Return to normal

Spring typical weather returns tonight for a few days of 50’s during the day and upper 30’s/low 40’s at night before the warmer weather returns midweek. By Friday when again, many layers of Colonial style clothes will be donned to greet more school kiddos at the museum, it will be back up in the 80’s. For the next few days, the two hanging plants that were put on the porch will hang in the utility room to prevent the cold burning the leaves.

Today being Saturday, we supported the local Farmer’s Market, coming home with some pasture raised, grass finished meats; some veggies; and 4 tomato plants that will live in a plastic bin by the back door in the sunshine, on the porch on warmer days, and inside at night, until it is safe to add them to the garden. I still need to get or start some peppers.

The bearded Iris are glorious right now, at least the purple ones. Two vases cut and brought in the house and dozens more blooms in the garden beds. The Amaryllis that was gifted me in bloom several Christmases ago has bloomed later each year. It is just about to have this year’s blooms open. When it is done blooming and the weather stabilizes, it will move outdoors for the summer.

And today, finally a Ruby throated Hummingbird visited the feeder that was hung about 10 days ago. It has been dumped and refilled once to keep the sugar syrup fresh. Soon they will be fighting for it as more appear and a second feeder will be hung.

The young rooster, so far, hasn’t been too vocal and his fate is still undecided. If the pullets reach a free ranging state, his presence will be helpful, but as long as they are restricted to the pen and tunnels, he is a nuisance.

Spring brings the Tom turkeys puffing up, fanning their tails to attract the females. They call back and forth across the fields. It always amuses me that Thanksgiving turkeys are depicted in the fall like the spring Toms.

Another month or so, we will start seeing fawns with their Mom’s. So far, the does haven’t sent last year’s fawns off alone. By fall, they will rejoin Mom with her new young. Though not a hard rule, usually, first time Mom’s have only one, and older does will have two or occassionally even three, though that is rare.

Spring with the flowers, returning migrating birds, young animals, greening trees is always an anticipated time of the year.