Feathered friends need food help in winter
A pair of lesser goldfinches dine at a mixed-seed feeder. Birds need more energy in winter to survive the cold. Kathy Morrison
Gardening is turning me into a birdwatcher.
In the 10 days since I hung my new bird feeder in the backyard, I’ve identified an oak titmouse or two, several dark-eyed juncos, some lesser goldfinches, the punk-looking white-crowned sparrow, one gold-crowned sparrow and some house finches, looking so festive with their reddish feathers.
These have joined the neighborhood regulars: the scrub jays, mourning doves, Bewick’s wrens and hummingbirds that frequent our trees and shrubs. I also have heard the northern mockingbird pretty often, but haven’t had a visual identification.
I’m thrilled to see all these little birds enjoying their seeds and exhibiting bits of personality, too.The juncos are the earliest risers, hopping around on the ground and in containers of the potted roses. Then finches and sparrows arrive at the feeder in bunches, the goldfinches shoving each other out of the way to get to the mixed seed selection. The small cherry tree nearby has become the birds’ waiting area, so I hung a bell-shaped seed cake there to augment the offerings – though it might not survive long against the neighborhood squirrels. (The feeder is on a hook the squirrels can’t reach.)
Winter can be a tough time for resident birds, since insects are dormant and many plants are, too. They also need more energy to stay warm. I’ve been working to make the garden more friendly to all natives – insects and other pollinators as well as birds: planting more natives, eliminating the back lawn, keeping some of the ground bare, letting leaves lie where they fall, and avoiding use of pesticides and herbicides. (A gentleman who came to repair the back fence called my garden “a mess,” but what does he know? It’s living and lively.) And now the bird feeder is open for winter business.
These sustainability practices, I discovered to my delight, are not only great for the natural environment, they also make my yard eligible to become a Certified Wildlife Habitat. I have a little more work to do but am looking forward to the day I can display the sign from the National Wildlife Federation. That will be a gift for all of us.
By the way, the Audubon Society has this list of ways to make your home more bird-friendly.
And if you’d like help identifying birds in your yard, I can recommend the Sacramento Audubon Society’s online list of Sacramento area birds as well as the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Merlin app. Merlin allows you to record on your phone the call or song of a bird you can’t see – which is how I got the northern mockingbird identified. I’m still a beginner in this area, but it is great fun.
P.S. Mark your calendar for the Great Backyard Bird Count, coming up Feb. 17-20, 2023.
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Garden Checklist for week of April 21
This week there’s plenty to keep gardeners busy. With no rain in the immediate forecast, remember to irrigate any new transplants.
* Weed, weed, weed! Get them before they flower and go to seed.
* April is the last chance to plant citrus trees such as dwarf orange, lemon and kumquat. These trees also look good in landscaping and provide fresh fruit in winter.
* Smell orange blossoms? Feed citrus trees with a low dose of balanced fertilizer (such as 10-10-10) during bloom to help set fruit. Keep an eye out for ants.
* Apply slow-release fertilizer to the lawn.
* Thoroughly clean debris from the bottom of outdoor ponds or fountains.
* Spring brings a flush of rapid growth, and that means your garden is really hungry. Feed shrubs and trees with a slow-release fertilizer. Or mulch with a 1-inch layer of compost.
* Azaleas and camellias looking a little yellow? If leaves are turning yellow between the veins, give them a boost with chelated iron.
* Trim dead flowers but not leaves from spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils and tulips. Those leaves gather energy to create next year's flowers. Also, give the bulbs a fertilizer boost after bloom.
* Pinch chrysanthemums back to 12 inches for fall flowers. Cut old stems to the ground.
* Mulch around plants to conserve moisture and control weeds.
* From seed, plant beans, beets, cantaloupes, carrots, corn, cucumbers, melons, radishes and squash.
* Plant onion sets.
* In the flower garden, plant seeds for asters, cosmos, celosia, marigolds, salvia, sunflowers and zinnias.
* Transplant petunias, zinnias, geraniums and other summer bloomers.
* Plant perennials and dahlia tubers for summer bloom.
* Mid to late April is about the last chance to plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.
* Transplant lettuce seedlings. Choose varieties that mature quickly such as loose leaf.
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