What's the Buzz?

That little buzzing sound you hear when you stroll about your garden is not nature's way of telling you,  'You need more caffeine.' or 'Why oh why did you have more than one shot silly?' Well, it might be, BUT, what it really is, is nature's way of telling you YOU are awesome! She is saying 'Thank You' for planting such yummy things to eat! Smile to yourself and think 'You're welcome ma'am.' 

Encouraging our buzzing and chirping friends to visit our yards is really not that difficult. Allow your herbs to bloom. Place makeshift bird baths about the yard. Just use something not too tall or deep. Even a pot base will do. Purchase a hummingbird or standard bird feeder (yep, at a yard sale for cheap) and hang it somewhere that will feed them, entertain you and not be accessible to the thieving squirrels. Yes, squirrels are a problem. They are aggressive, relentless, clever, determined, shameless and adorable. It's this last trait that makes them difficult to deal with mostly because being adorable is a trait they work. They scurry about, stealing, I mean gathering your bird seed, and the last image you see, is of their fluffy tail. Harden your heart and get smart!

I say this from the comfort of my desk chair not the comfort of my couch. From the couch,  I can see those little no goods inching their way down my lilac branch, straddling the feeder with their front paws, clinging to the tree with their back, stuffing their cheeks; scaring away the birds in the process, all while causing me to bang on the window like a nut and our dog, Lollypop, to go into hysterics! Since the average squirrel is smarter than the average blogger, at least this blogger, I give up! The squirrels win! I cannot watch the feeder all the time. I do not remember to put it away at night to prevent midnight snacking. I will not purchase an expensive "squirrel-proof" feeder... So, I feed the hummingbirds via a feeder and native plants and I feed the bees via laziness in the garden. 

Now, being lazy requires no work at all so it fits into my busy window-banging, squirrel-policing schedule. Bees, taken care of and well fed.

​Feeding the hummingbirds only requires a simple recipe. Four-parts water to one-part sugar. Cook until the sugar dissolves. Set aside to cool. Fill and hang feeder. Wait...

You would think I am good at waiting since my bee feeding technique involves laziness but you would be wrong. I am terrible at waiting. I am terrible at waiting because I do not excel at being patient either.

Waiting patiently however has its reward. Hummingbirds! If you fill it, they will come. That little buzzing is your reward. The proud moment you feel when you are both doing something wonderful for nature and your garden will come, just be patient and wait. 

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