Plentiful earthworms and water draws the thrushes and robins.
Wildlife Enjoy the Pond
This is why I wanted to have a pond: enlarge for better view-- Obviously the pond is far from finished, but at least now I have an electrical outlet to run the pump. Stay tuned for the finished product...
Winter Interest, Part 2
Winter interest part 2 I mentioned in the previous post that ways to create winter interest in our garden is to "think of the aspects to the garden that you like through the rest of the year, and then find winter tolerant providers-- texture, colour, movement, smell". So a quick note on "movement". Wind causing movement... Continue Reading →
Vancouver’s “City Bird”
This article, "City hopes bird strategy will take flight", appeared in today's Vancouver Sun. Apparently Vancouver aims to make the area increasingly bird-friendly, and city management will tell us how to do that. Which is what I've been writing about since I started RLGS. (Sorry for all the links--better than cutting and pasting.)
Garden Fauna
Garden Fauna You'll know by now how much I love the critters (some of them, anyway--not too partial to rats, but haven't seen any lately…) that frequent my garden. I try to have a wildlife-friendly space, following the principles I've written about. It helps that across the street is a wide, wild border of shrubs... Continue Reading →
Mosquito Prevention–5 Things
Mosquito Prevention--5 Things I don't get a lot of mosquitos where I live, in fact, several of my windows don't even have screens on them. But I hate a mosquito bite as much as the next person, so I was interested in a recent article about mosquito-repellant plants. Preventing an invasion, tho', starts with knowing... Continue Reading →
Ways to Keep Your Garden Looking Great
Steve Whysall (Vancouver Sun gardening columnist) wrote a great article in Friday's paper entitled Six Ways To Keep Your Garden Looking Great. He interviewed Egan Davis, the chief instructor of the Horticultural Training Program at the University of B.C. Botanical Garden, but formerly at Van Dusen Botanical Garden, and one of my Master Gardener instructors. So I'm... Continue Reading →
More Hummingbirds
Male Rufous Hummingbird. I think he's trying to get some swinging action going here. Male Anna's Hummingbird. Lots of lip-licking!
Not Very Bright Squirrel:
Squirrel at the BIrd Feeder: I worried that a lot of rodent activity at the bird feeder would dissuade the birds from coming around. But with this kind of "rodent activity", I think I can relax.
Planning Your Wildlife Garden (cont’d.)
Last month I covered the basics of planning your wildlife garden: Water. Food. Shelter. Don't use pesticides. Do plant some natives (NatureScapeBC.ca is a great resource)--here's a short list of natives for various garden sites. Include a wide variety of plants--flowers, deciduous and evergreen shrubs, ornamental grasses, but enough of all to actually make a statement.... Continue Reading →
Real Life Garden Solutions 