Weather Watching #3 - Count Down to Fall 2013

Great to have some 'crispness' back to our days and to open our windows at night! Most of our area could use some soaking rains to renew every thing for our typically long Autumns.

Have just returned from 3 wks in Vermont where the weather was glorious (low humidity upper 70s/low 80s day and 60 at night.) Very invigorating.

Lots of talk though of an 'early Fall'. Am seeing some signs of that here, too, especially because of dryness.

In any event, our MAF 'crew' will be ready! I still think this pic could have been 'us' not so many years ago, maybe getting ready for a Fall Swap!

We came from here
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1323341/

GREAT photo!!! I love it.

Me. too!

Maybe someone could print it out and we could put some 'names' to those faces at our Fall Swap and then scan it back in!

Anyone?

Well the tallest boy will be Paul of course...

haha. Ok, I'll take that. Who will be the "thumbs down child"

Hmmmm, I don't think anyone here fits the 'thumbs down' description, but I think Gita is the tall lass toward the left (longish blonde hair), and Sally is front and nearly-center, the "peace-sign" girlie. =)

Judy! bad timing to move this on!
You are "at it" again!!.................:o(

I wanted people to answer my question and see the Thistle feeder I got.


Question:

When should I start putting out Thistle seed for the Goldfinches?
Some of you have mentioned that you are seeing them around
your garden.

Dying to try out my new, sturdier finch feeder. The feeding
stations are ALL metal. Got it at 50% off at one of the Big Lots.
Red. price (at Big Lots) was $40. So--I paid $20. Must be good!
Easy to clean too--You pull out the rod that holds all the feeding stations
in place--and they all come apart. Now I have an empty tube to clean out.
Reassembling it may be a bit tricky--as now I will have to position the
feeding stations, just so, and insert the rod all through the centers to hold
them all in place.

Looks good to me--and squirrels should not be able to get to the feed.

I does make me leery though--how come it is in Big Lots? Was something too
hard or too complicated for the general public?
Was it discontinues for some reason?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKyZwoeManw

This is what it looks like... Gita

1--complete feeder--it is 23" tall and has 6 feeding stations
2--Close-up of the label
3--Shows howw the rod holds together all the feeding ststions
4--Top--showing the pull rod.

Speedie I thought Sally was to the left of Paul and Gita n the right. To me, peace sign girl is Holly! Not sure which one is Ric or Ruby's John but it could be Ruby or perhaps Pat on the right of Holly and then Greenthumb/David. Could Ric or John be that handsome dude in the middle of the three behind the lawn sweeper? If not who is that?

Hoping for some rain tomorrow as every thing is quite dry here. So hard for rain to soak in to dried out soil.
Trees are suffering the third dry summer in a row. Lots of web worms and thinning canopy.

I will print the picture for swap.
Gita I think buy a small amount of seed now and hang it.

Overcast, need rain.

rained overnight disgustingly humid right now 72%

Didn't rain overight here, Still disgustingly humid and Also need rain ha!

Just got home from Jane's (some of you have met her), even in the mountains it was muggy with no rain. It feels hot here at home @ 86*F and the very little rain we got overnight just made it worse.

Best chance for some rain today and then nothing til Labor Day. Glad for whatever 'relief' overcast offers.

I have a vague memory of those afternoon thunder storms that would leave us refreshed and cooler into the evening....

Will feel like 90+ for newspaper delivery this afternoon. Lots of umbrellas on standby to meet the little ones at the school bus stops!

Supposed to rain today, it's very thick out there with 85% humidity and cloudy

Fog. Overcast. going to 85 this afternoon. Very little rain fall, some over nite.

My Prius gets 10 miles less per gallon when I need the ac. Yesterday, the inside of the car fogged up because the newsprint ink was still 'drying'!

Sun is just starting to peek out a little

drizzly dreary all morning

I wish we would get some decent rain. It has been a summer of fairly frequent "rainy" spells - but more like drizzle and without enough volume to help the plants.

Same here, another couple of days, mostly overcast with no significant rainfall. The only benefit is that watering can be done every other day.

I, on the other hand, haven't watered at all this summer. Now, granted I was gone for 3 weeks in July and a friend did water, but only the tomatoes and a few containers I asked her to be especially vigilant.

I don't know how you do it. I try not to plant too many plants that need a lot of water -- but there are the hydrangeas, and azaleas, etc., etc.

I just had to water the containers but I never had to water any of the gardens this year, we had SO MUCH rain!!!

I have had to water my whole garden and beds almost every day.
Lots of time spent doing this....
Many times I have done this in the late afternoons and evenings--not so good!
Sometimes--I just run the sprinklers for half a day. Moving it around.

Luckily--here in Baltimore Co. our water is unbelievably cheap.
We are billed every 3 months. Just got my bill for mid-May-mid August.
$24...something.....

In Baltimore City--it is like $100+ every month. Such inequity!
G.

