Male Goldfinch in early spring

Male Goldfinch in early spring, originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

Yup, I know, I promised more plants and instead I give you more birds.

But wait! There's something special happening here - look close - this little fellow is starting to get his yellow summertime feathers in. Soon he'll be wooing the hearts of the females in the neighbourhood!

Spring has so many things of wonder to share with us. We humans should count ourselves lucky to be able to view, appreciate and ponder such natural aspects of our "Enchanted Garden".

Here's a good view of his backside showing the mottled feathers;


And never fear, the day has only begun - more plants will follow a bit later - that is if the birds don't tease me with their antics while I'm working in the garden.

In either case, more pictures and stories to tell are bound to happen here! See you soon!

And don't forget to check out A Forum For Nature for more shots, more stories, gardening questions, information about camping, hiking and general outdoor fun. Ready for you to add your own stories and references!
Join in and start up the spring fun!

Hawk on the Hunt

Hawk on the Hunt, originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

The hunting job may be a little harder these days with the snows gone. Mice and other small rodents can hide a little easier now! This persistent Hawk ignored my prescence, concentrating on the hunt for a fresh meal.
This was a lucky shot on a rainy day. Our feathered friend was a little scruffy looking from hunting in a steady light spring rain.
Here's a shot of the area where the hawk was hunting;

It'll be more colourful in a few days once the warmer spring air settles in!
I'll be back later with more small plants to add to our collection of plants to identify early in the season.

More available at our other blog and photo sites;
Garden website
Garden Blog
A Forum For Nature
Photo Gallery at Flickr
Happy Hunting and Happy Spring Weekend!
Cheryl ;-)

Very tiny daisy plants!

Very tiny daisy plants!, originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

Here's a good view of sprouts of tiny daisies. These may not even flower this year, we'll keep an eye on them to see how they do. I planted these at the base of our mailbox post, they grow short enough to not interfere with anyone using the mailbox.
In the photo's caption I wrote, "The little red stones in this shot are no bigger than 1/4" or 6.5 mm. Wild daisies grow well in gravely soil."
The shot was taken during our january thaw. Currently there is little activity as the outside temperatures have been colder than they were in January. Once this cold snap moves further east I'm certain the plants will take off very quickly.
Here's another shot of a bigger daisy plantlet that also gives a size reference, the seed packet - the daisy is diagonally to the right of the package;


And to follow that, here are some lucky daisies I found in the lawn. These started from seeds dropped from plants in the nearby beds. The reason they're lucky; because now that I've found them I can gently move them to another more suitable location if I want to save them for flowering specimens, I can pot them up to sell in a spring garage sale or I can just toss them, getting them out of the lawn area. I like the look of daisies scattered around my yard - BUT, not in the lawn!

There are so many options available to gardeners! I have many plants, in addition to daisies that reproduce in this manner!
More information and photographs will follow as our garden's spring story begins in earnest!

Hope you enjoy the shots. Do leave a comment if you have questions or would like to see a photograph of a particular plant or flower highlighted in this blog.

Or!!! Visit A Forum For Nature to pose your questions and help kick-start this new discussion forum!
Hope to see you there soon! When you sign up - let us know you saw this here at Blogspot! Thanks!

A Tulip To Celebrate The Equinox

Tulip with photoshopped background, originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

It's that time of balance between day and night for Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Special to all of us in signifying special times of the year.
Time to celebrate the coming of spring and the coming of warmer days, and growing flowers in the North; to celebrate the bounty of the harvest in the South!

Happy Equinox, and may you sense the balance our natural world knows!

(note,Original photo title;Tulip with photoshopped background)

Thistle - a weed yes, but it's good for goldfinches!

thistle - good for goldfinches!, originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

To Honour the upcoming spring equinox I am beginning a series highlighting plants at their early stages of growth in spring. To aid in identification, because; .
1) It's easier to weed plants when they are young,
2) It's easier when you know what to look for.
3) Plants transplant easily in early spring, before they begin their prolific growth.
4) Proper identification will allow you to rescue plants that you may find growing in inappropriate spots or are growing in to thickly.

