Herself’s Houston Garden

The Great Backyard Bird Count

New York, NY and Ithaca, NY—Bird watchers coast to coast are invited to take part in the 13th annual Great Backyard Bird Count, Friday, February 12, through Monday, February 15, 2010. Participants in the free event will join tens of thousands of volunteers of all levels of birding experience to count birds in their own backyards, local parks or wildlife refuges.

Each checklist submitted by these “citizen scientists” helps researchers at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the National Audubon Society learn more about how the birds are doing—and how to protect them. Last year, participants turned in more than 93,600 checklists online, creating the continent’s largest instantaneous snapshot of bird populations ever recorded.

“Taking part in the Great Backyard Bird Count is a great way to get outside with family and friends, have fun, and help birds—all at the same time. Anyone who can identify even a few species can provide important information that enables scientists to learn more about how the environment is changing and how that affects our conservation priorities,” said Audubon Education Vice President, Judy Braus. “Everyone who participates in the GBBC—families, teachers, and young people—will get a chance to hone their observation skills, learn more about birds, and make a great contribution to the future!”

GirlWindow_TerieRawn_NY09_web.jpgAnyone can take part in the Great Backyard Bird Count, from novice bird watchers to experts. Participants count birds for as little as 15 minutes (or as long as they wish) on one or more days of the event and report their sightings online at www.birdcount.org. One 2009 participant said, “Thank you for the opportunity to participate in citizen science. I have had my eyes opened to a whole new interest and I love it!”

While the climate down here is wonderful for growing a wide range of plants, the soil often leaves much to be desired.  Seems you either get clay or sand if you live in or near Houston.  In our favor organic material breaks down quickly and you can build a nice soil base before too much time goes by.

Proper soil preparation can make all the difference in how well your garden grows.  You will want to work 3″ to 6″ of organic material into your clay or sandy soil before you begin to plant.  You’ll want to work this into the top 12″ of soil.  In addition you will want to add a 3″-4″ layer of pine mulch every year.  Organic material breaks down quickly in our heat.  So you need to keep replenishing it. ( soil amendment materials: pine mulch, compost, peat moss, perlite, sand )

A proper soil test is also needed to tell what fertilizers need to be added.  I’ve found a good time release 10-10-10 4-6 times a year is needed in my yard, spread at about a pound of nitrogen per 1000 sq ft.  I also add a handful ( 1/4 cup ) of iron to each shrub and tree each March.  As organic material breaks down it used up the nitrogen in the soil.  And each and every heavy rain we get washes away a large amount of the nitrogen in the soil.

Drainage is the next issue to consider.  Sandy soil drains rapidly and standing water is not a problem. Adding organic matter will help the sandy soil retain moisture longer.

Clay soils hold water, and even if you improve the top 6″ to 12″ of soil, often the clay underneath retains water.  Adding sand or perlite or both will help.  Before planting watch how quickly the water drains after a heavy rain.  If it takes more than one hour you’ll want to help the drainage with drains.

Plants prefer slightly acidic soils.  While these can occasionally be found in Houston it ‘s more likely your soil pH will be around 8.0 ( slightly basic ).  Changing a soils pH long term by a more than a small amount is unlikely.  But you can add lime ( makes soil more basic ) or sulfur ( makes soil more acidic ) to help.  If you have basic soil add some peat moss each time you plant a new plant to help reduce the soil pH.

Worms help, you can purchase live worms, or as I do add worm castings to your garden each year.  It seems to attract them.  I always find more worms in areas I ‘ve added castings.

If you work clay soil while it is wet, it is likely to compact on you forming a brick like substance that your plant’s roots will be unable to push through.  Wait until the soil it dry to work it.  Or as we did up north lay out 12″ planks and walk/stand/kneel on them to work.

To convert lawn to garden:

1) Apply RoundUp or another weed killer about a week before prepping an area.

2) Scrape off sod

3) Add soil amendments ( 3″-6″ deep ) and work into soil about 12″ deep

The easiest way to work soil additives into the soil is to dig a 12″ trench, then dig a second trench right next to it, filling the first trench with the soil from first plus additives.  Continue trenching your way across your new garden.

Or

1) Apply RoundUp or another suitable weed killer about a week before prepping area

2) Lay newspaper 3-6 sheets thick across entire area

3) Cover newspapers with 6″ of soil, mulch, peat, sand, and compost

Learn more about soil:
Lessons on Soil ( 1911 Russell )
Crops and Methods for Soil Improvement ( 1912 Alva )

Many people have argued that feeding birds, especially in the winter will harm them. People have argued that it disrupts the migration pattern or that birds will not go to or learn to find places that have native food. Nature is reporting an article this week that shows that feeding the birds, especially in the winter benefits them.

. . . The study is the first to show such a long-term effect of providing bird food. Previously, domestic wisdom held that nibbles such as nuts and seeds helped birds get through a lean spell” as well as giving you something to look at from your kitchen window ” but that the benefit of such snacks was probably only temporary, and would not last past the winter.

Unlike migrating species that must build up large fat reserves before heading abroad for the winter, species such as blue tits and great tits that stay in cold climes are thought to live on a more hand-to-mouth (or claw-to-beak) basis, explains Stuart Bearhop of the University of Exeter, UK, who led the study.

But Bearhop and his colleagues found that, surprisingly, the benefits stretch into the spring. Birds with ready access to peanut-stocked bird-feeders from November until early March began laying eggs roughly 2.5 days earlier than birds without access to supplemental feeding, even though their breeding season does not begin until April.

What’s more, the researchers also found that birds that had been fed had, on average, almost one extra chick that reached maturity. Bearhop and his colleagues describe their results in the journal Biology Letters 1. . . [ read more Winter bird feeding helps spring breeding ]