Clean-up Time

The snow is gone now thank goodnes, but what a mess it left behind! Today I just could not stand looking at the mess a minute longer and I went out and raked and raked and raked and only got about 1/4 of the back yard done. But at least the weather cooperated at last. It wasn't raining or snowing and it was fairly mild. I'm not sure what the temperature was because I don't have an outdoor thermometer, but it was sweater-weather - that's all I know and care about. I love that the little Chickadees don't pay the least attention to me while I'm out there working, they just fly around me. It's so cute.

It always amazes me that after I rake, the birds and squirrels love to dig in all the little piles that I leave behind. Oh, I should explain, I rake, but I don't pick up. I leave that for Monty - that's his contribution to the backyard and the birdfeeding operation! Last week, due to the snow, our trash was not collected, so tomorrow (our regular trash day), they will be picking up for last week, this week, and then both recycling and yard waste - in other words, everything in one fell swoop. So I really should have filled up the yard waste can and not just left the piles in the yard, but coulda, woulda, shoulda - that's me. Besides, the birds and squirrels enjoy the piles of debris.

I also took time to fix the squirrel baffles that I placed out during the cold weather to keep the squirrels off the suet feeders. I get a LOT of Northern Flickers and they love the suet, so I don't like the squirrels on it at all. I have four free hanging suet feeders and two that are on either end of a wooden seed feeder. But the free hanging ones are the ones the squirrels love and they have defeated my every effort to keep them away. So I bought these squirrel baffles at Wild Birds Unlimited and they seem to work just great - too well, in fact because now the Northern Flickers don't use those feeders either. So I had to make some adjustments to them today. Now tomorrow will tell the tale. Will the adjustments keep the squirrels away, but still entice the Flickers to feed . . . stay tuned!

• Posted at Wednesday, December 6, 2006 01:08 AM
• In General Category | Permalink