The Bo-Tam-Ical Gardens

05/05/2023

Day #5 = Eastern Bluebird egg #5!!! I was so excited to see the fifth egg!!! We've never had 5 eggs in Both broods for the year!!! It must be all of the dried mealworms I offer. 😃🎉🐦🐦🐦🐦🐦 !

05/03/2023

Day 4 = egg #4, the bluebird house that has stood the test of time, and can you guess my favorite color to have in my gardens? 😉💜

04/30/2023

I've been busy helping to move our daughter and her things into an apartment these past several days. Plus we've had rain and today it's very windy and chilly. It hasn't stopped me from visiting the garden centers. I have many new plants to pot and put into the gardens. I've been checking on the bluebird house daily since they built their second nest. Today there is finally an egg! We've been seeing the babies from the first brood visiting our yard and demanding to be fed. I fill the mealworm feeder once or even twice a day. The parents have been very busy! 😃🥰🌸💐🐛🦋🐦

04/06/2023

Last fall I decided to add a potted and hosta border along the back of our yard. Grass does not grow beyond the line of trees, so I'm letting it go natural and I'm adding shade loving perennials. My neighbor was very generous and gave me a wheelbarrow full of hostas that she divided from her gardens. I planted 15 clumps! Photo #3 is the last peek at the baby bluebirds. I'm always afraid one might fall out of the house when I check on them. It won't be long before they fledge.

04/03/2023

Here in North Alabama, April means it's time to hang up the Hummingbird feeders! I can't wait to see the little jewels again. 🥰 At 8 days old the baby bluebirds are getting feathers. The parents have been very busy feeding them!

04/01/2023

I bought this beautiful perennial Hybrid Phlox in September 2022. It survived in a pot on our patio during a very cold winter. I couldn't believe the new growth last month! I decided to divide it. It was very pot bound. I was able to divide it into 4 pots and I gave one to my neighbor. I highly recommend this perennial.

03/31/2023

Thursday, March 30, 2023 The baby bluebirds are 5 days old. When I was sitting on the patio in the evening, the mama bluebird came to get some suet. That's when I realized that the mealworm feeder was empty, again. I filled it for them.

03/30/2023

Here's a Thursday Throwback. Back in 2000 my husband built this awesome bird feeder for the bluebirds. Other birds won't enter the feeder like a bluebird will. Unfortunately a squirrel destroyed it. Photos #2 & #3 are the current feeders I use for the dried mealworms. The blue feeder and the wood platform feeder. I also provide a mixture of seeds, black sunflower seeds, and suet.

03/29/2023

03/28/2023

Here's my Eastern Bluebird story for the month. I hadn't checked the house until March 10th and was surprised to see 4 eggs! On 3/13 I had to protect the house and eggs from low temperatures in the 20's! 🥶 This happened again from 3/18-20th! I removed the protection on 3/21 and on 3/22 I discovered there were 5 eggs! 😃 On 3/26 all 5 babies hatched! 🥰🐦🐦🐦🐦🐦

03/27/2023

I'm an all around plant lover, so it won't surprise you that I have indoor plants too. I grow orchids, Africa violets, typical houseplants, Thanksgiving cacti, and now Easter Cacti! I went to Walmart today to see if I could find an Easter cactus. I was so happy when I saw them. They have them marked as Spring Cactus, but they're definitely Easter Cacti. The second photo is one of my Thanksgiving cacti that is currently blooming, and photo #3 shows the three holiday cacti.

03/27/2023

The story behind the name: In 2022 my daughter's, and had our property certified with the National Wildlife Federation as my birthday gift. They named our property Highland Bo-Tam-Ical Gardens. We decided to drop the name of our street for my Facebook and Instagram pages. I was so happy to receive such a special gift from my daughters. ☺️🥰