Gentlemanly Gesture

We have a pair of Cardinals who have become frequent visitors since we've been tossing hulled sunflower seeds onto the back porch. Mr. Cardinal hops around picking up seeds and in what I perceive as a very sweet gesture (anthropomorphic behavior, I know), he gives the first morsels to Mrs. Cardinal before scooping up seeds for himself.

Meanwhile, my search for a perfect bird feeder continues. I found some nice possibilities online at Wild Birds Forever, located in Minden, NV.

One Room School

I spent a peaceful hour by myself in the Oak Grove School at Georgia Southern's Botanical Garden late in the afternoon a couple Sundays ago. The school was built in Tattnall County, which is two counties southeast of Bulloch County, home to Statesboro. The Garden's brochure says that one teacher taught 32 students in seven grades. Old-time multitasking.

Sweet Magnolias

Last week I found my first, lusciously sweet magnolia blossom on one of the huge trees on Georgia Southern's Sweet Heart Circle. The flowers fade too soon but their heavenly scent is unforgettable.

Showy Spring Blossoms

The first of Marley's daylilies blossomed at the end of March, hanging heavy and dressing up the front of the house. A few more deep scarlet varieties showed up a week or two later in the back yard. Beautiful!

A huge clematis flower unfolded from an unlikely-looking vine in the upper back yard just behind the rock chimney. So far, only one blossom.

Handsome Boy

Miles, our Newfoundland/Border Collie mix, spent an entire day at Kayce's Pet Parlor this week and came home looking mighty handsome. Arlo, in the background, never needs grooming because he cleans himself like a cat so he couldn't understand what all the fuss what about.

Big Busy Bees

I thought all large black and yellow bees were bumble bees. Silly me. I have learned over the past few weeks that the majority of big bees around the house are carpenter bees. Named for their talent, they drill perfectly round, half-inch holes into wood structures for nests. North Carolina State University's entomology folks say the bees don't eat the wood, they just "excavate tunnels for nesting."

We have a lot of excavating going on! I watched a couple busy guys at work on the new fascia boards on the front of the house this week. The bees are speedy workers and when one gets tired, another flies in to take over the jaw chomping task.

I'm not afraid of bees and the males don't sting, but I do have my limits. One bee blew it by drilling two holes into the overhang just above the back door. So, I stuck cotton balls drenched with peppermint oil into the holes and after two days of hovering, the weary bee went elsewhere, most likely to start again.

We're still trying to figure out what to do - or not to do - with these uninvited house guests.

Carpenter bees have a black tail section, like this one on a fading azalea blossom.

Mr. Busy Bee at his recently-excavated front door in the new fascia board on the front of the house.

At the corner of the carport, one tired bee flies off while another takes over the drilling.

Small Graces

I walked into the kitchen last Thursday to find little Olive asleep in a shaft of sunlight using my running shoes as her pillow. I just re-read the book, "Small Graces: The Quiet Gifts of Everyday Life," by Kent Nerburn. One of my favorite quotes from the book is the last paragraph of his introduction:

"For though we may not live a holy life, we live in a world alive with holy moments. We need only take the time to bring these moments into the light."

Painting with Photoshop

A rosemary plant has been blooming among the ferns in the side garden. On a recent morning I made this image with my light-weight, super-sharp Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 IS USM lens, which stands for Image Stabilizer and Ultra Sonic Motor, built into the lens for faster auto focus.

I added a Brush Strokes filter using Photoshop CS5. I like the subtle painterly quality. From photo to illustration? What do you think?

Native Azalea Lean to the Light

I first spotted the native azalea bush in the front yard by accident on an overcast day in the late afternoon. It's tucked under a palm tree that is tucked under a tall pine. I recognized the blossoms and the sweet scent after photographing Georgia Southern Botanical Garden's native azalea collection that I shared in 

this gallery on its Facebook site. I've been putting in my 50 volunteer hours at the Garden, a requirement

to earn my Master Gardener certification through the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension that I started in late January. One more class and a final exam to go!

Yellow and white stripped blossoms look muted in the shade on March 19.

Yellow-orange blossoms on the same tree glow in the late afternoon sunlight on March 20, the first day of spring. 

Happy Vernal Equinox!

Dogwood Days

A warmer than usual March brought blossoms out early on the dogwood trees and azalea bushes in the yard and all over town. I discovered a couple native azaleas blooming in the front yard. They smell heavenly, almost like honeysuckle, but they don't look much like the more popular hybrid azaleas. Picture those showy bushes that line the Augusta National Golf Course during the Masters Tournament.

From the Azalea Society of America website, a great resource:
"Azaleas have been hybridized for hundreds of years. Over 10,000 different azalea plants have been registered or named, although far fewer are in the trade...All North American species azaleas, also called native azaleas, are deciduous (drop their leaves in the fall), with flower colors ranging from white to purple, pink, red, orange and yellow. Evergreen azaleas, native primarily to Japan, have flower colors including white and various shades of purple, pink, red and reddish orange, but not yellow."

Dogwood trees in bloom line the property along Pitt Moore Road.

 Evergreen azaleas provide a beautiful backdrop for dogwood blossoms near the driveway.