Don't be too disappointed that I don't have pictures, as I did not have the camera ready and the thrasher was a bit elusive.
Brown Thrasher - this is a new one for us here. While we live in their area of habitat, we hadn't seen these birds before. The link has several playlists to hear their long melodious calls.
Eastern Bluebird - I built several birdhouses for these birds but sparrows and swallows squat in before they have a chance to take occupancy.
Previous year visitor
Our weekend was filled with fencing repairs and digging out white pine seedlings between the needed rains.
When taking a break, the air was filled with swallows swooping through the air mixed with turkey buzzards circling above.
If the weather holds, we should have a good couple of days planting this coming weekend. Popcorn for our cash crop and we'll have the ground ready for beans in mid-May.
We've already planted some hazelnut trees, peach, apricot and a couple of variety of sweet cherries. So far, so good as they are all caged to keep rabbits and deer away.
Our hickory nuts and both red and white oak acorns that we collected last fall are set in planter "tubes" and we'll keep those protected until planting next year.
We have some pin and white oak ready to plant this year along with sugar maple seedlings and a larger sugar maple that will be planted near the cabin.
After last year's spring of rain from March to July, this year is hopeful.
As the acorn sprouts to open sky
one of many to be planted on the hill.
Some day this one will be added
with a chance to reach towards heaven.
Red oak in the makeshift greenhouse
Last fall we had a good harvest from my sources of acorns of white and red oak. The neighbor's pin oak was not short of it's yield and squirrels had their fill and more. I'm sure I'll find acorns sprouting throughout the yard as a result of their hard labor.
But this is a red oak - and that means it's special. Among the oak
species, the red oak was the one most prized by my father for his
carpentry work and our kitchen table he made was from red oak.
Also, this seedling is a cousin to the Stranded Tree.
Red oak seedling a few inches tall
This year, we continue to experiment in our planting times, fertilizer, etc. to collect additional data for future plantings.
I also have something special planned for this year (if only spring will cooperate) and I hope to reveal it soon.
In the mean time, I'd like to share from a song from David Gray, The Sapling:
Gonna lay down in the grass And watch that acorn Split in two Slowly take root
Our three-legged deer decided to return for her first visit this year. It's been nearly three months and, once again, we feared that she met her demise. She survived deer season to give us another visit and she did not disappoint. Standing here with a companion at nearby, she gives a profile of her wounded leg that looks well.
My brothers have returned home this week
the blackbird with the red wing.
To give notice that our spring arrived
while singing songs from past memories.
I ignore the Vernal equinox
that's not truly true spring around here.
It is the day of the red-winged arrival
to summer fields they now call home.
From a previous year.
We look each year for the red-winged blackbird arrival as the mark of spring. This year, on March 2nd, we saw the first birds on our morning commute along the roadways perched on the fences and old weeds in the ditch. It doesn't mean that we won't see significant snow yet this season but planting time is near.
Memories of listening to the call of the red-winged blackbird filled each summer that we spent at my maternal grandparent's farm. The humid and hot July and August days were filled with the cocaphony of the males calling while perched like pictured above.
Here is an example of their call (unfortunately, I don't have a video available of my own):
That silent tree on winter hill
will it speak again come spring?
I cannot hear while winter's breath
is driven away from it still.
Soon we hope for that spring day
when new growth can be shown
to the world around in green glory
in the Creator's time and say.
It is ours to keep this tree
in the care that it deserves
from time of planting to this day
and the future days to be.
This is our Kentucky Coffeetree, one of many different trees that are set aside as what we call Legacy Trees. These are planted in remembrance of someone and to honor them. It looks nearly dead in February but it will look like this in the summer:
