often eat all the food!

"God gives every bird its food, but he does not throw it into the nest."

The quote, "God gives every bird its food, but he does not throw it into the nest," which is attributed to Josiah Gilbert Holland (an American novelist and poet), is layered with meaning; but since this is not a dissertation, but rather it is a blog post (albeit a belated one as it was scheduled for yesterday) I am only focusing on one aspect of the quotation, and that is the literal translation.

Since God does not throw food into the birds' nests and since I can't see their nests, I provide food for birds that visit my rooftop garden in a variety of ways; and this blog entry is a pictorial account of some of the ways I do this as well as some of the ways my visiting birds respond to my efforts, and one of my visiting mourning doves is sitting atop my one of my urban hedges and staring at me through my window as I write this because he wants to make sure his brood is included in the photo-ops within this entry. Due to the fact this posting is about birds that eat in my garden it would be hard not to include him, as the mourning doves nosh here more than any other visiting bird and often I'm concerned that their overwhelming presence will deter other feathered creatures from enjoying a bite to eat on my roof extension garden!

The Entertainment of Birds

 
The last time I saw a Downy woodpecker in my garden was this past March. He entertained me with his antics re procuring butter-bud suet from a bird feeder in my urban — NYC — rooftop garden. (The photos atop this entry illustrate the woodpecker at the aforementioned buttter-bud suet feeder.) I was most impressed with his actions in balancing himself on the feeder, which still had snow atop of it.

Saturday's Story The Bird Feeding Area (Within Central Park & My Rooftop Garden)

There is a portion of The Ramble in Central Park called The Bird Feeder Area and the name does not refer to people who feed birds, rather it refers to an area which has numerous bird feeders hanging from trees. A partial view of it can be seen in the picture (which I took yesterday) atop entry.

During the time I was there numerous American Goldfinches were congregating (and noshing from) a feeder which can be seen is at the extreme right of this photograph. The following set of  images feature both male and female varieties engaging in activities at or near to the aforementioned feeder.

Yesterday's "bomb cyclone."

MALE CARDINALS ARE FEATURED IN MY BOOKS

At one point it was so windy during yesterday's "bomb cyclone" (a winter storm that hit NYC with a vengeance), that the "mohawk" of a male cardinal who was visiting my rooftop garden was blowing back and forth. Not even the stiffest hairspray could've helped his situation, as evidenced by the image atop this entry, where he is alighting upon the branches of my kiwi vines, while a lone male house sparrow tries to hold his own in the background.

Friday Feeling: I've been thankful for a NEW association re cardinals.

Here's a female cardinal about to indulge in one of many grapes which I've placed on a saucer in my rooftop garden for the dining pleasure of the birds who visit me.

She may be related to Cam, the female cardinal who authored the book, Words In Our Beak.

As many who follow my cyber-venues, Cam is very near and dear to my heart.

Moreover, she has taught me a number of things re the many members of the avian community, especially her bird type. Prior to my meeting Cam, I was not too familiar with female cardinals.

I knew about the male cardinal as he is the state bird of Illinois where I spent my childhood through early adulthood years.

Bird Day Reflections

Yesterday, May 4th, was a National Holiday in the USA. It's a holiday known as Bird Day.  However, while Bird Day is officially recognized on May 4th, it is an occasion I celebrate every day, as I truly appreciate the avian community. However, yesterday, I did spend part of the official Bird Day with Juan V, who was here to work with me in my rooftop urban (NYC) garden, where I'm working out the details re the placement of bird feeders.

Let them eat unshelled peanuts.

The photographs atop this entry features a blue jay alighting on the twisting branches of one of the shrubs growing in my urban garden which is a Avellana corylus (Contorted Hazelnut). In the image he/she is eyeing a ball-style bird feeder that is nearly empty of the black-oil sunflower seeds which it holds. Blue Jays are known to eat these seeds as evidenced in the photo below, where a blue jay is availing him/herself of black-oil sunflowers seeds which I had placed on a a saucer.