The Thistle pictured above managed to root itself in the corner of a strawberry bed. And while I will admit to it being a weed I also must confess I like the plant, think the flowers are interesting and I've recently learned that goldfinches need thistle fluff to build their nests. Therefore I intend to encourage two or three of these weeds to "grow" as part of a mixed perennial bed along one fence and near one of the bird feeders in our garden.
I'm hoping this action will encourage them to nest nearby so we can watch the young grow up over the summer. The Finches also feed on the seed of thistle and this summer we may get lucky to photograph a bright yellow male perched atop a purple thistle - a pretty sight for sure!

Most plants, except very early spring plants, can be transplanted with very little shock in spring, just as soon as the ground can be worked. You may find wild daisies in your lawn - you can rescue them for your flower bed - I do this every year! Forget me nots and black eyed susans too!. Thistle take a bit of care to transplant. Use gloves and gently wrap the plantlet with a piece of newspaper or other paper to avoid the pricklies. Re-plant shortly after digging out in a spot allowing the plant about a 12" growth space. Plants will grow 3 - 4 feet tall, depending on the variety. Great for the back of a fence or along a wall.
This series will continue hightlighting each plant I manage to catch a shot of, by common name where possible, allowing us to build a searchable by name reference for each plant. Hope you enjoy! Hope you can make good use of it!
Feedback appreciated, don't be shy and you are welcome to make requests for specific plants, should you have any, to be highlighted as quickly as we can muster getting a photograph together for your question or request!

Get ready to enjoy spring, it's here!

It's Official! Spring has Sprung in the Enchanted Garden!

It's Official! Spring has Sprung in the Enchanted Garden!, originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

I guess it just had to be. A Happy Morning "shooting" the moon has been followed by nature's welcome encore; shoots in the garden!
Narcissi, Daffodil, Tulips and Pansies are emerging and warming this gardener's heart. I have been waiting months for this wonderous moment - didn't have this camera last year. Didn't have one that could handle this type of shot. I got this camera near the end of October and I am beside myself giggling with glee while I imagine the shots I'll be able to take soon!
I love Spring!
We may still get snows between now and the end of May, but none of it can dampen this gardener's spirits, knowing these little trumpeted wonders are soon to "strutt their stuff" in yellow bundles of joy, scattered around the flowerbeds!
If you love spring and gardening and flowers and photography - stay tuned and check back often - the fun has only JUST begun! Glad to have you along!

Where'd Mary Poppins Go?

Where'd Mary Poppins Go?, originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

That's one of the questions that might come to mind when viewing this photograph. Or perhaps, "Where's the sweeper?" if we were in Jolly Ol England!
I took a series of shots of the moon early this morning when the sun was just up. It was a bit chilly but the light was just so perfect for shooting!
I followed the moon down the street while it was setting and then noticed it was going to set behind this building so I stood and snapped as it, rather quickly, slipped behind this church. I will have to make a set of the shots so people can view them in sequence.

My, what a fabulous way to start a day! I hope yours started with as much colour, sweetness and whimsy on a mid March morning! Do go to flickr to view more of this morning's fabulous shots, here's another to whet your appetite;


That's Amore!

Visit our enchanted garden website

While I'm testing out all the bells and whistles that accompany the Blogger platform I do hope you'll enjoy what little is here thus far to share and do return, as things will grow from here!

The feature I'm currently testing is the "Blog This" tool bar button. I'm using it to point you directly to my website. Eventually I'll have to put a similar link from there to my Blogger site.

ourenchantedgarden.net

Hope you enjoy the visit!

Testing a new template

Well this Blogger site may test my html skills a bit. In the meantime I'll have to settle for the limited templates available. I've been spoiled at my Mindsay blogs, their templates are fabulous and customizing is very easy! Check out Our Garden Blog there to get an idea of the layout. I also have a poetry blog there; Lucky Dragon and a site where I'll be working up a story board for an animation project at Rainbow Warrior In the meantime, seeing that I'm placing a new post in here and it's to be a photoBlog guess I'd better add another photo; here's an example of my best Macro shot yet; This is so sweet and simple, and with so much white this was a tricky shot to get without overexposure! Hope this new layout is a little nicer than the first one! Ciao for now!

