3rd - The weather is so nice right now, with highs in the mid to upper 80s for the most part, but with mornings and evenings nice and cool in the 60s. All flowering plants are having their "finalle" of blooms and migrating hummingbirds are making the most of it.
I head the screech owl singing early this morning, after having been quiet for what seems a long time. It is in November when he normally returns to the box on our chimney, after all the leaves have fallen off the trees and he no longers has their cover. The box faces west and he enjoys sitting in the entrance during the afternoon to soak up the suns rays.

1th - The weather this week has been wonderful, almost like Spring, with highs in the low to mid 80's! Hurricane Ike just skirted the DFW area as it came up and bought us a little rain, but the nice cool dry air that moved in afterwards from the west and north was most welcome! Fall is just around the corner...
12th - I looked out my window early this evening and there inside my feeder sat a rabbit! He's baaaack! Not seen him/her in the yard for a year or so but he has been around the neighbourhood. A few years ago he spent the winter in our garden, pruning my asian jasmine for me! That jasmine is no longer there as I ripped it all out and changed the look of that area, but there is plenty of other good plants I'm sure he'll find tasty! I've noticed one or two chopped off plants, but nothing serious. Hopefully he won't find my potted veggies which are doing good but I'm sure he will unless he finds other plants he prefers.
8th - Another garden bird - White-faced ibis! About 6 of them flew over this afternoon! :-)
5th- Got a new garden bird today, finally - Blue-grey Gnatcatcher! I would not have seen it if it hadn't have called, and he only did it the one time. I kept my eye on the tree till he finally moved and I could see him! This makes #115 for the garden.
3rd - The weather has turned nice and cool now with morning lows in the upper 60s and highs around 80! Perfect for getting some gardening done.

29th - Carpenter bees have been very busy the last few weeks. They have been nesting in our wood pile. In the spring they will drill perfect, round holes into a log then make a 90 degree turn to run with the grain of the wood. They'll go in as much as a foot, maybe more depending on the length of the wood. They will lay eggs along with "pollen bread" which when the grubs hatch, will feed off this bread. The new bees will then pupate and emerge as an adult bee at the end of summer (around now). They will then busily collect pollen for the coming winter which they will store in the tunnels they made in spring. They will then spend the winter inside their tunnels until the following Spring when the cycle will start over again and they will either add to their existing tunnels or start new ones.
Carpenter bees are considered a solitary type bee, although they do have small family type hives. The Male bee has a white spot on his head and will be noticed more as they will come right up to any person (or animal) that gets too close to their nest. They do not sting however as they do not have a stinger. The female is able to sting but will only do so if bothered or "cornered". They are wonderful polinators and I've been watching them (probably this years new young) for the past few weeks makeing trips back and forth from my bog sage to their nest gathering lots of pollen on their legs. The male will come right up do my face and give me a good looking over!!! Satisfied that I'm not a thread he will continue on with his pollen gahering!
28th - The Carrot seeds are now germinating right on schedule but as of yet no spinach. They may take a few more days. Hopefully they'll come up and that will be all the seeds that I planted. However, I am impressed with the difference that the white pots make. I can water the plants in either the morning or the evening and they will go a whole day without totally drying out, even in full sun most of the day.
25th - Now my beets are coming through slowly with the Kohlobri, bush beans, brussel sprouts & cabbage! Carrots have not come up yet nor the spinach.
23rd - WOW! Well that didn't take long! The first of my seeds that I put into pots just two days ago are already germinating! Coming up first are the Mesclun and Radishes, which are always fast to germinate, especially in this warm weather with warm soil.
21st - Planted an assortment of veggie seeds today to see if I can get a quick crop of some simple salad veggies before frost. Included: Carrots, Radish & Kholobri (in same long tub), Spinich & Mesclun, Brussel Sprouts and Bush Beans, Cabbage and a tub with some small Bell Pepper plants (about 9" tall) & extra radish seeds. I also threw in two potato halves which were shooting into a compost bag just to see what will happen! As I no longer have any room in the ground left now that our pool is in I decided instead to try them in pots. I've put them in the same location as they were when in the ground originally. I've also used white colored pots this time as even terracotta here gets very hot. Hopefully this will help the seeds to grow and help prevent the soil from drying so fast. I should start seeing the first seeds in 7-10 days.
15th - This past week there has been another Rio Grand Chirping Frog in my back yard right outside our window! The weather has cooled down a little and when it rains he seems to be noisier! So, the other night I wanted to try and find this little frog and out I went with my flashlight. It took me a while to find him, even though he was calling a lot, as it just kind of echoed all around. I finally pinpointed the spot where he was, just a couple of feet off the ground and after I was ready to give up I spotted him sitting on a Turks Cap leaf which was well hidden! He is tiny and makes such a loud noise for something so little! He is barely an inch in length. I believe this is a second one for our garden area. Native to the Rio Grand Valley in South Texas, RG Chirping frogs have moved througout Texas by means of potted tropical plants.

