Celebrating the Winter Solstice

 

Photo of a snowy winter sunset.

photo courtesy of Pixabay – AlainAudet

by Heather Stone

Midwinter is approaching. If you live in the north the days have been getting shorter, the nights longer, the temperatures colder and the landscape perhaps covered in snow. The winter solstice- (‘solstice’ means ‘standing still of the sun’) also known as Midwinter or Yule, marks the shortest period of daylight and the longest night of the year. This year the solstice falls on Friday, December 21st at 3:23 pm Mountain time.

 

For people throughout the ages midwinter has been an important time of ritual, reflection, and renewal; something I’m sure many of us could use more of in our lives. As our everyday living has moved more indoors we have lost touch with many of nature’s cycles. So why not take some time this solstice to rest, reflect and celebrate nature and the return of the light.

Photo of a burning tealight candle.

Photo courtesy of Pixabay – pexels

Here’s a list of a few ways that you can mark this day:

  1. Visit a place outdoors that’s special to you. Maybe that’s your regular hiking trail, a spot in your garden or your favorite place to watch the sunset.
  2. Light a candle to welcome back the sun. Or take it one step further and spend the evening lit only by candlelight.
  3. Watch the sunrise or sunset.
  4. Share food with friends and family to celebrate the return of the sun.
  5. Create an altar with objects gathered on a walk through nature.
  6. Take time to be silent.
  7. Burn a Yule log (traditionally this log is oak). Burn your Yule log and keep a piece to kindle the Yule log the following year.
  8. If you’re feeling creative, write a poem, paint of picture or sing a song to celebrate winter and/or the return of the sun.

 

 

 

“Again we come”

Again we come
to the resurrection
of bloodroot from the dark,

a hand that reaches up
out of the ground,
holding a lamp.

–Wendell Berry

MAKE YOUR OWN SUET BALLS FOR BIRDS

Suet Ball Recipe

By Engrid Winslow

During the long cold winter months, fat is extremely important for many birds to survive. The species that especially love suet are woodpeckers and flickers, chickadees, wrens, goldfinches, juncos, cardinals, robins, jays, blackbirds and starlings. Be aware that raccoons, squirrels and mice are also attracted to suet balls so be prepared to use baffles or place mesh over the balls to deter them.

Suet is raw fat and has also been used to make candles and Christmas pudding. You can get it from your butcher and ask him to grind it for you. Then it needs to be melted and strained to remove any solids. If you want to avoid the “ick” factor, you can substitute l cup lard or shortening. The birds will eat it plain but many recipes call for adding seeds, dried fruit or even insects to the mix. Many pet food and birding stores sell pre-made suet cakes but it is so much more fun to make your own in various shapes and hang them outside. If you are getting only starlings, hang the balls with a mesh around all sides but the bottoms. This will make it possible for all of the woodpeckers to hang upside down and eat while the starlings are baffled and confused. Place them near where you already have feeders with plain birdseed and watch the fluttery show!

Here are some methods and recipes for making the suet cakes or balls:

1 cup crunchy peanut butter

1 cup lard

2 cups quick cook oats

2 cups cornmeal

1 cup flour

1/3 cup sugar

Melt the peanut butter and lard and add remaining ingredients and cool.

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1 cup crunchy peanut butter

1cup shortening

1 cup flower

3 cups cornmeal

1 cup cracked corn

1 cup black oil sunflower seeds or mixed seeds

Melt the peanut butter and shortening, add remaining ingredients and cool.

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4 1/2 cups ground fresh suet

3/4 cup dried and finely ground bakery goods such as Whole-wheat or cracked-wheat bread or crackers

1/2 cup shelled sunflower seeds

1/4 cup millet

1/4 cup dried and chopped fruit such as cranberries, currants, raisins, or other berries

  1. Melt suet in a saucepan over low heat.
  2. Mix the rest of the ingredients together in a large bowl.
  3. Allow the suet to cool until slightly thickened, then strain and stir into the mixture in the bowl. Mix thoroughly.
  4. Pour or pack into forms or suet feeders or pack into pine cones.

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1/2 lb. fresh ground suet

1/3 cup sunflower seed

2/3 cup wild bird seed mix

1/8 cup chopped peanuts

1/4 cup raisins

  1. Melt suet in a saucepan over low heat. Allow it to cool thoroughly, then reheat it.
  2. Mix the rest of the ingredients together in a large bowl.
  3. Allow the suet to cool until slightly thickened, then stir it into the mixture in the bowl. Mix thoroughly.
  4. Pour into pie pan or form, or pack into suet feeders.

Optional or substitute ingredients: millet (or other birdseed), cornmeal, cooked noodles, chopped berries, dried fruit.

BBB Seed’s Wildflowers to Attract Butterflies and Birds

Wildflower Seeds

by Heather Stone

Photo of two birds on a birdbath.

Photo courtesy of pixabay

It brings great pleasure to see more birds and butterflies about the garden and we as gardeners can do a lot to attract and protect the birds and butterflies that visit our garden. These critters simply need a safe place to live and healthy food to eat.

Wildflowers to attract butterfly and birds seed packet.

Butterflies

For butterflies, providing food (host plants) for caterpillars, nectar sources for adult butterflies and a safe place to overwinter can all be accomplished in a small area. Caterpillars of some species of butterflies have very specific larval host plants, while some will eat a wide range of species. Nectar is the primary food source for most adult butterflies. Planting nectar-rich plants in the garden is sure to attract more butterflies. Depending on the species, butterflies overwinter in all stages of life from egg to adult. Some places they overwinter include leaf litter, the bases of bunch grasses, rock piles, brush or wood piles, behind loose tree bark and near their host plants.

 

Birds

Just like butterflies birds need healthy food to eat and shelter. Start by planting native plants in your garden that provide seeds, berries, nuts and nectar. Shrubs and trees, especially evergreen species, provide excellent shelter and nesting sites for birds. Birds also need a year-round water source such as a bird bath. Providing nesting boxes and offering food in feeders will attract even more birds.

Photo of an orange and yellow butterfly on a marigold bloom.

Photo courtesy of pixabay.

Try planting our Birds and Butterflies mix to attract more birds and butterflies to your landscape. The mixture of annuals, perennials, introduced and native wildflowers is designed to attract butterflies over a long season of bloom from spring until fall and a variety of birds to the seeds come autumn.

 

Sources:  Gardening for Butterflies, The Xerces Society

https://www.nwf.org/sitecore/content/Home/Garden-for-Wildlife/Wildlife/Attracting-Birds