Requiem for a Tree

The strong Wheatley winds finally got the better of our tenacious half-dead Manitoba Maple last weekend. Given that the living half made for a lopsided configuration over he dead half, and upon further inspection the entire trunk was toast from the inside out.....well, it was only a matter of time. Still, it was a sad discovery at 7am on Monday morning.

We are clearing away a lot of the branches and brush....but have decided to leave the main bulk of the tree right where she fell, as a sort of ecological lawn sculpture. Some of the branches may still actually bear leaves this year, in spite of everything, making for a nice little natural gazebo under the limbs. Plus, the birds love it, and had several homes in the dead branches before all this happened. Who says a shade tree can't be horizontal?




Of course, SOME of the tree had to be removed for safety reasons.....which we will put to good use at Rawk the Coop.

Spring, Continued...

Some serious Spring weather finally found it's way to southwestern Ontario over the last few days. Temperatures actually topped 30 C on Friday and Saturday, leading to a whole new explosion of plant growth around the yard. Oh yeah, and a few bugs too.

This Maple is leafing for Manitoba

When it's warmer outside than inside....

Bon Jovi never sang about a Bed of Daffodils

Even the bad stuff is growing....

New Pets

Not that we go looking for these things, as they tend to find US, but in the short span of yesterday, we managed to acquire two new "pets".

This cat had been skulking around the property for a few days but hadn't come near us. The next thing we know he's whining at the back door and actually climbing the screen....with our three cats waiting on the other side of course with grappling poles and boiling oil, waiting to repel the interloper.

We offered him a bit of kibble on the back porch and he ATTACKED the food in a way I have never seen. We could feel every rib and vertebrae, like he hadn't eaten in quite some time. As you can see, he also looks pretty beat up....not sure if he's too weak to hunt or defend himself....or just a bad fighter. :)

We have named him "Holstein", since he not only bears the proper colouring but also the bone-rack structure of a tired old dairy cow.

Holstein the Cat

We also came across this sparrow on our driveway yesterday. He looked like he had died standing up, as he had not moved in hours or even responded to our approach, just sitting there in the open. Finally he moved a bit, and it turns out he's just blind. Jane scooped him up on a stick before Holstein actually found a fight he might win.

Not sure if he's just too young and fell out of the nest before his eyes were developed....or if it's a birth defect and he's blind for life, a pretty crappy fate for a bird. We're keeping him in a cat carrier in the garden shed, safe and sound with food and water, until he shows any signs of visual awareness.

Say Hello to our leeeetle friend

April Sunshine

The weekend was gorgeous, with Friday and Saturday featuring full sunshine and temperatures around 25 C, prompting a bucnh of outdoorsy type work and play. The flowers are blooming, and we're getting the garden ready for planting, having already started some seedlings in the house.

"Till" we meet again - working up the clay with the new electric tiller

Thar she Grows - Daffodils are blooming

Hocus Krokus, with Autofocus!

His 'n Hers Chillaxing