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April 29, 2005
I Get to Go to the Gym!!!
I get to ride the exercise bike and to use the stairmaster and some of the weight machines. WooHoo! I can actually do a cardio workout and get my heart back into shape. (And my butt, which, to be honest, is the priority.)
After all of my hard work this week, though, I'm still only bending to 129 degrees. That's three more than on Monday, but it's going so sloooooooowly. Grrrrrr...
OooooooOOOOOOOOOoooooh! While I was typing that last bit, a male hummingbird just flew to the climbing rose on the front porch and looked at himself in the window. I wonder if we're going to need some kind of anti-hummingbird decals so he doesn't attack his reflection.
It's so cool. We didn't have any hummingbirds last year, though the shrub was there. And last week, several quail spent time in the front yard, which hadn't happened before. And I've seen more finches than in the previous couple of years. There are also ladybugs and lacewings everywhere. Clearly, the landscaping work is beginning to pay off.
I was excited to see all of the beneficial bugs we attracted last year with the courtyard o'flowers and the sunflowers. I left the sunflowers and the echinacea and the rudbeckia standing until about a month ago, just to be sure the birds would have enough to eat. I collected the remaining seeds to spread in the beds once we plant the cherry tree (which is on the back porch!) and clean up the courtyard.
I've designed the yard so that something is in bloom most of the year. There's heather that was blooming in December, then snowdrops and crocuses and early iris and daffs and now tulips and muscari and the vinca around Dave's windowell. The crabapples are all beginning to blossom now too. Some of the allium and leeks are getting ready to go and then there will be the roses (most of which are continuous blooming) and foxtail lillies and lavender and shasta daisies and feverfew and love-in-a-mist and rose campion and irises and columbine and...
I've also designed the yard to be relatively drought tolerant. And as many of the plants as possible serve multiple purposes. For instance, all but one of the trees I've planted are fruit-bearing, (the non-fruiting tree is an evergreen) as are most of the shrubs. Even the rugosa roses have decorative and edible hips, I also planted the rugosas because they'll be nice bird shelter. The previously-mentioned seed-bearing flowers fit into things too. I want to make sure that anyone wild who comes to visit has something to eat.
The increase in bird life tells me it's working. I've never been able to alter a landscape this dramatically before, and I love the fact that I can see the improvements I was hoping for in terms of wildlife attraction. It's so exciting.
Posted by sally at April 29, 2005 10:49 AM
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