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When am I happy in my yard with one third of one percent success? The answer of course is when I look toward my bird feeders and see a hummingbird.

My percent sentence is one way of saying that 320 different species exist but only one is common in our area. All live in the western hemisphere and maybe 20 or so venture into the United States mostly in the southwest.

Hummingbirds like openings in forests and forest edges. Thus, they can easily be attracted to rural or suburban landscapes that provide a mix of tall trees, shrubs, good nectar plants and some open lawn. Generally, they feed near the ground but often perch or nest at higher levels. Of course, all the other bird-bringing ideas apply. Think about water, cover and protecting their insect food sources with judicial use of insecticides and strict supervision of your cats. Their diet is about 60% nectar and 40% insects. The insects are most critical while feeding there young.

The experts claim that if you see one bird regularly you have five. Use the five times multiplication table to estimate your population. Conventional wisdom suggests that hummingbirds favor red tubular flowers. True, but I have seen them actively working at pink, orange, yellow or blue flowers. Some suggest they avoid high fragrance offerings. Also try to cover the entire seasons they are here.

In this area, the northward migration begins in April and the return south starts in early October. Many will nest in or area.When selecting plants to attract hummingbirds, aim for groupings of the same plant to provide plenty of nectar. Although there many native plants that would do the job even the purists will make exception for salvias. Start there with your plant selection to bring hummingbirds.

Early in the season I have seen hummers feeding on tree sap.If you feed use a mixture of four parts water and one part of white cane or beet sugar. That real close to nectar. That’s it. Stop right there. Honey or brown sugar is toxic to the birds.

Once the birds find you, they have long memories and you will be blessed season after season if you do your part.

Last week a leaf poked me in the eye. I spend a few hours a week looking through the greenhouses scouting for insects, searching for foliar disease and identifying plants with exceptional flowers or foliage to feature on Facebook or Instagram. Nothing like multi-tasking.

I was looking for thrips when I was assaulted. Western Flower Thrips are very small insects with rasping mouth parts that do three harmful things:

1. Scrape the undersides of leaves causing bronzing.

2. Feed on pollen and other tender tissues in the buds. Often this causes distortion of the flower petals or leaves.

3. Serve as a vector for disease. Thrips and their sinister mouth parts cause wounding of the plant tissue and allow viruses like Tobacco Mosaic Virus, or Impatiens Necrotic Spot Virus entry into otherwise healthy tissues. This is probably the most harmful thing thrips do.

These virus weaken the plant, cause foliar discoloration and stunting.

Thrips are really small; about half the size of the tip of my pinkie nail. The best way to locate them is to blow on open flowers and lightly tap the flower onto a white piece of paper. The carbon dioxide in your breath will stun them momentarily and since they are a light orangish-brown color they show up well against white paper. They look like pollen that moves. It is a fun trick for kids. At least my kids think it’s interesting.

We know to look for thrips around the time the dogwood trees bloom. Phenology is the study of how the biological world times phenomena such as when trees bloom, frogs mate, birds migrate and insects pupate. These events are often based on light, temperature and precipitation. Being observant of what natural events coincide help you to expect one when you see the other.

Another example of two unrelated phenomenon occurring together are the shad fish running the streams and the service berry plants blooming. These two events have become so linked over the years that service berries are commonly called “shadbush”.

Ohio State University has a phenology network that has 36 identical gardens throughout the state that are monitored for bloom timing and insect activity. This data is used to create a “biological calendar” for the region. What an interesting concept. This information is also fed into a national database. According to their data, the spring of 2017 through the end of April was about 20 days early. The weather was most similar to the spring of 2012, unfortunately that was a hot dry summer. Hopefully, history will not repeat itself.

I poked myself in the eye, which gave me a good excuse to stay in the house for a day. I don’t think you could call that phenology, but it is a reliable fact that most greenhouse growers could use a nap the end of May.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The poppies are staring to bloom. The vibrant red and orange flowers appear for such a short period of time, but always make me a bit sad.

Since ancient times, poppies have been a symbol of sleep and death. In the popular poem “In Flanders Fields” describing trench warfare during World War I John McCrae writes how the “...poppies blow between the crosses…”. That makes sense, because poppies grow best in disturbed poor soil. Corn poppies (Papapver rhoeas), which McCrae was referring to, are an annual red poppy that grows in and around fields of Europe. Since the Great War, the poppy has been a symbol of Remembrance Day, or as we call it in America, Veterans Day on November 11th.

We all remember too, how Dorothy, the Cowardly Lion and Toto all fall asleep in the poppy field on the way to the Emerald City.

The opium poppy (Papavar somniferum) was domesticated over 8,000 years ago in Central Europe. Its pain relieving properties were widely used by Egyptian and Greek doctors. Specifically, codeine and morphine are contained in the sap, and seeds of the pods. Heroin is a synthetic drug based on the structure of morphine.

The poppies that grow best in our garden are the Oriental poppies (Papavar orientale). These are perennial plants that once established, have survived for over 20 years in rocky lean soil in a hillside flowerbed on the farm. They produce a clump of foliage, bloom for about 2 weeks in the end of May, and then the plants go dormant and disappear during the heat of the summer. Often times the foliage returns in the fall, but does not flower again. Is it worth space in the garden for something that only blooms 2 weeks? Anyone that has ever seen them blooming mixed with the purple and blue Siberian Iris would argue, yes, they deserve their spot. They have no medicinal qualities.

