Day 127 of 365 Days of Being Thankful

         Today I am thankful for the soap opera going on in my backyard!  I always thought that birds mated for life.  I just love watching the bluebird in my yard.  He has entertained me just by watching him walk back and forth on the ledge of my sliding door and pecking at the glass to get in.  But now he has added more entertainment value.  He's better than any TV show! This bluebird is the big man on campus!!

The bluebird that hangs around in my yard is polygamous.  I have two birdhouses in my back yard.  He goes from one to the other and there is another bird in each house. I have watched and watched and there is only one bluebird flying into each house and back and forth.  The bluebird's mates are a much duller color so the bright colored  bluebird must be a male.  I would think that the other mates must know he is polygamous.  The birdhouses are in the same garden.

          I found this info online:   We've all heard it countless times: Certain species of birds mate for life, including geese, swans, cranes, and eagles. It's a true statement, for the most part, but it's only part of the story. Lots of monogamous bird species cheat, and some “divorce”—but at rates much lower than humans. The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior says that 90 percent of all bird species are socially monogamous, but some level of cheating is common. Cheating, or “extra-pair copulation” also occurs, but rarely, among birds of sexually monogamous, mated-for-life species, “but is not yet known how many species engage in extra-pair copulations, since many species remain to be studied. However, it appears that genetic monogamy may be the exception rather than the rule among birds.” In other words, socially monogamous birds are not necessarily faithful partners, but they care for each other and for the young of their nest. Rearing young together does not imply sexual fidelity. Studies of eastern bluebirds have found that nests with mixed parentage — that is, they have eggs by more than one father, or more than one mother, or both — are not uncommon.
        Maybe I can get a reality show for my bluebird!   Sister Bluebirdwives and Brother Bluebirdhusbands  or Cheater Cheepers!!

     Today I am also thankful for perennial plants. In my backyard garden, I have mostly perennials along with a few rosebushes.  I love watching the Hostas and the Peonies emerge from the ground and grow larger and larger.  The deer love eating my hostas.  The deer think my backyard gardens are a buffet for them. I have three different types of hostas and the deer eat every type.

This hosta is the deer favorite!

 I have tried everything to keep the deer away.  I have tried putting soap on poles, coyote urine, and sprays but the deer ignore all that and keep eating the leaves.  I've read online that Irish Spring soap keeps deer away because it is a human scent.  Apparently the deer in my yard didn't read the information online about Irish Spring soap.

I also like that the hostas  cover and hide a lot of the weeds. I plan annuals in the pots out back so that I have a lot of color on the patio and pool deck. I should cut down my rose bushes because the deer eat off all of the buds as soon as they start to open.  They do leave my peonies alone. They also are not fans of my butterfly bushes so they grow and are very colorful!

I guess the deer don't like them.  Every year I plant a tomato plant in a huge pot on my pool deck.  I love watching it grow.  By the time I buy new potting soil, the tomato plant, and plant food, I could have purchased a crate load of tomatoes for the same price. I love watching the tomato plant grow but I never get a huge harvest. Some people have green thumbs but I am not one of them.