Flowers And Birds

The Snowball Bushes which were given to me by a friend, now deceased, were blooming up a storm this year. That's the neighbors' barn across the county road:

And they were incredibly beautiful, a fitting memorial to a beloved friend:

And the old fashioned yellow Iris, always later than the purple, began to bloom. These plants were on the old farm when I bought it, though I've moved them around and added compost to their soil:

The little bantam hens seem content and comfortable:

And their egg production is low this season, a blessing for me because I can't use them all, and not many people want small bantam eggs:

The Bridalveil Spirea in front of the house began blooming:

These too were part of the farm when I bought it, but were overgrown and not blooming heavily. I cut them back almost to the ground one year and, though it took several years, they rebounded in dramatic style:

This is the front of the old farm house, showing two of the Spirea and one Snowball bush. The funny looking ladder thing on the left is for the Mandarin Honeysuckle to climb on and the big bush on the right is a small part of the giant Lilac bush at the edge of the driveway:

The fantail pigeons are doing well although the one female who tried to make a nest on a narrow shelf below other nesting pairs still shows the poop stains she received for her poor choice of location. She's now nesting on the floor beneath a table, where she is mostly safe from the poop-storms:

And these couples made nests in cubbyhole near where I keep the egg cartons:

I've had three dead babies this year, but this one is doing well. I caught a parent feeding it one day:

They both became self-conscious at being photographed and stopped their feeding, turning their eyes on me:

Cats And Dogs

I am happy to say that all the house pets are healthy and happy, with no crises for me to handle. Bugsy and Daisy sat together on a yoga mat to watch my every move:

Similarly, the dogs use the back yard to watch my every move:

 
And the cats now expect a fun chase with the laser pointer every evening before I go to bed:

   When I work outdoors, the dogs can almost always see me from their back yard. Watching me holds their attention most of the time:

Clover, Fergus and Jack shared the big, green floor pillow:

 

And Bugsy, whose job it is to drape himself over things and look luxurious, enjoyed one of the pet beds:


Clover often curls up in the tall grass by the rocks at the north end of her fenced yard. I think she is sunning herself, as the sun hits her there at almost all times of the day:

A typical kitchen corner collection: Clover, Fergus, Jack and Caspar:


Only Daphne uses the dog house, but Clover at least came close to it on this day:

A typical scene in the farm house - Jack, Daisy and Sammy formed a line from the kitchen to the computer room:

Clover, Bugsy, Caspar and Jack:

Seamus, Bugsy and Daphne on one of the new yoga mats. They had ruined the old ones so I had to replace them. Poor Seamus can't navigate the slippery floors without them:

A Spring Walk In The South Field Pasture

When the dogs and I were finished with our walk across the north field (see previous two posts), I took off alone to visit the herd in the south field. The cows were napping or eating hay:

 Scarlett and Amy were bedded down on waste hay:

 
 Rosella and Jasmine were chowing down on hay in the bale feeder:

 Gracie was standing by herself, watching me:

I found Remy way out in the field with his nose underwater:


 A closer look revealed what he was doing. He was eating the grass which was growing under that water, because there was little if any edible grass where there was no water:

There was, however, a few tiny broadleaf plants turning green:

Blue was even farther out in the field, so I stopped and gave him some attention:

Seeing Blue getting affection got Remy's attention and he came out to join us:

But that was pretty much the end of it, so I began walking back toward the house and barn:

 Rosella had her head buried deep in the hay supply. She is due to calve in about four weeks, so she is eating for two:

The trace mineral salt block and stock tank were in good shape. There was so much standing water in the field that the animals weren't using much of the stock tank water. The water heater was still in place, though, for we are likely to get more freezing weather before we are frost free:

A Walk In The North Field - Part 2

The dogs and I had walked across the north field to the fence line, then crossed it and began exploring (see also Part 1, posted yesterday):

I noticed a steep but otherwise easy path downhill into the woods, so down we went. There was still some snow lingering down there in the shade:

But there was also some greenery which had kept its color beneath the snow all winter. This, I believe, was Christmas Fern:

Seamus, Clover and Daphne led the way:

We skirted the snow patches, headed east toward an old farm lane:

Most everything was still brown, but it made for easier walking:

And then I found another green fern. This one, I believe, was Broad Beech Fern:

More greenery - a lush clump of moss:

We returned uphill to the field and crossed back through the fence. Jack had by then wandered off but came running full speed when I called for him:

And we began returning home, with the barn and farm house ahead of us as our goal:

Happy dogs, making their way back across the field (Jack is that tiny orange thing in the upper right hand corner):

When we got to the gravel town road, the mailman was just driving by, so I stopped the dogs long enough to let him get past us. Then we crossed the road and returned home:

Spring Surprises

Spring has been full of surprises so far, including two early lambs at the neighbors' farm:

And of course snow melting off the roof of the barn, then freezing into long, crystalline icicles:

I started opening the pigeons' window to let in fresh air on days when it's not too cold:

And the little hens are beginning to lay more eggs:

The farm gets covered with snow, then it melts:

Even the snow piles beside the driveway are almost gone:

And the melting snow revealed these amazing plants by the back door. This is not new growth, but Bouncing Bet, wildflowers in the Pink family, which stayed green all winter beneath the snow:

And then, just as I was feeling all the glories of spring, we got buried once again:

I found the cattle's backs covered with snow and icicles hanging off their sides:

I had to drive through deep snow to bring out a new hay bale:

And I had to plow and shovel snow once again. You can see how the piles alongside the driveway grew overnight:

And inside the barn, the snow which had blown through gaps in the wall revealed animal tracks which went up into the hayloft. I suspect they are cats from across the road, and I think they are hunting my infestation of English Sparrows, for which I am grateful: