A Whiz of hummingbirds

I have no idea what a group of hummingbirds is called but a "whiz" of them seems quite appropriate. These weeks of late summer mean the hummingbirds are gathering here on the Texas Gulf Coast getting ready for their fall migration to South and Central America. It also means that we refill our 3 hummingbird feeders very frequently. (I've never believed all the news items about how much sugar Americans eat because the numbers are bound to be skewed by all the sugar used by those of us who have hummingbird feeders...LOL). No matter how many feeders we put up, the little jewels spend all their time chasing each other away. I have also learned that they are curious--this morning my husband was eating cereal on the porch near one of the feeders and one little fellow came down almost face to face to check out who was too close to his feeder. I'll try to post a picture but they are really too fast for me. Darling little flying jewels!!
We are in the process of greatly expanding our butterfly / hummingbird garden. It is too late to be of any use to this year's birds but I hope to attract more next year. We have had great success with salvia for the hummingbirds; so much more salvia will be going in. Butterfly weed, Mexican heather, and that dratted Bee Balm are all going in the new area too. (I call it that dratted Bee Balm because it is so invasive but the bees, butterflies, and hummers love it so I just have to keep whacking it back.) Spanish lavender does well here although the English lavender does not; the bees love it and so do I.
That's what's going on around here.

They are back!!

The hummingbirds arrived yesterday!! We've had a feeder up for about 2 weeks now just waiting for them. Yesterday morning I was sitting at the table when I heard the familiar buzz and there he was--beautiful little jewel!! JMM put up the second feeder because there will be more coming through. Before the summer is over we will have 4 feeders up. Good thing I bought a 10 lb. bag of sugar.

All is well--the swallows are back and building their nest under the eaves of the porch and now the hummingbirds. I am so thankful for these beautiful birds.

Hummingbirds

I know that I write this same post twice a year but it thrills me every time--spring and fall humminbird migrations. The hummingbirds are gathering along the Texas Gulf Coast for their fall migration to Central America. We had very few hummers over the summer but during the last week we have at least 5 feasting on our salvia plants and our 3 feeders and more will come during the next 3 weeks. One year we had about 30. How do they know? How do they do it? They are so very tiny, so fragile, so fiercely territorial! It is just a miracle!

Hummingbirds

Our little jewels are back from their time in Central America and welcome they are!! We saw the first one March 7 and then another a week later. This weekend there are 3 of them. It is not an easy thing to count hummingbirds. We have 3 feeders with sugar water in each. One would think that with 3 hummingbirds and 3 feeders all would be peaceful. One would be very wrong. All three hummingbirds are fiercely driving each other from all three feeders. If you decide to sit on the back porch and enjoy the beautiful spring weather and gorgeous wildflowers, the tiny ferocities will try to drive you away too. And I usually give in so as not to distress them any more than they already are with driving each other from the feeders. Kind of reminds me of people who are so busy making sure that no one has more than they do that they overlook the possibility that by staying with one feeder, there is plenty for all.

Thought for the day:

No act of kindness...is ever wasted. - Aesop

My kind of garden

I read quite a few blogs written by avid gardeners who grow vegetables to can or freeze and I am in awe of them. How lovely to be able to go outside and pick a fresh salad or berries from the bushes!! I am, unfortunately, not one of them.

Last summer I bought a 99 cent package of Mexican sunflower seeds. JMM scratched up an area in the flower bed, scattered the seeds, patted them down, and we both forgot about them. A month or so later we had 3 foot high sunflower plants with beautiful orange flowers with bright yellow centers. They bloom whether you water them or not. And best of all, the butterflies just love them. We have Monarchs, Gulf Fritallaries, and an unknown yellow & black butterflies on them all the time.

Speaking of the garden, the late summer hummingbirds are beginning to arrive. We have 4-6 of them; it's hard to count when they are zooming around so fast. All are Ruby Throated hummingbirds as far as I can tell. Amazing that something so tiny can travel so far in migration and be so beligerant when we take the feeders down to wash and refill them. They will actually dive at us and scold us when we come too near their feeders!!



"We are all in this world together - people , plants and animals - and we had better make the most of our opportunities. We are all here for some purpose: I believe that it is to live a good life, individually and collectively. That means for us humans to do as little harm as possible, to other humans, to animals and to the whole environment, and to do as much good as possible. To live simply, not elaborately; to consume the least possible, not the most possible. If you have any religion, let it be helpfulness, love and unity. We will then fulfill the purpose and take our part in the great plan. It is as simple as that."~Helen Nearing (1904-1995)