One of the Orioles building its nest in my spruce tree

Swamp Milkweed has to be one of the most popular native plants in our garden.

• Its flowers are not only a very colorful addition to any garden, but a favorite of bees and butterflies.
• Its milky sap is the food source of the Monarch caterpillar (and provides the insect its natural defense by way of an alkaline poison). Milkweed are vital to Monarchs, as it's the only species of host plant their larva can survive on.
• Its leaves make the perfect perches and cover for tiny tree frogs.
• Birds will clutch the stems while hunting for insects, or to drink from lakes and streams.
  

And finally, I just learned this morning that:

• Its dried stalks provide downy nesting material for birds, including the Baltimore Oriole currently making house in my spruce tree.

I actually had a few minutes to sit down and enjoy the garden yesterday afternoon, and as Robins, Orioles, Sparrows, and Hummingbirds went about their business, I realized that the amount of wildlife you can see in under an acre of land is just amazing. It's not like we were experts or even had a solid plan when we set out to build this garden. Neither of us have degrees in naturalism or botany, and it's not like we had the money to hire professionals. We'd just done a little research, talked to Wayne, and observed what plants grew well in local parks.

Storms rumbled through yesterday (1" of rain in the gauge), putting the air down into the 60's. Air was so cold overnight (most of this week have highs in the mid-60's) that the water actually steamed as it churned down the waterfall. Looked amazing in the beams of the new solar spotlights we installed. Will try to get some video of it tonight.

Emerging Native Plants:

• Brown-eyed Susan
• False Dragonhead
• False Indigo
• Fiddlehead Fern
• Harebell
• Meadowrue
• Marsh Marigold
• Prairie Smoke
• Purple Coneflower
• Showy Goldenrod
• St. Solomon's Seal
• Starflower
• Tall Boneset
• Virgin's Bower
• Wild Bergamot
• Wild Grape
• Woodland Goldenrod
• Woodland Sunflower

Wildflowers in Bloom:

• Aborted Buttercup
• Bloodroot
• Canadian Anemone
• Jacob's Ladder
• Rue Anemone
• Purple Pasque Flower
• Wild Geraniuim

Wildlife Spotted:

• American Toad
• Baltimore Oriole
• Black-capped Chickadee
• Blue Jay
• Chorus Frog
• Crow, Common
• Eastern Bluebird
• Goldfinch
• Grackle, Common
• Grey Squirrel
• Loon
• Mallard Duck
• Mourning Dove
• Northern Cardinal
• Nuthatch
• Pileated Woodpecker
• Purple Finch
• Red-bellied Woodpecker
• Red-shouldered Hawk
• Red-winged Blackbird
• Robin, American
• Ruby-throated Hummingbird
• Sandhill Crane
• Spring Peeper
• Tree Swallow
• Turkey Vulture
• Virginia Opossum
• Wild Turkey
• Wood Duck
• Wood Frog
• Yellow-rumped Warbler

First Hummingbird of the season spotted!

A budding Columbine flower

Columbine are dropping their buds. These widespread, bell-shaped perrenials, native and a favorite of hummingbirds and bees, are notable for their five "spurs" which begat both its latin (comparison to an eagle's talons) or common (comparison to a flock of doves) name. These spurs spread in the summer, exposing the flower's petticoat-like petals and long stamen in a very colorful display. They're an excellent, native plant for any garden, and will give you blooms from mid spring through early fall.

Columbine are extraordinarilly easy to cultivate given even the slightest bit of pre-planning. Though, being woodland flowers, they prefer damp, cool soil and a good deal of shade, with a good deal of mulch they'll thrive in anything short of full sun. Throw in a little peat moss and weekly watering during the hot season and they'll pay you back with interest, spreading across open soil in thick, verdant clumps of dark green leaves and red flowers.

Began work on the first of the "rocks" I will be using to cover up the pond filter, the remainder of my exposed pond tarp, and possibly the underwater pumps and plumbing. I created the first rock by layering hypertufa over a frame mesh. The 2 parts peat moss gave it a very porous texture, much more realistic to rock than standard cement would have been. Also cut a small 5X8 portion of land out of a chunk of my back lawn that had mostly been overrun by creeping charlie. Mixed a bag of organic garden soil and a shovel load of peat moss into the soil and am in the act of bordering it with some inexpensive edgers. Am hoping I'll have peppers, tomatoes, and watermelons by fall. Would love to be able to cultivate my own seeds.

Been seeing a lot of the Bluebird couple lately, and the Orioles have been draining my grape jelly feeder twice a day.

Bluebird Eggs

Prairie Smoke

Counted five Eastern Bluebird eggs in the house this afternoon; that's three more than Wednesday's count. Plants are coming up in droves in the native garden; Prairie Smoke are about to pop, and Peepers can be heard sporadically throughout the day.

Mostly sunny today with a few bursts of rain and high wind in the late afternoon. Temps in the low 70's dipping down into the low 60's in the early evening.

A strange moth-like insect I spotted on side of house. Entomology is so complex I'm not even going to take a guess as to what it was.

First Baltimore Oriole of the season spotted in the garden as temps pitch into the high 70s. Hooked Violet in bloom. Toads heard trilling once again.

Eastern Bluebird Eggs

A pair of Eastern Bluebird eggs in one bluebird house, and a pair of Tree Swallows scouting out the other. Put the first non-natives out today; a pair of dwarf cypress in pond pots, along with some fuschia and herbs in small pots placed among the granite cobbles, and put the Oriole and Hummingbird feeders in the garden. Began work on mesh for the fake rocks I intend to cover the pond liner and use as planters. Sunny today, temps in the upper 60s.

Cherry Blossoms

Rue Anemone in bloom.

Some photos from the garden. Everything seems to be emergig now; everything except the various families of milkweed that spring up like lightning over the summer and produce such abundant blooms. Leadplant, Bergamot, and all manner of Goldenrod are emerging in the garden, and the lance-like leaves of the Blue-flag Iris are begining to emerge from the pond.

Roller coaster weather this weekend. Emerged from the 40's with rain (flurries in the Brainerd Lakes region) to the 60's in the last few days. I've only heard the hardy Spring Peepers keeping up the chorus the last few nights.

Wildlife Spotted Recently:

Black-capped Chickadee

Blue Jay

Chorus Frog

Crow, Common

Eastern Bluebird

Goldfinch

Grackle, Common

Grey Squirrel

Loon

Mallard Duck

Mourning Dove

Northern Cardinal

Nuthatch

Pileated Woodpecker

Purple Finch

Red-bellied Woodpecker

Red-shouldered Hawk

Red-winged Blackbird

Robin, American

Sandhill Crane

Spring Peeper

Tree Swallow

Turkey Vulture

Virginia Opossum

Wild Turkey

Wood Duck

Wood Frog

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Wildflowers in Bloom:

Rue Anemone

Purple Pasque Flower

Emerging Native Plants:

Blue-flag Iris

Columbine

Elm-leafed Goldenrod

Fiddlehead Ferns

Leadplant

Prairie Smoke

Showy Goldenrod

Wild Bergamot