Early May in the backyard

The first week of May in my backyard has been absolutely brilliant! After a couple of weeks in which we received almost 14 inches of rain and it seemed that every day we were dealing with another storm, this week has been filled with sunshine and pleasant temperatures. Daytime temperatures have topped out in the low 80s and at night we've gotten down to the low 50s at time - almost unheard of for early May here when summer is often already in full swing.

In addition to the weather, it has been an interesting time around the yard for other reasons.

Rose-breasted Grosbeaks are still passing through. Yesterday, I photographed this male at one of my feeders. 

He was accompanied by two females. This one...

...and this one. I haven't seen any Baltimore Orioles in the yard yet, although I'm pretty sure I heard one calling yesterday.

This female Northern Cardinal was taking a break from the nest to grab a snack. We should be seeing young cardinals around the feeder very soon.

As always, there have been plenty of White-winged Doves around this week, but I've also had Eurasian Collared-doves, Mourning Doves, and even one Inca Dove.  

May is magnolia month and the southern magnolias are in full bloom already.
May is also the beginning of daylily season and I have several in bloom. Others will be joining in later.





Butterflies like this Cloudless Sulphur love this old species canna.

The Monarchs seem particularly fond of the yellow cestrum. There have been several of these butterflies in my yard this week.

This sunflower shines down on a garden that is enjoying a gentle respite between spells of challenging weather.

The green anoles are happy.

And the goldfish are frisky.  Yes, it must be "the lusty month of May" as Lerner and Lowe wrote for the musical Camelot long ago.

And I'm loving it!


Comments

  1. AnonymousMay 6, 2016 at 3:01 PM

    Amazing. Thank you

    ReplyDelete
  2. AlanaMay 6, 2016 at 6:14 PM

    Beautiful post-rain pictures. I'm happy to know that you escaped the fate of parts of Houston. Torrential rains and their power are scary. Even scarier, I think, than drought.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dorothy BordersMay 6, 2016 at 8:52 PM

      The ground is still a bit spongy in spots, but with a few more days like we've had this week, it will be dried out. And we'll probably be wishing for rain again.

      Delete
  3. CarmenMay 7, 2016 at 12:59 PM

    Your garden is a feast for the eyes both in flora and fauna.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dorothy BordersMay 7, 2016 at 1:49 PM

      That's the mark of a successful habitat garden. Mine is at least semi-successful.

      Delete
  4. Judy KruegerMay 7, 2016 at 1:26 PM

    It looks like Mother's Day in your garden. Simply beautiful!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dorothy BordersMay 7, 2016 at 1:49 PM

      Thanks, Judy. And a happy Mother's Day to you.

      Delete
  5. JayneMay 13, 2016 at 2:32 PM

    It's wonderful isn't it Dorothy! Your garden is looking beautiful. I'd love to see it in person one day :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dorothy BordersMay 13, 2016 at 2:47 PM

      You'd probably be disappointed. I only show you the (relatively) good parts.

      Delete

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