This bird-type also enjoys eating berries, especially blueberries, as evidenced by the next set of images.

And blue jays eat suet, as you can see in the photos directly below.

However (according to WBU-MICH), "if you offered a buffet, their first choice would be peanuts in the shell."

I certainly agree with them on this, for I have offered un-shellled peanuts in a variety of ways, and my efforts have not been lost on this bird type!

Squirrel Appreciation Day 2021

Today, January 21st, is the annual day to celebrate Squirrel Apppreciation Day. I've written about this holiday within a number of venues including entires on this blog.

These animals can provide a lot of entertainment when you observe them as I've done in both Central Park and Riverside Park over the years when I've encountered various types including Cinnamon Variant squirrels, Black squirrels and Eastern gray squirrels.

On July 8th 2020, shortly after NYC started to begin easing up on lockdown restrictions (many of which were subsequently put back in place) which had been in effect since March due  to the devastating consequences of the coronavirus pandemic, I had the chance to watch squirrels from my window for they began to visit the Ailanthus Trees in my buildings courtyard and as you might surmise from the photo-ops atop this entry, their antics gave me many reaons to smile during those isolating times.

N'tl Bird Day 2021 has come and gone! However, one can continue to celebrate! (Tuesday's Truths WK 201)

MALE HOUSE FINCHES ARE FEATURED IN WIOB

This two hundred and one segement of Tuesday's Truths is to alert you to the fact that National Bird Day has come and gone for the year 2021. It was celebrated three weeks ago on 1-5. Information re this holiday can be found in a number of places on the web including a page for National Day. 

In bygone years, I've published posts about this occasion as I certainly appreciate any occasion that aims to raise awareness about members of the animal kingdom and I don’t think it needs to be limited to one day.

But this segement is also designed to let you know that if you missed this year’s National Bird Day, just make it a point to do something that will benefit our feathered friends, such as making sure any bird feeder you have is clean as well as replenished. 

They will truly appreciate your efforts as evidenced by this male house finch (in the photograph directly above) who is enjoying a snack from a feeder in my garden.

Another thing you can do is to make sure your bird bath is clean and if winter temperatures are prevailing, make sure the water isn't frozen.

Feed the Birds Day 2018

I've posted a You Tube video atop this entry in honor of one of today's (February 3rd) holidays, which  is known as Feed the Birds Day (according to Holiday Insights who states the following):

"Date When Celebrated: Always February 3: Help the wild birds in your backyard to survive the long, cold winter by feeding them. That's exactly why this special day was created. Mid and late winter are especially hard on all outdoor animals. By mid winter, food sources become scarcer and scarcer for the wild birds that over-winter in your backyard..."

I featured this quote from Holiday Insights along with the Mary Poppins film clip that's included here in my 2017 blog entry for Feed the Birds Day,

In terms of the many photographs of wild birds eating that I used in the aforementioned entry, most of them are different than the ones I am using today.

My Rear Window

In less than one month's time, on September 1st 2017, it will be the sixty-third anniversary of the movie, Rear Window, directed by Alfred Hitchcock. The film starred Jimmy Stewart. And the synopsis (stated on Wiki, where I got the image atop this entry), states the following:

"After breaking his leg photographing a racetrack accident, a professional photographer, the adventurous L. B. "Jeff" Jefferies (James Stewart), is confined to a wheelchair in his Greenwich Village apartment to recuperate. His rear window looks out onto a courtyard and several other apartments. During a powerful heat wave, he watches his neighbors, who keep their windows open to stay cool."

Like Jefferie, my NYC apartment (with a garden atop a rooftop terrace, something which Jefferies did not have), my rear window, looks into other apartments, as evidenced in the photo below.

The image was taken by Juan V this past Tuesday when he was here to plant some Toad Lilies, pot my Angusitifolum curry, and to help me keep a drainage problem from getting worse.

