Rita, ohhhh Riiiiittttttaaaaaa...... you'll have to provide a link to when you posted all those photos of your yard in the daylily forum.

Gals, we HAVE to convince her to do a garden tour article!

I've been waiting for it.

Yes, we need that link!!!

Let me go find Rita......

I asked her to find it. Left a message in the daylily chat for her. She hangs there a lot.

All right. I found the threads that show off the garden. But remember I was trying mostly to show off blooms and many roses and daylilies at that. But I have a lot more in my garden than just daylilies. Lots of Honeysuckle and other flowers for the humminingbirds. Butterfly bushes for the hummers and butterflies. Lots of zinnias and much more to attract butterflies. Lots of bee attracting flowers for the bumblebirds and honey bees.

Then there is just so many shrubs for the backyard songbirds. Fruiting shrubs for the winter and summer. Plus fruiting small trees and even fruit for people and the birds both. Like blueberries! And three small ponds and three birdbaths for water and bird bathing. I don't spray with insecticids which keeps it all good for the birds. I even have lots of roses, which I spray with a fungicide so no blackspot but never any insecticide so the birds love to pick off the aphids and other bugs that live in a garden.

Ok, this is what I posted. Lots of multiple pictures in each post but I had to do many posts to show off much of my garden. Lots here you don't even see but it might give you all a better idea.

http://garden.org/thread/view_...
http://garden.org/thread/view_...
http://garden.org/thread/view_...
http://garden.org/thread/view_...
http://garden.org/thread/view_...
http://garden.org/thread/view_...
http://garden.org/thread/view_...
http://garden.org/thread/view_...

It is in this thread called Sept blooms and chat and starts on page nine if you want to do the tour just as it was on the forum (with lots of comments).

Right now I am getting a wonderful variety of birds visiting my numerous feeders, not all at once of course. Steller's Jays, Clark's Nutcrackers, Evening Grosbeaks, House Finches, Purple Finches, Gold Finches, Pine Siskins, Pileated Woodpeckers, Northern flickers, Hairy Woodpeckers, Yellow-bellied Sap-suckers, Downy Wood peckers, Black-capped Chickadees and the Mountain Chickadees.

Today while DH and I were putting up the outside Christmas lights we saw a beautiful Bald Eagle really close to our house, awesome!!

We get Crows and huge Ravens in the yard, they try and steal the peanuts from the Jays and the Nutcrackers, hey get shooed out of there when we see them.

I forgot to add the beautiful Bohemian and Cedar waxwings to the list that visit our yard. I planted trees that provided winter food for them.

I get cedar waxwings thru here because of all the berries for the birds. But I have to be lucky and notice them when they are around as they are not here most of the time. Beautiful birds. That is a great picture, Margaret!

Thanks Rita! I'm going to go back & take the tour again now that you provided the links.

Oh Margaret! what a lovely photo of the Cedar Waxwings! Now what kind of berries are they feasting on there? Or are those Bohemians? And LOOK at the yellow on those tails! Yeow!

Thank you Rita.

Thank you Ann, they are Bohemian Waxwings. I planted 2 ornamental crab apple trees, plus there were 2 already here when we bought the place about 11 years ago, and they just love them this time of year.

We have 3 Crab apple trees in the back yard and they used to love those, but then the black bears started coming in the yard to eat them so now we have to pick them as soon as they start to get ripe in September.

That is such a wonderful photo! They look sooooooo soft. I just want to hold one & rub my cheek on it. I'll have to see if ornamental crab apples will grow here. We have 2 eastern red cedars but I want MORE stuff to attract them.

Rita, you really need to do a garden tour thing. You know with Trish & Sharon.

I know. Just haven't done it. Sharon asked.

Wow, Rita - how long have you been working on your gardens? They look fabulous.

- really great shot of the Waxwings. I planted 3 or 4 crabapples, but they have really struggled with our droughty summers. Blek. But I am glad to say we don't have bears here.... yet.....

I started in 2001 and been working ever since. Finially ran out of room so no new gardenbeds or room to expand old ones. Very, very little grass left here. Mostly just paths between beds that used to be lawn.

Well, that's a little bit of a relief... mine are *no*where near yours. I aspire to your plantliness!

Thank you Sheryl. Crabapples are pretty tough so maybe once you get normal weather they will be ok. Another tough plant that can withstand harsh conditions is the Service Berry shrub, they get lots of berries that the birds love, I have several in my garden.

Now I know that service berry here.

I have lots and lots of Serviceberries in my yard. The birds just go nuts for the berries. They start eating them even before they are fully ripe. You will see a long procession of birds in those shrubs all day long.