Today is Earth Day, which started in 1970, and events worldwide are held to demonstrate support for environmental protection. The main focus has changed throughout the years, with recycling efforts boosted in 1990 and in 2000, the push was on global warming and pushing for clean energy. The organizers behind Earth Day are hoping to use the 2016 celebration to plant 7.8 billion trees, divest from fossil fuels and make cities 100 per cent renewable.
Trees for Earth Day
There is no blue in the sky but there some blue on the ground. Although the Siberian Squill is now considered to be an invasive species after being brought to this country as an ornamental and it is hard to eradicate so the bulb has spread rapidly. It very hardy and cold tolerant, and is left untouched by critters from voles to deer.
Sea of Blue
The first calf for the season on our farm arrived yesterday, although it missed the warm days so he is enjoying the warmth of the barn instead, but soon he can romp around outside when it isn’t raining.
First Calf
The warm weather has disappeared, but a number of the wildflowers opened the last few days. And the ground has patches of white, although not from snow, but from wildflowers like wood anemones and bloodroots. The strong wind has been rather hard on the blossoms as petals have fallen even though the flowers just opened.
Ground White from Bloodroots
Another warm spring day has the birds returning and singing joyfully. A new arrvial is the Brown Thrasher, a bird which mimics other birds and songs in a series of doubled phrases. They have a extremely varied repertoire of more than 1,100 different song types and include imitations of other birds.
Songster Singing
It appears spring is officially here at last as the dandelions have made their appearance! But I can’t pick the pretty yellow flowers for my mom since the butterflies are landing on them for the nectar as there isn’t much else for food sources for the bees and butterflies at the moment until other flowers open up.
Sign of Spring
Although the trees are still bare, but with signs of new leaves budding out, it is a nice spring day to enjoy a walk through the woods or near a river as the birds are singing a happy tune today. The hike could include walk across a covered bridge like the one found in Amnicon Falls State Park.
Horton Covered Bridge
While walking through the woods on my way to fix birdhouses, I spotted a tiny cluster of Spring Beauties which had opened up. Normally they show more pink coloring, but I think all the snow flurries washed the color right out.
The First Spring Beauties
During my repairs of bluebird houses, where the squirrels enlarged the opening, I discovered another rodent in my birdhouses. And apparently this chipmunk didn’t read that they live underground as there was a grass bed inside once I evicted him. And the squatter was also a thief as his cheeks were stuffed full of my bird seed!
Squatter and Thief
The few poor wildflowers which had opened already were closed up tight with drooping heads and probably a bit frozen with temperatures in the teens the last few days. The sunshine this morning is revealing a few new glimpses of blue and hopefully with a warmer stretch, more flowers will start blooming.
Glimpse of Blue
