Mother Earth's Garden

The other day I talked about feeding the birds through the winter. I have to admit I’m a big fan of watching the birds, especially through the cold winter months when there’s not much other action happening in my backyard garden.

I thought I’d put together a list of gift ideas for the bird lovers on your Christmas list.

If you feel like making your own gift make up a 6 pack or a dozen bird seed ornaments for your recipient to hang on the trees in their back yard.
Make them a bird feeder.
Make up some bird feed in a jar, put …read more

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If you have a bird fan on your Christmas list, or someone who enjoys feeding the birds, you can make them a jar mix they can feed to their backyard friends. It will be a fun and easy gift they can use.

Just layer different types of bird friendly seeds and nuts into a glass jar, wrap a ribbon around your jar, or add a fabric topper. Don’t forget to add instructions on how to use your bird seed gift.
Here are a few ideas for bird friendly treats to add to your bird seed jar gift.

sunflower seeds
mixed nuts
peanuts
raisins
sesame seeds
millet
thistle seed

Here are …read more

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I was watching the birds out the window this morning while I was enjoying my cup of coffee. There were quite a few cardinals, and even a blue jay enjoying themselves in my garden this morning.

I love seeing cardinals this time of year, they’re like a bright color patch on the landscape.
I enjoy feeding the birds through the winter months around our house. They’re fun to watch out the window during the cold winter days.
I’ve written about feeding the birds here at Mother Earth’s Garden in the past, here are some of my favorite bird feeding posts:

A Christmas Tree For …read more

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This time of the year I always start thinking about the birds, and their journey to make it through the cold northern winters. I always try to add something to my garden to help them do just that.

I have several evergreen trees and bushes to help give them shelter, and several bushes and perennials with late season berries and seed heads to help feed them through the winter.
I also put a bird feeder out through the coldest months to fill in the gaps. I try to keep it filled through the winter. I usually let it sit …read more

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If you want to attract hummingbirds to your garden this summer here are 7 plants growing in my garden the hummingbirds seem to love.
One quick tip, hummingbirds love longer narrow flowers they can dip their beaks in.
1. Bergamot or Bee Balm (another name for it is Monarda) is a hummingbird favorite in my garden. These perennials come back year after year, I love it when they’re in full bloom. They look like someone’s having a bad hair day.
 
2. Petunias are another hummingbird favorite at my house. Since they’re an annual and don’t come back every year, I plant a …read more

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I love watching the birds in my garden. It’s one of my favorite things to do on cold winter days. To enjoy the birds in the winter, I like to plan ahead in the fall. I check my bird feeders about this time of year to make sure they will make it through the winter. If a bird feeder looks like it’s seen better days I either take it up to the barn for repair, or discard it and build a replacement.
I was looking for some easy bird feeder plans for myself earlier today, and I thought I’d …read more

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During the winter when gardening is slow, I love to watch the birds. I enjoy watching the action around my bird feeders. Birds don’t just eat birdseed. There are as many different snacks for birds as there are types of birds.
Bluebirds and woodpeckers enjoy the occasional dried mealworm and orioles love jelly.
Many birds will eat fruit slices, cranberries, raisins, or grapes if you place them around your feeder or hang the fruit from a tree.  I posted a recipe for bird seed ornaments that works as a bird snack all year long.
Here’s another bird feeder recipe.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 …read more

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If you want hummingbirds to feel at home in your garden this summer, you need to start now. The seed and garden catalogs have been arriving in the mail, browse through them to find these great hummingbird attracters:
1. . Bee Balm (Monarda Didyma, Oswego Tea)- You can find Bee Balm with red, pink, purple, or white blooms. Hummers love the long narrow tube blooms.
2. Trumpet Honeysuckle (Lonicera Sempervirens)- Not invasive like it’s close cousin the Japanese Honeysuckle, this sun loving plant grows in a rambling vine. Hummingbirds love the mid-spring, long tubular blooms.
3.. Trumpet Creeper (Canpsis Radicans)- Another …read more

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I’ve been checking out Bird-by-Bird Gardening by Sally Roth. It’s an excellent resource for anyone just getting started gardening for birds. It breaks down the different types of birds and discusses what features you need in your garden to attract specific bird families.
It also shows several specific garden designs and makes suggestions for improving your existing garden. It’s more of a reference guide than a book you would sit down and read cover to cover.
It is a great beginner book for someone who wants to learn more about creating a habitat in their back yard to attract birds. If …read more

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Over the next few weeks I’m going to talk about planning your garden. This is the time of year to plan out new gardens, and remake old gardens that aren’t working. Over the next couple weeks I’m going to go into detail on some of the different types of garden you can create.
Some of the gardens I’ll be covering include gardening to attract birds, butterflies, and beneficial insects. I’ll also dive into plants to include in cutting, vegetable, kitchen, shade, border, and herb gardens.
I want to know what types of gardens you’re interested in finding out more about. Sooo, I’m …read more

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