We have well water

clouds rolling in again right now...started out a little sunny

I agree a good long soaking rain would be really nice!!

Was going to post this on the Bird Watching Thread--BUT--it still seems to
be dormant.
Thought this should go on the "Projects" one--but it is NOT really a project.

Wanted to show you that i DID put some seed in my new Finch feeder--
and--you gonna love this---I made a "baffle" for it out of the top that
covers a cake. It will do--and I do not plan to hang this feeder anywhere
out in the open. Depends if they find it under the edge of the roof.

I "configured" where the exact center was in this cover--and then cut a 3" slit
with a razor knife which will slip right over the loop that the feeder hangs by.
Hey! if it works--I will feel pretty clever.....

Now all I need is to see if the Goldfinches find it...In it is "Finch Food"--not just
Thistle. It is from last year--but the bag has been kept tightly closed and double-bagged
in my Shop. Lets hope they don't reject it.....IF they do--I will just mix bits of it
in my big feeder that will, soon, hang under my patio roof.
Or--if they get hungry enough--they may eat it.

--here is the feeder with the cover
--and a close-up of the top showing how it fits over the loop.


Right now it is well under a corner of my patio roof
where my HUGE Ric Rac used to hang. Safe and out of any critters way.

Looks like a great new feeder, Gita--hope the finches discover it, and the squirrels are baffled!

I still haven't found a good place for my regular feeder. I had tried hanging it out near the clematis and the birds loved it--too much! They dropped seeds everywhere which sprouted into an amazing number of weeds. Plus, I have a neighborhood cat who visits my backyard periodically, and this cat was quite intrigued by all the birds, and began trying to use my butterfly bush as a launching pad to catch the birds--my poor butterfly bush, not to mention the poor birds! :-o I still find the occasional feather back there... :-(

I do have a couple hummingbirds that have found my HB feeder at last! They usually come by briefly late in the day--I think they have other houses in the neighborhood they feed at as well. So, I must get them while they're making their 'rounds'! :-)

Cat---

Could you find something to lay under the feeder to catch the seeds?
What comes to mind is those drip pans that are used under a water heater,
They are huge and round with about a 2" lip. I don't think they cost a lot...

They come in black plastic or aluminum. Would this work?

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Camco-26-in-ID-Plastic-Drain-Pan-15275/204220002#.UiHte3_JZMg

I am so glad I have the high patio roof. I hang my big feeder under it.
Yes--it makes a mess and I have to sweep the floor often to clean up
all the seed chaff, but it stays dry--and no squirrels can ever get to it.
They just clean up all the fallen seeds.

Gita

Oh Gita, you are absolutely brilliant!!! I really do hope the little birdies find your feeder, 'cause when they do they will be knocking at your door to say Thank You! =)

Weatherly related -- horridly too darned hot and humid yesterday and today; none of the promised rain has found me (DARNIT!), and I'm positively wilting. Flopping and squelching around at work from all the drippy humidity. Yulch. Need someone to wring me out and hang me over the line to dry.

lol Speedie I don't think that even line drying will happen until Wed Thurs Fri!!

Just a bit of rain here overnight. Today to low 90s with plenty humidity. Don't feel much like grilling let alone yardening.

Happy Labor Day all! Hope your plans for this holiday come out safe and happy.

(Ifeellike I am at the beach with R & H without the off shore breeze, sand and ocean!

Pretty muggy!!! Jeff mentioned something about grilling, but I thought...no way!! Besides I didn't have anything to grill and I didn't want to go out to the store.

Its a hot humid night out tonight.

I'd give anything for a good solid rainstorm.

Muggy morning but good NW breeze bringing in drier air by tonite. At 58 as low. Open the windows!

Rain missed most of Maryland. Wierd flooding north of us.

NC coast could get some of those heavy rains. Stay dry R&H unless of course you're swimming!

Hey JB are you flooded out? Wouldlove to hear some report from you. You are missed!

Usually I am the one wondering where the rain is. We usually can watch the storms across the Delaware river move right up he river. However, this summer has been unusual! I'll need to check the accurate amt, but I think it's a record breaking year for rain here. Since we got back at the end of July I haven't had to hand water at all. Amazing!!! The skeeters though are horrendous!!!

It's soooooo gross out!!!!!!!!!!!

I want rain!

Technically there was 0.12 inches last night, according to www.weather.com , but that's only enough to tease the poor plants.

This message was edited Sep 3, 2013 9:16 AM

lol my rain guage doesn't go that low!

Hope a passing cloud settles over your yard for a day or so

(Maybe instead of a Hat Parade at the swap we should do a Rain Request Dance since no one from NJ will be in attendance??)

Just keeping our passalong plants alive til they're passed along will take some doing. Go Gita !

Sallyg, don't run your well dry trying to impress us! We love you and your generous hostessing way more than your noble estate and well manicured grounds!