bees in the bay breeze

bees in the bay breeze is a blog that features musings about nature,

organic gardening and food for a changing planet

Sunset like a glorious watercolor painting

Winter visitors

Winter visitors

They are all out there in the garden. I hear them in the trees and shrubs, foraging in the garden, or in the bird bath. But when it comes to photographing these winter visitors, it's all a matter of timing and luck. I took these photos of the yellow rumped warbler and white throated sparrow through a glass sliding door. It would be almost impossible to catch the images outdoors because these birds would probably not hang out around the patio if they saw me. The yellow-rumped

Peaceful, Safe and Healthy Holiday Wishes to Everyone!

A Ruby-crowned kinglet

A Ruby-crowned kinglet

Several Ruby-crowned kinglets are back for their annual visit. These birds are common in forests throughout Canada and the northwestern United States, during summer months. It's always a delight to spot them hopping around our backyard and patio. You can see that the kinglet above is literally hopping along the fence. This photo was taken through a glass sliding door, when I first noticed the kinglet. Note its red crown that looks like a red patch on its head. When they get e

Jupiter and Saturn

Jupiter and Saturn

I don't have a telescope to work with, so this is the best shot I have of the current Jupiter and Saturn conjunction. What matters most, I feel, is to have been able to experience this rare event. Just think, this last occurred 800 years ago! While observing the two planets last night from our front porch, an owl hooted from a nearby tree in my neighbor's yard. I first thought I was imagining the owl sounds, but it continued to hoot for a while until it decided to fly away. S

White-crowned sparrows finding treasures in the rain

White-crowned sparrows finding treasures in the rain

During a day of steady, soft rainfall, birds were out and about foraging in the nature patch of the garden. I observed twelve white-crowned sparrows hopping around the garden, picking through dried grass, twigs and ground cover. They seemed to be finding treasures, probably worms, grubs and insects brought up to the surface by the constant rainfall. The photos were taken through our window. Three of the sparrows are very busy foraging. This sparrow is checking the rain before

Lovely raindrops

Fascinating article about Golden-Crowned and other Sparrows

Fascinating article about Golden-Crowned and other Sparrows

UC Santa Cruz scientist observations about the golden-crowned sparrow are reported in the Fall issue of the Bay Nature magazine. Apparently, these sparrows, as well as other sparrows, tend to return to the same shrub or at least the same yard every fall, where they remain through the winter. They forage with other birds with whom they are familiar. https://baynature.org/article/the-song-of-fall/ I've noticed that the golden-crowned sparrows in our garden often forage in the c

Another stunning sunset

Don't cut down those dead stems of native plants!

Don't cut down those dead stems of native plants!

The Hummingbird Hill Native Plant Nursery took these photos with a macro lens to show how important it is to leave native plants standing throughout the winter. The nursery reminds us: DON'T cut down the dried stalks of native plants in your garden because insects that you attracted during the warm summer months will use the stalks as winter homes. They use these stalks as larvae, eggs, or adults. The holes the insects make are generally unnoticeable without a macro lens, bec

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bees in the bay breeze

For years I have been sharing ideas, gardening tips and recipes with family, friends and colleagues.

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