My Toad Lilies are indicated by the larger of the two arrows affixed to Juan's image. The vantage point of the image, because it was taken from overhead only gives one a sense of where these plants are located within my garden. However, I have published an entry here on Blogger that features these beautiful plants; and if you'd like to reference, dear reader, please click here.

The smaller arrow is referencing my Angusitifolum curry, which I will write about in the coming days. And the square is highlighting a new centerpiece that's been added to my place. It can be seen in close-up format below.

I am likely to include in a separate blog entry, but the center-piece's photo is here now for purposes of reader known as Sara, for she was instrumental in my having it, and I'd like her to see it, as she lives too far away to travel here.

And with that info, I've digressed enough, for I was speaking about my rear window view being much like Jefferies' except for the garden. The Rear Window character of Jefferie is on my mind today as I have been somewhat confined to my home with a foot injury. I'm not confined to a wheelchair as he was, but I am much more limited in going about my usual routine.

The reason for this being that I have to wear a boot cast which makes it difficult to go up and down the seventy stairs that lead to my place. Going up is actually much better than down in terms of my agility when wearing this cast.

Therefore, I've been attentive to what's going out from the vantage point of my rear window, and have been most fascinated by my view of the array of birds who visit here (as always), especially in relation to "their" wreath-shaped bird feeder that holds the unshelled peanuts that they enjoy eating.

In the following picture, the feeder I'm referring to is indicated with a circle.

In any event, A couple of weeks ago (July 25th), I wrote about a Northern cardinal availing himself of whole peanuts from this feeder. He can be seeing doing this in the next set of pictures.

If you'd like to read about this cardinal's antics and see different images, please click here.

The beaks of a cardinal are designed for un-shelling nuts and seeds which is one topic that is  discussed in the book, Words In Our Beak Volume One. The soft-cover version of this book is  available on MagCloud and it's written in the voice of the female cardinal whose picture is featured on the cover, as evidenced below.

But getting back to my wreath-style bird feeder and the birds who dine from it, sparrows are a bird variety that take pleasure there too, but the task of them eating an unshelled peanut is difficult as their beaks are not designed to open shells!

I suspect this bird type observes other birds eating from the wreath-style feeder and want to get in on the action, even though it is much easier for them to eat black-oil sunflower seeds from my house style feeder that contains their favorite seeds (as seen below).

But maybe house sparrows are like some people, I'm not naming names, in that they like to have what they see others having! For surely it is much easier for a sparrow to eat something other than a  peanut in the shell! However, it was a sparrow attempting to asses the possible ins and outs of getting some peanut crumbs that kept me watching from my rear window. Take a look (the photos have very subtle differences in order for you to see the time and attentiveness this sparrow put into procuring his food choice).

"another year over AND a new one just begun . . . " PART TWO-I- (November 2012)

Today's entry here on Blogger is part two-J of a series of posts pertaining to a year-end review for special occurrences in my urban garden for the year 2012 (the schedule for this series is described in part one as well as part two-A of this topic), and this entry concerns itself with the special "events" which occurred in my garden in the month of November 2012.

According to Thomas Hood, the British poet and scholar, November is a month of "nos." I wrote about this in a previous post (November 2011) here on Blogger, and if you'd like to, you may refer to it by clicking here.

In any event, according to Wiki, Hood's abridged poem re November is as follows: 

No sun - no moon! No morn - no noon -

No dawn - no dusk - no proper time of day.

No warmth, no cheerfulness, no healthful ease,

No comfortable feel in any member -

No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees,

No fruits, no flowers, no leaves, no birds -

November

However, even though in bygone years in my garden, November did begin with a "bunch" of "no's;" this year the first of November, even though it immediately followed Hurricane Sandy, and major clean-up in my garden, did begin with a resounding "yes," and that "yes" was a visit by a male cardinal pictured here atop today's blog entry. He can be seen here "perched" on a container which is home to my Vaccinium macrocarpon (AKA Cranberry Vine) where he has one eye on a bird feeder and one eye on me.