Another favorite of mine is the Spanish Poppy (Papaver rupafragum). This little beauty is a light orange with more delicate foliage, but loves the sunny, dry conditions. It does well in rock gardens and the front of the border. I would classify it as a short-lived perennial, surviving for several years, reseeding gently, than may disappear.

The blue poppy (Mecanopsis ‘Lingholm’) comes to Longwood Gardens every year for a few weeks. The flowers are absolutely stunning. These plants are native to the Himalayan Mountain range and are just about impossible to grow here. Go visit them at Longwood in March be amazed. I have given up trying to grow them.

Icelandic and California poppies are best treated as annuals in this area. But they come in a cheerful mix of pinks, yellow, cream and orange and bloom from April into mid-summer when it gets hot.

Poppies are one of my favorite groups of plants. Maybe I appreciate them because they make such a brief appearance. But it certainly hard not to notice them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This Wednesday 20 students from Bart-Colerain Elementary traveled to the Lancaster Central Park to participate in the Jr. Envirothon.

This is a program for 3-6th grade students designed to enhance children’s learning of science and ecology. They study birds, mammals, trees and plants and a fourth rotating category every year. This year’s theme is Backyard Habitats. This category includes natural habitats like snags (dead trees), brush piles, man-made habitats like rain gardens, bird feeders and water stations, and environmental practices like catch- and-release fishing and low-mow zones.

The students learn to identify birds by sight and by their calls. They also learn about the migration patterns, diet and nesting of 12 Pennsylvania birds that would commonly be found in a backyard habitat such as the Northern Cardinal, Ruby-Throated Hummingbird and Cooper’s Hawk.

Students study Pennsylvania mammals ranging from the tiny white-footed mouse to the white-tailed deer. In learning to identify these animals, they also discuss important issues facing animal populations like White-Nose Syndrome in the Little Brown Bat and Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) affecting our deer population.

In the tree section, they learn about plants and the role they play in the environment. The Pin Oak produces acorns to feed small mammals, and ornamental shrubs such as the winterberry holly whose persistent fruit provides nutrition for birds on their return migration. They also study which trees are suitable for harvesting in Pennsylvania’s timber industry.

They learn to distinguish their surrounding; which animals are active at night and which are diurnal, plants that are deciduous or evergreen, birds that migrate versus ones that stick around all winter. In a world where kids are increasingly seen with their heads in electronic devices, this program encourages them to look at the world around them with a critical eye and identify interactions between plant and animal life.

The curriculum is designed in cooperation with the Lancaster Parks Department, Conservation District and the Game Commission but relies on parent volunteers and some interested teachers at the local school level to form the teams and instruct the students.

There are also supplemental Saturday review sessions where the students have the opportunity go to Middle Creek and the Environmental Center for additional instruction by park educators, see animal specimens, and go on plant walks to see the plant species growing.

I have been helping with Bart’s team since my son was in third grade and have been consistently impressed with the level of knowledge these kids can achieve. If you have any interest in these topics, and want to help the next generation learn more about the natural world around them consider helping with or starting a team at your local school. More information can be found at http://lancasterconservation.org/education/jr-envirothon/

**Update.  Our 5th grade team came in 2nd and our 4th grade team came in 3rd.  Congratulations on all your hard work kiddos!

Thinking about our garden/landscape soil, we have often heard the drill. Mulch for weed control, moisture retention and to add organic material. Compost helps govern the moisture/air balance. Fertility and pH requirements differ among plants but attention is most important with vegetables and grass. Water is needed but soggy is bad.

Recently my interest in what else is in the soil has increased. It’s crowded with microbes including fungus, bacteria, nematodes and protozoa among others. Some are good, some are bad. Since we live in a green world, I guess the good out duals the bad much of the time.

I recently had the opportunity to talk to a division winner from the Lancaster County Science Fair who was working with microbes. His goal was different but he made an interesting discovery. Testing garden soil, compost and livestock manure he found the most microbes in the garden soil. One report I read suggested that if we took an ounce of soil and started handing out microbes to each person on earth for a pet we would run out of people before we ran out of microbes. Coming from the internet it must be true. Maybe not, but you get the picture. Soil microbes let some plants fix nitrogen from the air to the soil. Others make nutrients more available, increase disease resistance, control insects, increase nutrient uptake to name a few.

Several commercial examples.More than 30 years ago, a bacteria based spray, called Bt, short for its 15 or 20 letter real name was released. Soil derived it was very effective for cabbage loopers and other worms if used as directed. More recent Bt introductions target other insects including potato beetles.About 10 years ago I heard the claims about a product called Root Shield. Before I got beyond what’s that my daughter took over the business and soon she was dipping starter plants in a Root Shield solution.  Fast forward a few years and she is now using soil already treated with Root Shield.

Root Shield is Trichodema harzianum, a fungus. Now that I got that out of the way, it coils around the roots releasing enzymes that dissolve the walls of fungal pathogens. The improvement in root and plant development is amazing.  (See picture above)

Gardening practices will give variation in microbe populations. Tillage and water are two such practices. Root Shield lies dormant until activated by water. Commercial Bt is active but has only a one season shelf life.

As we continue to unravel what’s in the soil we may move closer to the marriage of commercial and organic agriculture.