I love sitting in my office looking out into our backyard. We have trees and shrubs that have berries and friut that attract a lot of birds. Some of the berries stay on the bushes all winter so it’s easy to see the birds.

Question About Bird Friendly Gardens.

I am trying to design a bird-type garden to put in next spring – yes I know we still have to live through this summer – but, I have the need to plan ahead. I would really like to include a crab apple tree in this area, but need some advice on what to buy/look for. Something that is both bird and people-friendly would be nice. Maybe a tree that doesn’t drop the fruit everywhere. Any ideas?

Answer.

What a lovely idea…right up there with designing a butterfly garden! As for clean, not fruit-dropping, that is a very hard call. Most of them are messy. What you need are trees whose flowers attract birds, but not necessarily produce fruit. Nature wants to bear fruit as that is its means of reproduction. Plus, many birds are attracted to fruit to eat.

These trees will not drop fruit:

• flowering plum
• spirea
• redbud
• lilac
• dogwood
• mock orange [fragrant!]

Other plants, not trees to consider:

• forsythia
• fuchsia
• honeysuckle
• jasmine
• trumpet vine

You could include a couple hardwood trees to bring in the downy woodpeckers in search of insects.

I was out walking a couple of days ago and noticed that the leaves are starting to turn brilliant colours again which usually means I can kiss summer goodbye for this year.

I was even chilly enough that at a couple of points, when the breeze picked up, I wished I had a pair of gloves and it was still a couple of degrees above freezing.

Well this morning it was minus 1 degree.

It’s a gorgeous morning and the air is clear of everything but sunshine, very bright out.

I will wait a few more hours I guess before heading out for my walk as it’s suppose to go up to 17 today, so later it will be just perfect for walking. The sun will be high enough in the sky not to blind me on my walk and the temp will be high enough I won’t need gloves today.

We have a few vines growing along our property fence so that we can see which vines we like the most before ripping out the things we don’t like. Well there is a vine growing that I see all over Moncton and when they fall colours come out they win my vote for a property fence.

Then there are snowball trees and hydiranges that change from bright white to pink when the temperature drops and they can stay like that for most of the winter if they don’t get blasted with too much high winds.

We don’t have any in our yard yet but we will have a couple of these beauties by next spring so that we can eventually enjoy their beauty without leaving home to see them.

I had a clematis that was neglected lastyear and went out of control. I cleaned it all up this spring and let it start right from the ground. We have about 2 feet of grown now so I hung each branch on a string so that it will grow up the huge trellis we have there.

While I was stringing it up I heard a little voice. No it wasn’t that kind of voice. It was a lady from Cape Breton. She had stopped at the bank across the street and saw our Lilacs, blue and white.

She was likely in her sixties and was telling me her grandmother had them at their old home but she hadn’t had any in many years becaue the old home property was sold.

I gave her a couple of big bunches of both the blue and the white.

She said I made her day and that God would bless me, but He already had. I got to be the one to give her a handful of memories.

Image via Wikipedia

Shade trees are a boon to the ecology and bring beauty to any yard. When picking a tree consider both its hardiness and what it will look like in your yard. Here you can find a list of the top five trees to incorporate into your landscaping for beauty and ease.

Maple Trees

Available in a variety of species, maple trees are the best known of New England trees. If you land has wet ground you may find the Silver Maple is suited well on your property. In the fall it turns a spectacular golden yellow. A brust of oranger will come from Sugar Maples in the fall. Get a beautiful deep red color in the fall with Japanese Maples.A Landscape Supply business will know exactly what grows in your area.

Birch Trees

Everyone knows the white bark and deep green leaves of the Birch tree. Some varieties of Birch feature peeling barks and have a smooth surface. Many Birches grow multiple trunks resulting in a clump of trees that grow together. While they can be susceptible to leaf miners and borers they tend to be healthy, hardy trees if well cared for. They can grow in moist soil but prefer well drained areas.

Ash Trees

Ash trees are particularly resistant to cold weather which makes them suitable even in the northern regions of New England. Along your driveway consider both the Green and White Ash, they have some resistance to salt damage. You can expect to have to only give these trees a minimum of care.

Oak Trees

Few things are as majestic as full grown Oak. Memories of Robin Hood and his Merry Men will spring to mind when you view the spread branches and rich foliage of an Oak. Think about Pin Oaks when your looking for something smaller in your landscape ideas. While Oaks do prefer an acidic soil they grow well all over the New England area. Slow to reach full size they can be huge trees that last for centuries if well treated.

Linden Trees

When they are young Lidens have a pyramid shape, it changes to a fuller shape as they age. Both little leaf and American love lots of sun but will do well in partial sun areas. Rarely plagued by insects they do well in just about any conditions. They also possess wonderfully fragrant flowers that add to the tree’s appeal.

Value comes from trees on your property. Few things in nature are as magnificent as a fully grown tree, and even fewer are as long lived. Aside from the obvious benefits of fresh air, shade and visual appeal, Trees are home for birds and other wildlife. Trees are relaxing to look at, and provide the perfect location for sitting at the end of a long day.

Summer heat raises energy costs, shade trees cut those costs. Reduce the noise around your property with shade trees. Well developed trees can be a favored spot for children looking for a hide out, make good structures for hanging swings and can be the perfect place to spot fairies with your kids.

Taking in our waste gases,Trees turn them into clean, breathable air, holding onto soil and reducing erosion and providing comforting beauty wherever they are planted. Shade tress are a solid investment in the health of the environment. Take a bit of time shopping at different Landscaping Supplier to find just the right tree that fits your price.

I have written a few other post about the deadly bushes that grow along our property fence, going around three sides of our property. You are taking your life in your hands if you get too close while mowing or just walking.

We are so tired of being grabbed and slashed by the bush if we don’t cover every square inch of bare skin.

They just kept growing and reaching further and further from the fence. It got to the point that we had about 6 feet of unusable area around our yard, what a waste of space.

Then, the winter before last, we had a couple of ice storms that brought down a 20 foot section of bush. The the following snow storms just added more weight causing more damage.

Come spring we decided to rip out that section. Jenny used a rake to hold the bush back while I cut them off at the base, a very dangerous process, but what a difference it made to that area.

Hey, there’s a fence under all this stuff.

Once we stopped the blood and I was bandaged up we planted a couple of grape vines in their place. The fence looked kinda bare for about a month while the grape vine slowly climbed the fence and start to cover it.

Well that was last year and the section of fence looks so much better that it gave me the energy to go at another section of our fence and do the same thing.

This section I started on today already has some vines growing through the mess that look great and have no thorns. I remember seeing them last year and thinking they would look good on the fence.

As I am cutting back the bushes to get at the trunks to cut them down I am trying to save those vines. I will see how they do on that section of the fence and maybe I will keep them. After all they are already rooted in the soil.