Above: Rio Grand Chirping Frog, click to enlarge.

2nd - Western kingbird young are constantly begging to be fed, flying from tree to tree following the adult.
- The carpenter bee which we have had this summer has now finished its tunnel in a piece of wood in our log pile. She's closed it up but I still see her visiting my "bog sage", hanging on to a flower and bringing the branch down with her weight! They are big black bees, like pure black bumbles.
- Martins should now be spending nights at a local roost site. They still return during the afternoon and fuss over "their house" as if makeing sure all is still in order before they leave.
- Temperatures have been extremely hot the past two weeks with tems of 106 yesterday and 107 today and is forcasted to remain high for the rest of the week.

30th - Having been away for a week or so the temperatures on my return here were so high I wasn't sure what to expect when I reutrned! However, even with 105 temps, sprinklers on a few times while I was away and some helpfull neighbours I returned to a thriving garden. Thankfully we had some rain yesterday which helped everything. Tap water just does not have the same effect on plants that rainwater does.
Black-eyed susans are really flowering well right now, being very tolerant of the heat and just loving full sun. Conflowers are slowly finishing, leaving their thistle-like seed heads which will add to next years plants.
10th - Today the last of the purple martin fledgelings left the nest. They would still come back during the day to be fed here and there and spend the night but were enjoying their new found freedom!
Although one of the nests discarded their first batch of eggs the second brood were successfull. Not as high numbers this year compared to last years colony, which had 8 pair, this years 3 pairs fledged 10 young martins between them.

30th - This evening at 9:30pm our local screech owl was sitting on the overhead wires singing away and around 6am this morning there was a great-horned owl singing in our garden just outside our bedroom window! 25th - I just spotted another little baby green Anole yesterday! He was hopping from leaf to leaf in my crossvine. Also, a Mississippi Kite was flying around the past few days, they nest not too far from here and a lot of the young are seen flying around at this time of year.
Ruby-throated hummingbirds are busy feeding from our flowers mostly and only occasionally come to the feeder. The other day one tried attacking a Great-tailed grackle and chased it out of the tree and right down the street! It then returned to its coral honeysuckle and Red Yucca flowers!
18th - The other purple martin baby has now fledged but still returns to the house as gets fed during the day!
Also, I saw the baby robin today. I was hoping that the two robins I've had here since the winter would nest and today I saw the adult feeding it on the telephone pole! They've been in our garden the whole time, picking through the shady flower beds and coming to the mister bath during the middle of the day. Several months back I found that the male had attacted a female to the area but expected them both to have left for more northern parts, but they were obviously happy with their wintering garden!
16th - One of the purple martin young have now fledged. In this particular cavity there were just two young, the other is still there. In the other compartments the babies are much younger as they were a second batch of eggs which had been laid after the first attempt was unsuccessful.
1st - Today was a HOT one! 96 degrees and a good day for the birds to come to the mister and the bird bath! Considering the heat however, most plants seem to be handling it well this year. All the new plants I planted last year got so much rain last year that hopefully they were able to get their roots in deep and hopefully help them survive better this year.
Day lily's are still flowering well, I must get some more of those! There are so many colors to choose from and each year they just get bigger and do better. After a few years you can divide them to provide new plants and which will allow them to flower better.

15th - Last night I heard and saw my first of the season Common Nighthawks flying over our house. Also - Mockingbirds and chickadees are busy feeding young here in the garden and all the birds are being very noisy with their squeaking babies!
- I planted a new passionvine yesterday, I don't have the name of it off hand but it is a red one with a white center, very pretty. Some of my favorite day lily's are now flowering and they're all doing so much better this year after I divided several of them last year.
- Finally, I had a very cute baby possum at our bird feeder and he would feed in the middle of the afternoon, which is unusual because they are nocturnal, but it is a baby one so it probably hasn't learned that yet! It would sit in the feeder eating all the bird sead, little seeds stuck on the end of its little pink nose! Adhorable!
10th - Today I had a new bird for the garden! In the front of our house I turned around to look at a bird my mother had pointed out and there in the middle of the road was a Roadrunner! I couldn't believe it! I ran up our neighbours drive and flew up onto the fence! This was number 113 for the yard.

Above - Greater Roadrunner, click to enlarge.

