Garden Update and Hummingbird Dance

Posted on June 26, 2020 by

29 Comments

Good morning and welcome to my garden where life is growing and hummingbirds are courting!

Here’s the view of the garden beds from above.

Herbs and flowers are at their peak and edibles are in various stages of growth. Bush beans are flourishing and tomatoes are adjusting. I forgot to plant potatoes this year but no matter, they are sprouting up wherever they please.

Heavy rainfall has passed so watering is now a necessity. Benji sees to that.

Tiger does his part in the garden too by guarding the compost bin – here he is sleeping on the job.

An entire bed is devoted to strawberries though this may be the last year. Many have been plundered by insects or tiny slugs perhaps. I managed to salvage a few and will be on watch as they continue to ripen. Here are two of the best from today surrounded by new raspberries and thimbleberries. Aren’t they pretty?

On the other side of the fence the apple trees are heavy with young blushing apples. I hope it is more than a tease and they continue to grow and stick around till fall. I have yet to get a good crop.

Meanwhile in the shady backside of the yard hummingbirds can be seen courting.

It usually starts around the feeder where two stop by for a drink.

Afterwards the chase is on until the male perches high above to preen and fluff and flitter, flashing his head this way and that turning it a brilliant red.

The female seems unimpressed so far – perhaps she is already spoken for or playing hard to get.

At least for now.

~ Susanne

Category: Cats, GardensTags: , , , , , ,

29 Comments on “Garden Update and Hummingbird Dance”

  1. Lovely post of your lovely garden and yard. Our strawberries were hit by tiny slugs this year, but we still had a bountiful harvest. Our thimbleberries and raspberries are slow to come on, and our only fruit tree, a lodi, has never produced more than one apple. I heard my husband mutter the other day, “That tree is coming out.”

    Most of all I enjoyed your images of the hummingbirds! Quite colorful is that male. The female is probably playing games for a bit.

    • Thanks for your comment! 🙂 I’m glad to hear I’m not the only one with strawberry issues. I got a bit discouraged when I went to pick some and most of them had bites already taken out! Maybe I just need to thin them for next year. My raspberries and thimbleberries are only just ripening. At least they are off the ground so don’t get partially eaten before I get to them.

      I’m hopeful I’ll get a few apples this year. And I’m so glad you enjoyed the hummingbirds. They are so fun to watch! 🙂

    • Thanks John! The hummers are happy and fun to watch! I was hoping to get a video of the courtship dance like you did but they are too fast for me.

  3. Nice garden, Susanne. Love your hummingbirds. And the apples look just the right size for the deer to eat.

  4. Thank you for inviting us into your garden. I had a lovely visit! It’s great to see the hummingbirds and guard cats enjoying the garden!🌞🌺

  6. Great post and fantastic photos, Susanne. Your garden looks absolutely fantastic; I’m in awe 🥰

  7. A beautiful garden and yard! It is good to see you have some feline helpers as I know that takes a lot of work to keep up.
    My garden is a resting bed of soil in the Arizona summer heat. I have some herbs in the shade of the patio, but that is it until cooler weather comes.

    • Thanks so much! Yes, it’s great to have 2 kitty helpers! I often wondered what gardening in the desert heat would be like.. less work I imagine?

      • I can’t really tell you yet. We put together a raised bed last October and grew tomatoes (amazing tomatoes!), peppers (which died), carrots (the dogs trampled), celery (did not harvest in time and it was bitter) and onion chive (delicious). I do not have a green thumb and have almost no experience gardening in the desert, but I will keep you posted when we grow again. At least I enjoy it!

      • Just like every place I suppose, some things work, others don’t. I imagine the tomatoes were thrilled with the sunshine!

  8. Loved the hummer pictures!! I’ve seen one in our yard so far.

  9. Our garden cat, Russell Sprout, passed on a year or so ago. It’s not the same without him. I think the garden misses him. Your cats look to be doing a great job! 🐈

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