Visiting Birds & the "CB" Feeder

The house finch pictured here is part of a "breed/variety" which was once known as Hollywood Finches (according to many sources including Wiki). They were given that nickname as a marketing artifice when this variety was initially sold illegally in New York City, and this past Friday, this little guy seemed to be living up to his nickname as he mimicked Gene Kelly's Singing in the Rain ,whilst accessing food from my CB (Chris Baker) feeder.

I am calling the feeder a CB feeder in honor of Chris, a birder extraordinaire, who has been very helpful in advising me on how to "accommodate" the birds which visit my rooftop garden.

I am fairly new to birding, an acute interest which was initially brought on by a humming bird visiting my garden in late May and June of 2012. To my knowledge, the humming bird never returned, but, as you may recall, dear reader, his/her visit was followed by visits from Cam, my lone female cardinal, who has been an on again off again visitor since that time. Cam can be seen in the images below, which were taken on the same day as the photograph atop today's blog entry.

In the first of this series of three pictures, the house finch is to Cam's right, and a portion of my CB feeder is to her left. The second image shows cautious Cam surveying the CB feeder whilst the third of these photos shows Cam surveying yours truly!

Following Up (On a 8-2-13 Blogger Post)

LONG BEACH NEW YORK

LONG BEACH NEW YORK

ROBERT MOSES BEACH NEW YORK

ROBERT MOSES BEACH NEW YORK

The last time that I posted here on Blogger I mentioned that it was my fascination with the array of wild birds which visit my rooftop garden, that prompted me to be more observant than I had been in bygone years of the seagulls that I saw when I visited a couple of beaches last week with my sister. (A few photo-ops of these seagulls can be seen atop this entry.)

I am home now, and at the moment my "fascination with the array of wild birds which visit my garden," has turned into a mission: a mission as to what I can do to deter mourning doves and pigeons from interfering with my bird-feeders!

I understand these birds need to eat too, and I am happy to provide nourishment for them, but no matter what I do, the mourning doves as well as pigeons gravitate towards the feeders which are not intended for them!

MONDAY'S MEMO: BRING THE SHOVEL INSIDE!

In answer to the question your posing in the comic strip (atop this entry), Snoopy, it helps that you have a shovel! I forgot to bring mine in the night before the snow (from the winter storm known as a "bomb cyclone") fell on to the surface of my rooftop garden.

My shovel was almost completely buried in snow, as evidenced in the photos directly below.

I'll be making a memo to bring it inside the next time a snowstorm is predicted.

Wednesday's Wisdom: Robert Burns nailed it! ("The best laid schemes of mice and men...")

The picture atop this blog entry is a screenshot of an image that was included in my newsfeed for my Facebook Page for The Last Leaf Gardener.

It came from the FB Page for Gowanus Nursery in Brooklyn; a place where I have gotten a number of the trees (as well as other flora varieties) that grow in my rooftop garden, which is still in a state of winter-to-spring-limbo, as evidenced by the following image.

This photograph was taken by Kreshnik Vushaj. It is a picture which I included in yesterday's entry here on Blogger.

Like the folks at Gowanus nursery, who had scheduled a re-opening (after their winter hiatus) for March 18th 2017; I've been anticipating de-winterizing my rooftop garden; and I had planned to do so with Juan V, a few days before Gowanus's intended date.

However STELLA (the "bombogenesis" nor'easter), decided to visit our area causing all of us to rethink our gardening plans! Juan V and I have rescheduled the date to de-winterize, and Gowanus has rescheduled their season opener, which I saw in my newsfeed; and have posted below.

As you can see, they now hope to open one week later than planed. Juan V and I have also opted to reschedule one week later than planed! We hope to de-winterize a week from today, but from the looks of my garden, as seen in Kreshnik Vushaj's photo, I'm not sure if the weather will be in line with our plans. And last I heard, we are ruled by weather, it is not ruled by us!