5th - Warmer weather with temps in the 80s and lows in the 60s is encouraging most plants to really thicken up now. Occasional rains do wonders for everything! I've planted several pots over the past few days with some bright colored annuals for instant color including Geraniums and Vincas.
Yesterday I noticed several Gulf Fritillary butterfly caterpillars on my passionvine; it is their host plant and I planted it for them specifically. It comes back every year, being in a very sheltered, sunny spot and dozens of small plants grow up around the same area from seed. The butterflies certainly have no shortage of their vine here! I planted several more this year in different spots, including up the post of our deck where it can climb to the top and spread over the lattice canopy. It will be nice to see lots of the bright orange butterflies coming to lay their eggs.

22nd - A Lincoln's Sparrow was working my flower beds this morning and baby squirrel's were going crazy, running back and forth, climbing over very flimsy, thin branches and almost falling off! They were comical to watch.
All shrubs and perennials are now starting to really thicken up. Clematis are all flowering now, and my climbing rose is full of buds and in another week will be completely covered in bright red blooms.
In my cactus garden I have a new cactus - the Claret Cup and it completes that bed. This plant grows throughout the Chisos Mtns of Big Bend, which is a place I love. I was saving a spot for this plant and it has just opened two of its bright scarlet flowers. The prickly pear cactus is a little later, normally flowering in May and producing yellow / orange flowers.

Claret Cup Cactus, Click to enlarge.

4th - Saw my first hummingbird of the season wizz by this morning. It had been feeding on my coral honeysuckle but I only caught sight of it as it flew off and was unable to tell if it was a Ruby throated or Black-chinned.
Did lots of gardening this week, moved several plants to better locations and tackled my cactus bed. It had so many weeds that had taken underneth my main prickly pear cactus that I could not pull them out without getting thorns all over me! So, I removed most of the cactus, leaving just one main, healthy clump, as well as several other succulent type plants in that bed. Then I pulled out all the weeds, put down landscaping material which allows water to pass through but prevents weeds. I put this right up close to the base of the plants then covered it all with pea gravel. It looks so much better and now I won't have to try to weed between the cactus!
Most of my tropicals I had potted up over the winter indoors have now been planted back outside. Next I will fill in some gaps with bright colored annuals untill the rest of the perennials fill in.
3rd - Purple martins are now bringing in nest material, mostly pine needles at this point.
1st - Looking out of the window this morning I saw a couple of yellow-rumped warblers, the one male being extremely colorful, almost in full breeding plumage.
- The Mockingbird in our garden has been trying to chase off the Robin from "his" yaupon holly tree.... I think the Robin won!

27th - Its been a busy month and I've not had a chance to update here much. Everything is now taking off in the garden, Spring is finally here! Leaves are bursting open on the trees and many perenials and vines are putting out their first flowers. Creeping flox is flowering and spreading, my "Little Jane" Magnolia is opening its last giant flowers, coral honeysuckle is full of coral blooms ready for any migrating hummer, as is the crossvine. Native perenials such as turks cap, Mexican petunia, Mexican mint marigold, Texas Star hibiscus are all setting out their new leaves. Coral berry bushes are getting their fresh lime green leaves, day lillies are thickening up well and all my potted tropicals I kept in the garage over winter are ready to be planted back into their old places.
- Every morning a Robin sits under our windows and sings away, coming to the bird bath for a drink. He's quite brave and will allow me to get within 8 feet or so before flying off. Carolina wrens are very busy collecting nest material and orange-crowned and yellow rumped warblers are still here, usually along with a Ruby Crowned Kinglet.
- We had a good deal of rain last week, the maximum amount we can tolerate without causing too much mess. Temps are now reaching mid 80s with lows around 50 or so. Soon I hope to be seeing migrants as they fly through. I hope to get at least one or two new yard birds this year, I'll have to wait and see what shows up. My purple martins have increased in numbers, now around 8 or so and last years young have yet to show up, which will increase the numbers even more. Hopefully I will have at least 8 pair again this season.
2nd - After a very warm few days with temps reaching 80, today is cloudy with a chance of rain. We desperately need some! Plants are really starting to come up now and my crab apple has flowers on it, although not that heavy this year.
Just a few more weeks and we'll be turning our clocks forward!

