Bluebirds of Happiness

 Here is a picture of the beautiful bluebird house I bought recently. I already own one. Which is why I need two:

















My past experience has been that house sparrows are more likely to move into the house than bluebirds. But I want bluebirds there. Not only are they beautiful, but they eat all kinds of bugs, which is why I want to locate the houses near my new gardens. What aspiring organic gardener couldn't use a little feathered help keeping pests out of her garden? Besides, house sparrows are thriving everywhere, whereas bluebirds seem to need some human help with their housing.

Eastern Bluebird

A little research has turned up the fact that if we put two (or more) bluebird nest boxes 5 to 15 feet apart, the sparrows will nest in one and the bluebirds in the other. Both birds are territorial, you see, and won't nest close to others of their kind. So we are going to give two nest-boxes a try this summer. We are a little late getting the boxes up, however, since the website says that they start looking for suitable nesting sites in February in the South.

House Sparrow

I was overjoyed today to see my first tomato seedlings sprouting on my kitchen counter. I have four: 1 Big Beef Hybrid, 1 Heirloom Italian, 1 Brandywine, and 1 Experimental Hybrid from Shumway. I look at these tiny, delicate little vines reaching toward the available light, and my mouth waters for the taste of home-grown tomatoes this summer. I hope some other vines sprout in the next few days, because these four little plants can't possibly be enough!