Get Ready to Count Some Birds!

Jo Ellen Roe January 30, 2015 0 Comments

gbbc-2014 (2)

February is just around the corner, and it’s time for the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC), held annually in mid-February. This year, it’s February 13 to February 16!

Take a look at this image from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology website:

This map depicts how many people sent in reports in 2014, from the United States and around the world. This year, even more will participate. Why not be one of the newbies? Or one of the oldies, if you’ve done this before.

Here are the answers to a few questions you might have about the Great Backyard Bird Count. ... Read More

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Front Yard Gardens: A Book Review from Serendipity Gardens

Jo Ellen Roe January 23, 2015 4 Comments

Primeau

What’s a gardener to do when the wind howls and the snow flies in January? Reading an inspirational gardening book is always a good idea. This post is a review of just such a book — Front Yard Gardens by Liz Primeau, a Canadian garden professional and writer. The book, published by Firefly Books Ltd. in 2003, includes hundreds of beautiful photographs, most by Andrew Leyerle.

An updated and expanded version of the book came out in 2010.

I came across this book a few years ago while perusing gardening books in a bookstore. I loved the cover, which depicted several beautiful front yard gardens. (I later learned that the top left photo is of the author’s garden.) Those pictures inspired me to begin thinking about how to transform my front yard into something far more interesting than the small sward of grass it was at the time. ... Read More

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Nature-Related Toys for Kids

Jo Ellen Roe January 5, 2015 0 Comments

In my last post, I listed several nature-related books that I bought for my grandchildren this Christmas. We had our final Christmas shindig of the year last night, and I believe those books were hits.

I intended to write a second installment, in which I would list a number of nature-related or eco-friendly toys found online that I thought the kids would enjoy.

Despite the fact that preparations for the actual events overtook my intention, I did in fact spend time online and found several toys that fit my three basic criteria. The toys must: ... Read More

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Nature-Related Books for Kids

Jo Ellen Roe December 10, 2014 0 Comments

At Serendipity Gardens, we try to provide an outdoor place that is attractive to kids. We have a pond with frogs and fish, a swing set and play dome, a fire pit for conversation and roasting marshmallows, lots of interesting plants, including instant edibles like cherry tomatoes, and lots of space for running, playing imaginative games, and more.

I read about “nature deficit disorder,” and I think to myself, “My grandchildren will never have that … because their parents make sure they get outside, including in our garden.” ... Read More

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Birding Resources from Serendipity Gardens

Jo Ellen Roe November 21, 2014 0 Comments

Once a few years ago, my husband was talking on the phone near an open window. The person on the other end of the line asked, “Where are you? It sounds like you are in a park.”

The noise the caller was hearing was the early morning chorus of the birds. Serendipity Gardens is  home to quite a few avian species. The ones that come readily to mind are red-winged blackbirds, robins, black-capped chickadees, sparrows, house finches, bluejays, cardinals, goldfinches, mourning doves, downy woodpeckers, hummingbirds, wrens, and last year for the first time, two brown thrashers. In addition, cedar waxwings usually visit when the berries on the serviceberry tree are ripe. There are others, I suspect, that I cannot identify. ... Read More

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