24th - A second adult, male martin has arived this morning, joining the adult pair that arrived yesterday afternoon.
23rd - PURPLE MARTINS are BACK! My first pair showed up late this afternoon, circling overhead, so I hurried outside and opened up the house for them. They flew right to #9! This pair always seem to be the first to arrive and although they go into #9 they normally end up in another cavity, but keep #9 as theirs as well! It never ceases to amaze me how they fly back and forth every year to Brazil, to return to the same cavity. They are amazing birds and it is so nice to have them "home"!
12th - This weekend was a busy one. We had some gorgeous weather and it was a great time to get outside and start some cleaning up of dead growth & removing all the leaves. I started by emptying my compost bin of its contents and spread it over some flower beds around the pool. This then left me with a pretty much empty bin to refill with all the leaves and other dead matter. I relocated several perenials in the front and back which were outgrowing their space. There are still others to move but at least the front has now been cleared of its leaves and spring bulbs are more visible. Next, I will start in the back and work my way around, cutting back all the old stems of perennials. Then I'll rake out all the leaves from the beds which they protected over the winter and will then mow over them to mulch them down, finally raking them back into the flowerbeds where they will finish decomposing and adding to the soil.
2nd - New Yard Bird! This afternoon I was outside and happened to look up into the pecan tree behind us when I noticed a group of birds perched in the top. They wern't the usual cedar waxwings and after running inside to find my binoculars my suspicion was confirmed - 7 Eastern Bluebirds! I knew they were in the area, yet have waited years to just see one fly over. Finally, I have been rewarded! This is #112 for the garden.
1st - A frost came in last night, covering everything with a pretty, wintery coat of white, although the sun is shining and will soon melt away the "crunchyness." Birds are flocking to the feeders and I saw a cheeky squirell, stuffing mouthfulls of burlap into his mouth that he has stripped from the base of one one my plants! I'm sure he thinks this is great nesting material. The other day he was checking out a piece of fleece I had placed over another tender plant which I am trying to overwinter in the ground. It was about a foot high and he jumped on top of it, sniffed it, and proceeded to jump around on it like a trampoline, jumping up a good 6-8 inches each time, as though he wasn't sure what was under his feet! It was very comical to watch, but he obviously thought the burlap was easier to collect instead of the bouncy fleece blanket!

27th - Finally the sun has come out and encourages me outside. There will be planty of cleaning up to do in the garden over the next month. Purple Martins should be arriving from Brazil to our area during the last few weeks of February and before then I'll make sure their housing is clean and ready to welcome them.
Hyacinths are now starting to poke their tops out of the soil, as are the tips of daffodils. Over the next few weeks I'll start cutting back some of the dead growth from shrubs and perennials, starting on one side of the garden and slowly working my way around. Dead leaves of Hellebores (Christmas Roses) can now be cut back to allow the new leaves to take their place and to allow the flowers to show up better.
1st - A beautiful, sunny but cold morning starts off our New Year! A good day for some puttering in the garden and watching the birds eat their hearts out at their favorite feeders!

30th - Beautiful weather today, mid 60s. Squirrels were running around chasing each other like crazy! Lots of birds are coming to the feeders including ruby crowned kinglets, orange crowned & pine warbler, chickadees, yellow-rumped warblers, cardinals, doves, downy woodpeckers and juncos.
Some other camelias are now blooming, others having finished by December. Bulbs such as narccissus have buds already and pansys are adding a nice splash of color in the tubs they're in. Most other perennials are now finished, but still have they're seed heads attached for the birds to feed off. I will leave these dead plants in place until around February, at which point I will remove all dead plant growth and clean up for Spring. This way the dead plant material still provides some food and shelter to birds and other critters during the coldest months.
Next year the garden will change again, most plants returning, but a garden is never finished and will always continue to change!
So, heres to the New Year and happy gardening to all!
21st - Had a Pine Warbler on my feeder today. I was hoping I'd see one this winter in my garden as I had my first Pine warbler last winter at the same feeders.
20th - Well the weather has now turned cooler as of a week ago, when we finally had our first frost, allbeit a mild one. This came a month later than the average frost date of around 15th November! The color change on the trees was also later, only now the golden leaves of my Pistache turning a dull brown as they carpet the ground.
It seems strange but for the past couple of months my house finches disapeared from the feeders. Just yesterday I found a female at the feeder again. They're here all year round but may have been enjoying natures natural food instead! Berries on hollies and nandinas stand out against the now dead perrenials and shrubs. Camelias are now blooming, my first one flowering about a month ago.
I am still in the process of transplanting a few shrubs here and there, into locations which are better for them. While trimming back some lantanas the other day I found an avacado tree about a foot tall, which I had forgotten I'd planted! Unfortunatly the frost nipped the new shoot out of its top but it may come back, and have since potted it up so I can bring indoors the next time the temps dip below freezing. My Papaya tree which I also have in a pot and which is around 7 feet tall is still doing well and just keeps on producing more and more flowers! It doesn't seem to be putting out any leaves in a hurry, but its flowers are pretty, shaped like little catherine wheels. Hopefully it will do well over the winter in our garage so I can place it back outside in the spring.

Flowers of the Papaya tree, wintering over in our garage.

1st - A warm, windy day starts off this month, with a little drizzle. We really need some rain right now as everything has dried out due to the mild, sunny few weeks we've had. Colors on the trees have also turned this week, finally, giving our Red oak its lovely orange, red shade.