First coneflower

We dug and planted today. Last week I dug and planted in the rain and the mud, brought back childhood memories of loving to get dirty. Local news: there is a Mississippi Kite nesting in a sycamore one street over. I saw her this morning from the back porch and put the glasses on the tree and sure enough there are nestlings there. Pretty big, too, getting ready to fly. Last Saturday as I was digging out back I noticed three wrens, one on the table, one on the porch rail, one on the fence, chattering with each other. I suspect that a wren family has been raised in the little wren house that is suspended from a tree in back. I love their song.  Hummingbirds have been coming to our yard too, you have to look quick to see them they move so fast. Our work today- we put about 2 yards of leaf mold on the truck before breakfast, went to get some plants, dug, planted, spread all that leaf mold- reminds me of the old days when we did this for a living. I’d need to work up to a daily diet of this slowly now, though- makes me pleasantly sore and tired. What a lovely spring it has been.

Rain garden