August 2002 Birds & Blooms Newsletter

August 2002

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Birds & Blooms brings beautiful backyards from across America into your living room through vivid, full-color photos. It's like a friendly "chat" over the back fence with your bird-and-flower-loving neighbors.

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Dear $$firstname$$,

Greetings from Birds & Blooms magazine! We hope you enjoy this month's newsletter, which includes a surprising succulent garden, a bird quiz, tips for growing and showing flowers and more. Read on and you'll discover...

> Northern Surprise
> Just for Bird Brains
> No More Floppy Flowers
> Feeder Surprise
> Make Your Fair Flowers Winners
> Find Answers Fast
> Rain Gauge Goes High-Tech

Northern Surprise
By Jean and Claude J., Cambridge, Wisconsin

SINCE we retired from farming, we've been enjoying growing succulents--plants with thick fleshy leaves that can store water, such as cactus or sedum. It's definitely set us apart from other Wisconsin gardeners.

Because of our short growing season here, it takes a lot of work to maintain these plants. We keep them growing under lights in our basement during winter because succulents can only survive in temperatures above 25 degrees.

In spring, we have to acclimate them to full sun before we plant them in geometric designs in our flower beds.

But by late summer, they're definitely eye-catching. In fact, our yard is like a park. We meet many curious visitors, which makes the work worth it.

To view a photo, click here.

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Just for Bird Brains

THIS bird trivia quiz comes from Bob L. of Clarkston, Washington. If you get three of the questions right, you qualify as a "bird brain", he says.

The answers are at the end of this newsletter. (No cheeping...oops, we mean cheating!)

1. A duck has about 12,000 feathers, but its main flying power comes from:
a. the skin on its wings. b. 11 feathers on each wing. c. one extra-large feather on each wing tip.

2. Birds have scales (much like fish) on their:
a. feet. b. wing feathers c. head feathers.

3. A hummingbird has 14 vertebrae (bones) in its neck, which is:
a. one less than a human. b. the same number as a whale. c. twice as many as a giraffe.

4. What bird will use a nest box with an entrance hole smaller than 1-1/4 inches?
a. House sparrow. b. Downy woodpecker. c. Chickadee.

5. The blue jay is a member of the:
a. woodpecker family. b. crow family. c. cardinal family.

No More Floppy Flowers
By Barbara C., Clyde, North Carolina

I'D LIKE to share an easy, low-cost method to prevent what I call "floppy flowers". I use long branches pruned from my shrubs and trees as supports for long-stemmed blooms.

Branches should be at least 1 inch in diameter at the base and have some smaller offshoots. Unlike metal stakes, the "twiggy" branches blend into the greenery and become nearly invisible as plants grow.

Use only green branches because dried ones become brittle. Sharpen the ends to make it easier to get them into the ground. Insert the sticks when plants are immature, making them about 6 inches shorter than the height of the mature plants.

These branches also work well in the vegetable garden. You can make your own pole-bean tepees using three 8-foot-long branches stuck into the ground and tied at the top.

I have found that the increased air circulation around my plants helps prevent disease, too. Best of all, the supports are free!

Feeder Surprise
By Beverly L., Nacogdoches, Texas

KNOWING how much we love to feed the birds, a good friend sent us a hand-crafted feeder for our backyard.

We couldn't wait to put it up and see cardinals, mockingbirds and other regular visitors to our backyard give it a test. But to our surprise, two BIG birds new to our yard were the first on board.

It took a while to figure out what they were, but eventually someone identified the giants as guinea fowl. According to our encyclopedia, they are raised domestically throughout the world, so they must have been escapees.

Though they were too large to feed from our feeder, the birds quickly discovered a way to enjoy its contents. They would scoop the feed to the ground, then hop down and enjoy their meal. Did we mind? Of course not. Feeding the birds--any birds--is a delight!

To view a photo, click here.

Make Your Fair Flowers Winners

LAST TIME, field editor Sue G. of Columbus, Wisconsin shared a few tips to help your "fair flowers" become sure winners.

Sue knows her stuff--she raises and selects many of her garden flowers for competition in the county fair, and in the past 5 years, she's won 75 ribbons.

Here are more hints:

> Don't pick your biggest flowers. Judges are looking for healthy flowers of similar size in a compatible vase.

> When gathering prize flowers from your garden, cut stems at a slant with a sharp knife and immediately put them in a bucket of warm water. Cut the stems again before displaying them in a vase that has flower preservative.

> Be sure to take your time. When preparing your exhibits, don't rush--it will show.

> If flowers are not perfect, use scissors. Trim away bug holes or signs of disease from petals and leaves by following the natural contours. A leaf may need to be completely removed.

> Watch the judging. Take notes and ask your judge questions. "Each time my flowers are judged," Sue says, "I learn something new."

Good luck at the fair!

Find Answers Fast

TRY the Birds & Blooms on-line Bulletin Board!

This easy-to-use service allows readers with access to the Web to post questions and share information and ideas on-line anytime.

Feel free to ask your question or respond to other readers searching for help on various subjects, such as bird feeding, flower gardening and butterflies. The Bulletin Board gives you a chance to quickly find solutions to your backyard dilemmas. And you'll see for yourself just how friendly our readers are.

To access the Bulletin Board, click here.

Rain Gauge Goes High-Tech

YOU never need to go outside to measure or empty this rain gauge! It gives you accurate readings within 1/100th of an inch from a wired remote sensor. Counters 1 & 2 let you track separate time periods (like weekly and monthly). Auto counter resets itself after each rainfall. Tracks up to 999.9 inches or 9,999.9 millimeters of rain. Auto-off function. 33-foot long wire.

To order the Wired Rain Gauge from Country Store On-line, click here.

Bird Brain Quiz Answers
1-b; 2-a; 3-c; 4-c; 5-b.

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Birds & Blooms magazine brings beautiful backyards from across America into your living room--through vivid, full-color photos. It's like a friendly "chat" over the back fence with your bird-and flower-loving neighbors.

To subscribe on-line, visit http://www.birdsandblooms.com/rd.asp?id=28

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