Ten Gables Cottage

Ten Gables Cottage
Ten Gables Cottage

Monday, March 7, 2011

Scenes around Ten Gables

Hi everyone,

I just stepped outside on the back patio and the sky was so blue, the trees so green, that I just had to photograph the property out back. Everything is greening up nicely and we did have a nice rain the other day, but need more!














This boxwood topiary has been here about twelve years now. It was very small when I bought it, already trimmed and since then, I have tried to keep it shaped. Several birds have nested deep inside it in the Spring. I haven't seen any birds eyeing it for a future home yet. I have seen my favorite little bird back this Spring, looking over the back porch, and the nest he had there last Spring in a hanging basket. It is a Carolina Wren and I watched last year as the 4 baby birds came out of the nest and flew into the garden, encouraged by the parent birds. And the most unusual thing happened---at least I thought it unusual. After the babies left, the parents came back and did some housecleaning in the nest. When they were satisfied it was clean, they left! Now they have come back already to see if they want to use it again. So far, they aren't, but I am waiting to see!

In the backyard, just off the patio, in my little flower garden is this tree that grew from a seed dropped by a bird or just blown in. Anyway, I noticed it when it was just a few inches tall, and left it to see what it would become. It became this! A small scrub tree of some kind. But I keep it trimmed flat on top and small and the birds adore it! It is near a bird bath and there is a metal arch by it where birds can perch. It usually has at least one or two birds in it, and as you can see, I have 2 bird houses in the tree. The one that looks like a house, was home to a bird family last year. I need to clean it out, as I have heard you should clean out old nests from birdhouses. The Carolina wrens will use a place over and over, though, and do their own cleaning and then add sticks and twigs to the original structure...remodeling.
The birdhouse that looks like a fat robin is mostly for decoration...two birdhouses so close may be a bad idea!

Have a happy day!

4 comments:

  1. It has been glorious out hasn't it? Love the fact that the birds enjoy your small trees.

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  2. I like your topiary and red mulch. The weather looks great too.

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  3. Nest building time is so exciting, isn't it? We have a bird that builds a nest under the eaves of our porch every year. How interesting that they chose the topiary to build their nest. What a beautiful house they chose!

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  4. Hello Enegretta,
    A tree that grows spontaneously in your garden?, that we never had before.
    Your buxus, one of my favorites, is a real
    eye catcher. I like it very much.
    The birds, that's another story and very lovely. Especially that they come back every year.
    It's truth, you must cleaning your bird houses .... and not too close to eachother. Every bird needs a terratorium.
    Kind regards,
    Elly

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