Finally the First Flowers in the Yard!

Today they bloomed for the first time.  One Crocus, ALMOST open, and another small blue bulb flower that I’m not sure anymore of the name.   Could be Glory of the Snow - Chionodoxa luciliae.  I know that I saw the Winter Aconite, which was last year’s first bloom in mid March,  setting up blossoms right before the foot of snow we got a week and a half ago.  But the snow has not yet receded from that location, so I have to give the “first” award this year to these two.  This is two weeks later than last year, and I suspect that things will happen quickly in the next couple of weeks, as things catch up. 

The real activity going on for the last few days has been in the bird life.  On Thursday I was eating breakfast in the atrium and heard an unusually loud honking above.  I looked up through the curved surface of the windows to see a huge flock of beautiful Trumpeter Swans flying directly overhead.  At least 30, maybe more of them on their way to breeding grounds north of here.  We still have all of the winter birds, and the spring population is arriving and thriving.  So, Juncos, English Sparrows, Chickadees, all sorts of Finches, Woodpeckers, Mourning Doves, and Cardinals are sharing space with Robins, Redwing Blackbirds, Starlings, more Crows than last year, etc.  And then we see the Mallards, Canada Geese overhead, the daily flight of Sandhill Cranes back and forth from the fields to the east and the pond west of us.  Regular visitations from a pair of Great Horned Owls and a couple of Cooper’s Hawks and some Redtailed Hawks have seemed to keep the rabbit population down this spring.  The Song Sparrows are back also, and their song is becoming more joyful now that the snow is melting. 

As the snow melts, the damage from voles and plows becomes more and more obvious.  Voles destroy the top surface of last years lawn, but usually things grow back with no problem from undamaged roots.  The plows, on the other hand, dig up the edges of the lawn near the street and spew the chunks far into the yard.  It will take significant work to clean up their mess. 
We had someone come and give us an estimate of the cost of either removing or trimming the Willow tree in the back corner of the yard.  $375 to trim lower branches, $1200 to remove the whole tree.  Pricey for sure!  If I was clear about what we really wanted done the choice would be easier.  The trimming could be done this spring, but taking down the whole tree should probably wait for late summer hard ground.  I both love and hate that tree.   Can’t decide what to do. 

Turned off the heater in the pond today, I hope for the last time this year.  The fish are again coming up to be visible.  Water is cloudy for reasons I’m not sure of.  Working on adjusting the chemistry of the water, but particulate filtering may be what is really needed.  I really don’t want to have to drain and refill it again this year.  We lost so many fish doing that last year.