Some people are pathologically opposed to gardening alone. For them, it’s a group activity. Others are solitary planters and weeders. But we are never alone in the garden.
We are always being watched: A robin waits for a worm as I turn the soil. He probably figures, why should I do all the work when I can get this little old lady to do the heavy lifting and unearth a worm? A gregarious catbird comes within a few feet of where I’m weeding but decides he or she would prefer a dip in the nearby birdbath.
For 12 years I gardened with our beloved cat Van Gogh – a stray who survived on his unparalleled hunting ability. He was a paradox: a lethal hunter by day and a love bucket by night when we brought him in. He mainly supervised my garden chores. He would find me in the garden and plop at my feet and oversee whatever I was doing – with one eye open. When I would ascend a ladder to hack back the hydrangea that was smothering the house, he would come up the ladder too. We were inseparable.
I miss him, but I’m aware that without him the backyard is teeming with birds. I notice a pair of catbirds and their offspring. That’s something I would never have seen when Van Gogh prowled his domain. The word is out in the bird world that Van Gogh is no more. Two Carolina wren families have stuffed their swaying nurseries full of sticks – those little birds with such large songs sing above our patio daily. Take a listen.
https://shriekoftheweek.substack.com/p/shriek-of-the-week-wren-a5d
And it’s not just the birds that are back.
There are more chipmunks in the stone wall and more rabbits in the garden. Our neighbor to the north was overrun with chipmunks one year and asked if I could send “Killer” (aka Van Gogh) over. He kept the chipmunks in check. Right now, there’s a chipmunk orgy going on in the stone walls and in the neighborhood.
It’s a mixed bag, but it’s a brave new world in our backyard – one that birds rule. I’m blessed to have plenty of companions.
Read “Why Birds and their songs are good for our mental health.”
https://tinyurl.com/4t88644n