Back in the spring when I started this blog, one of my buddies commented on my ‘whining’ here about bad golf play. He’s a guy who loves the game, but due to his brutal work schedule, seldom gets a chance to play.
So I suppose the entries here about the coming of winter and the loss of fall in southwest Ohio could be interpreted as ‘whining’ again. Maybe. On the other hand, it does get pretty grey in these parts and spending much time outside is a testimony to layering one’s clothes. It’s not the place for shorts, tee shirts, golf, or balmy-weather biking. Still, getting out for a brisk walk has it’s seasonal benefits.
As does setting out the birdfeeders again.
Just yesterday the back porch, the namesake of this blog and a great place to sit for three seasons of the year, was transformed into winter mode: the lichen-encrusted canopy was cut down, brushed off, and stowed for winter. And in its absence, the birdfeeders will be reinstalled today just outside our big dining room windows -- looking north into a second story of maple, walnut, and spruce.
True, we see the trees all summer, too, but in winter they are transformed into staging areas for birds coming to the feeders. I installed a battery of eye-screws into the soffit just outside those big windows years ago, and after I get done posting this entry (it’s still before 8 am here), I am heading to the garage to collect, wash, and then hang feeders. I am hopeful that by the end of the day, chickadees and tufted titmice will have figured out what’s offered, and come partake of a daily banquet early this Thanksgiving week.
If you have never put a birdfeeder right outside a window, you should consider it. True, we get the occasional bird flying into the window, but usually that’s when there is no feeder hanging there. When the feeders are destination, the flying brethren seem to know where to stop. And I have to tell you, I have never seen a bird so up-close-and-personal as when it comes into the feeder. Cindy Lou and I can sit at the dining room table and observe the feathered folks no more than six feet away. It is truly amazing. When the thistle feeder is full, we might have eight goldfinches at a time. It is a sight to behold -- and truly something that brightens our winter days.
So if you haven’t hung a feeder yet, now is the time. This is what we provide at our back window:
• niger thistle: This stuff I sometimes call ‘black gold,’ both because it’s pretty expensive and draws the most colorful birds to the window: goldfinches. This time of year, the ‘goldies’ have molted pretty olive. The males look much like the females. But by spring, hold on! We will watch the males ‘yellow up’ right before our eyes. Exceptionally cool. House finches feed here, too. This tube feeder has very small holes that only thistle seeds pass through.
• suet: It is possible to find suet at the grocery, and perhaps that’s a little better for birds, but we usually buy prepared suet cakes filled with seeds. The small basket feeder will invite woodpeckers and other bug eaters. Honest to goodness, we’ve even had a pileated woodpecker hanging on our suet basket before. For those of you who remember Walter Lantz’s cartoon ‘Woody Woodpecker’ character, you’ve been introduced to a pileated. These guys are every bit two-feet tall from talons to top-knot. They don’t stay long, but when that bird hangs just outside your window, it’s a sight you don’t soon forget! Our suet also draws downy and red-bellied woodpeckers.
• sunflower seeds: This is the most popular seed we provide. We’ll get titmice, chickadees, cardinals (on occasion: Don’t tell our cardinals they are exclusively ground feeders), and nuthatches, among others. Earlier this fall I hung a sunflower feeder on the front porch, filled with mammoth sunflower seeds we grew in our garden. That gallon-supply of sunflowers is almost gone already. And another cool thing: When birds get sloppy and drop seeds, porches populates with groundfeeders like juncos, cardinals, and squirrels.
• peanuts: The fourth feeder I’ll hang today will be filled with Spanish peanuts. No shells, but au naturel. No salt, that’s for sure. Bug eaters love peanut protein. Sure to draw acrobatic squirrels, too.
One other thing we did last year for the first time was heat the bird bath. Very nice! From our window, we not only watch birds at the feeder, but also can see some non-feeder birds come into the non-frozen water. We even had a hermit thrush last winter. I think I saw her again a few weeks ago. I’ll keep you posted who we see as winter grinds on. If you see something cool at your feeders, report back here. I’d love to know what’s happening in your neighborhood.
Today’s elder idea: Several of Nature’s People / I know and they know me / I feel for them a transport / Of Cordiality
Emily Dickinson
photo credit: Grandson Alex Bryant’s ‘cone feeder’ with Carolina chickadee aboard. (2003)
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