The Bird Sanctuary

The Bird Sanctuary is the area of my garden that is the sideyard we view out our dining room and kitchen windows. The sideyard is divided in half by a fence which separates the front sideyard from the back sideyard. Only the part of the sideyard that is in the front is the Bird Sanctuary.

It is full of trees that block all the sun. It is impossible to grow anything but woodland plants here and even some of them struggle. Every year, we talk about pruning to open up the sunlight just a little. Every year we cut some, nature breaks some and we pick up branches on a daily basis. None of it makes a difference to the lack of light.

There are two Spirea 'Snowmound' in here, a Ninebark and a sad, sad, lilac. The old light purple, highly scented variety of lilac which was, at one time, a very healthy shrub. This year it had about 20 flowers and 6 leaves. It struggles the most and if it is to be saved, we will need to help it this year. I am almost certain it will not make another.

The birds give me an excuse to let the whole place go a little wild and it always does. Plants find it difficult, weeds seem to love it. I still fight the good fight. Trying to find the plants that will live here. So far there are hosta and columbine. Siberian Iris 'Moonsilk' was here until this year. It never blooms. I moved it this year.

Despite all of this, I will never move the feeders and baths from this area. The birds love the tree cover. They all come in huge numbers providing hours of free entertainment and very occasionally, something rare will stop. Plants are here... but the birds are the focus.