So, while I'm hunkered down as far as gardening is concerned, let me take the opportunity to show you some aspects of my garden. I am thankful to Kreshnik Vushaj for my being able to do this, for he surprised me by emailing me a few more views of my wonderful garden.

Here are the copies of Kreshnik Vushaj's photographs, which I've marked up with arrows and numbers in order to tell you what's what.

The arrow marked with numeral one is referring to my Canadian Palm Tree, seen in a solo photo-op below.

The picture of my Canadian Palm Tree is an image I've included in a number of entries here on Blogger, but thanks to Vusha, you can now have a sense of where it stands in relation to the flora and objects which I have here. But getting back to the aforementioned image taken by Kreshnik Vushaj, the arrow indicated with the numeral two, is my bird bath. I have to really monitor the conditions of the water in that bath, for as you can surmise, frozen temps might crack the bird bath; as it is a ceramic piece.

Numbers three-five indicate where I have some of my bird-feeders, while number six indicates the location of much of my flora, huddled together near the building's wall, where they are somewhat protected from the high winds. The next  picture by Kreshnik Vushaj,

shows my place from a different angle. Once again, numeral one indicates the Canadian Palm Tree, the number two indicates my bird bath, and the number three indicates one of my bird feeders (the one which accommodates whole peanuts). However in this image, the number four indicates a small bowl holding water for my visiting birds. The water in both the bird bath and this bowl can easily freeze over in these conditions, so I have to monitor it carefully, which I do, as water is very important to a bird's survival. The number five in this image, as well as in Vushaj's other image, indicates my bird feeder that I call a Monopoly Feeder. I gave it that name because it looks like one of the trinkets from the infamous board game. And, again, as it did in Vushaj's previous image, the number six indicates the location of much of my flora, huddled together near the building's wall.

In Vushaj's next photo,

the ceramic bird bath is noted by the number one; and one of my whole peanut feeders is referenced by the number two. Number three is referencing the birds' water bowl; number four points to the Monopoly feeder; number five indicates my huddled plants; and, the number six is  pointing at my Canadian Palm Tree.

And with that, I'll leave you with an unmarked photograph by Kreshnik Vusha,

and a recommendation that should you ever need any painting done or interior construction contract related services, contact Kreshnik Vushaj's company Tani & Nick Painting Corp.

I live in a rental apartment, so I have not personally seen Kreshnik Vushaj's work close-up, but I've seen it from the distance of my rooftop to the building he has been working on. Moreover, if Kreshnik Vushaj can take such detailed photos, as evidenced in his pictures here, I imagine his attention to detail in assignments is unsurpassed.

Upon reflection, had Juan V and I  been able to do our de-winterizing when we had planned, I might not have had the opportunity to ask Kreshnik Vushaj to take some images for me. I did on a chance encounter, knowing he has access to interesting vantage points of my garden; as evidenced here.

Therefore I cannot be too disappointed re postponements for as Robert Burns knew, “The best laid schemes o' mice an' men / Gang aft a-gley.”

RAIN or SHINE Dining for my Wild Bird Visitors!

It has been one week since Juan V and I last worked together in my garden, which was the day after I had devised a way to hang my CB feeder in a place where the kiwi vine's foliage would be protected from serving as a placemat (which was a "story" I included when I "introduced" the CB feeder here on Blogger).

The collage posted atop today's entry features a close-up of my CB feeder to the left, and, on the right it features an aerial view (taken by Juan V) of how it appeared in its new locale the last time Juan V was here.

In an entry published on June 12th 2013 (the day after Juan V left), I "reported" — here on Blogger — on my scenario of the rehanging of the CB feeder, and I concluded that entry by stating, "stay tuned, as there is still a follow-up "story" surrounding this which I will post within a week's time," and today I am here to tell you of the follow-up story as promised!