Moon with a Grounded Perspective

Moon with a Grounded Perspective, originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

Tried this shot last night. I wrote in the description;"I wanted to get a shot lined up just over the roof of this building. I was a bit rushed and then even delayed because of the clouds. The streaks give a good idea of how fast the clouds were moving. I'm just experimenting and this is perhaps the third time I've tried to "shoot the moon" so I didn't expect to do exceedingly well on this session. Eventually though I expect I'll be able to capture some interesting night sky shots. I look forward to warmer temperatures when I might be more apt to head out for night shots! For me; what makes digital photography so satisfying is the settings record. I can go back and check what settings I used on a particular shot and either try to improve on it or duplicate it depending on what I'm trying to achieve. So the photos themselves become my own reference material for future work! Just can't seem to beat that - if someone wants to learn photography, I suggest now is propbably one of the best times ever! The equipment keeps improving and if you have an artistic eye you are likely to surprise yourself with the happy results! I have another moon shot that's a bit prettier and has good detail; this shot was taken earlier in the day on Saturday the 11th. The Moon is supposed to be full on March 14th but I suspect it'll appear full tonight March 13th and will likely be full in the wee hours of the morning of the 14th. Just based on how it looked last night. Though obviously the atmosphere was more clear on Saturday... That's the other challange; attempting to photograph nature in action. Nature doesn't always cooperate and a storm tonight or heavy clouds could spoil the fun quickly! I'll see what fortunes come my way this evening when I spy the sky to eye the Moon! Until then!

Keisha with a smile

Keisha with a smile, originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

This is probably the best photo I've taken of her so far!
Meet our Jack Russell Terrier, Keisha. She's spunky and playful and needs lots of attention and patience. Rescued 3 1/2 years ago.

Keisha and her toy - chewber

Keisha and her toy - chewber, originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

Here Keisha takes a time out for a good chew!

So, are ya gonna throw it again? Huh?

So, are ya gonna throw it again? Huh?, originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

And now the chewber is resting at my feet once again, awaiting another round of adventure with Keisha the Playful!

Keisha takes the long way back

Keisha takes the long way back, originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

Retrieving isn't Keisha's strong suit! She does bring it back but decides to take the long route first so she can get a good chew in!

Keisha tackles the chewber

Keisha tackles the chewber, originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

Here Keisha gives the chewber a good solid thrashing!

Keisha catches the chewber

Keisha catches the chewber, originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

Nice catch girl!
She caught it good and now she'll give it a few shakes for good measure!

Keisha wants to catch the "chewber"

Keisha wants to catch the "chewber", originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

Keisha's favourite toy is a rubber disc that can be thrown like a frisbee but it's not hard and doesn't hurt her mouth or teeth. It's also very durable and has stood up to years of tug-a-war; which Jack Russells are good at! It's called a Chewber and she thinks it's the best thing going! I'll add a couple more shots to give you the idea!
In this shot Keisha is waiting for me to toss the chewber, doesn't she look eager?

Nice shot of a sweet face!

Nice shot!, originally uploaded by Our Enchanted Garden.

Keisha enjoys the warm sunshine while John cleans the car in the laneway. Too muddy to play catch in the yard she makes do on the lane today! I'll post a couple shots with het favourite play toy.

Our Enchanted Garden

This marks the first REAL post to Bloggers from Our Enchanted Garden. I came here by way of Flickr and hear the site is easy to use in conjunction with Flickr so decided to give it a whirl. This will be my primary photoblog if all works well. Here our Jack Russell Terrier, playing on the laneway looks on the garden wondering when the ground will be firm enough to run and play on! With heavy rains and a quick snow melt the yard is soft and muddy, not a good place for a white dog to play on this day. It won't be long before she'll get to have a good game of catch there! I also blog at Mindsay, Our Garden Blog; primarily focusing on gardening, environmental issues and the odd philosophical jaunt. I have a website of my own at; http://ourenchantedgarden.com where I'm learning to design the site in my spare time. Both my website and blog are where I share what I've learned and what I am learning as my partner and I rejuvenate our garden. My next trick will be learning how to get my pics over here using the Flickr interface and this in its' self will be a fun exercise for me today! So I'll be back soon with more from the garden! The next post I will attempt directly through Flickr to see how the interface works. So far, so good!

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.