The Serenade of Birds

Just yesterday I paid special attention to a song bird that serenaded me as I worked in the garden. This evening, as I went to the garden to pick our salad for dinner, I was aware of the most incredible chorus of birdsong. In fact, the word "cacophony" came to mind. But as I don't use this word every day, I decided to look it up to see if this was indeed an appropriate description. According to Websters, the word means "harshness of sound" which is not how I would describe the symphony I enjoyed. Honestly, I can't find just one word to describe the joyful riot of noise in our back yard. I'm not sure if we really have more song birds this year, or if I'm just taking more time to enjoy them. I do know we have an abundance of mulberries which attract birds, and the sour cherries and sand cherries in our yard are also ripening. We use very few chemicals in our yard and have several mature trees. Perhaps this combination is to thank. One thing is for sure, and that is that I am thankful for the music the birds bring to our little piece of the country.

I found a wonderful website to visit if you want to learn more about the birds in your garden: www.birds.cornell.edu. There are even sound clips of bird songs you can listen to. Be sure to check it out.

The garden continues to do well. I found the first watermelon on one of the ice box melon plants. It is about the size of a small walnut! It will be fun to watch it grow.

That's it for now. Be sure to take some time to listen to the birds in your own yard.