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At the end of 2010 I wrote about lessons I’d learned throughout my battle with cancer. One of my resolutions was to “just do it.”

Specifically, I resolved to grow daffodils this spring. The beautiful yellow buds are something I had always wanted in my yard but had somehow neglected to plant.

Last fall, John and I “just did it.” We planted 270 daffodil bulbs — a mixture of early, middle and late bloomers — in our front flower bed. Through the late fall and unusually bitter winter, we wondered how the bulbs could survive. As voles feasted on plants in other parts of our yard, we worried that the annoying critters would eat our precious daffodils.

Once the vicious winter eased, we daily watched the green leaves poking through the pine needles, seemingly growing taller with each hour. Then finally the first bloom cracked open, and then another, and before long I couldn’t even count the flowers.

For the past several weeks, our field of dreams has delighted us each and every day. Like parents anticipating a newborn’s every smile and coo, we tiptoe out to the flower bed each morning, each lunch time and every evening to check on the flowers’ progress. It’s ridiculous how many times I’ve photographed these daffodils.

As you can see, they are absolutely beautiful — everything I had hoped for. And now that the petals of the early bloomers are starting to fade, the second wave of glory is unfolding. Now, the golden flowers are framed by the purple of the redbud trees that were once the sole occupants of this bed.

So let me tell you again: Just do it. We’re delighted we did!

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Butterflies are (nearly) free.

Spring is unfolding all around us, and I have to tell you about another plant you’ll want for your yard: a butterfly bush. We planted three last spring, and they are amazing. Yes, their silver-green leaves and purple plumelike blooms are beautiful, but what is most remarkable about the butterfly bush is that it really does attract butterflies. Tons of butterflies.

We put our bushes just outside our dining room and family room windows, and from each of the three views, we were treated to incredible aerial ballets of butterflies. In fact, this year I want to learn more about these delicate, graceful creatures. Where do they sleep at night? And how do their paper-thin wings survive harsh raindrops?
The butterfly bush variety we selected offers showy purple blooms, but you can also find them with white flowers and red flowers. And as an extra bonus, hummingbirds also flock to the bushes.

For a backyard delight, the plant is worth every penny and more. I’m mystified how a simple plant can attract so many beautiful creatures. And the butterflies are not bashful. You (and your children, too) can get close to the butterflies and watch them drink the nectar (usually they hang upside down) and flirt with each other, adding a fantasy-like component to your garden.

These plants are also known as summer lilacs. The botanical names are Buddleia davidii and Buddleia x weyeriana if you are into that sort of thing. My husband is. As for me, not so much.

The bushes, which bloom from June or July until the first hard frost, grow well even in poor soil (if our yard is any indicator). The plant is even tolerant of drought and wetness. Just make sure you plant them in a well-drained area. Ours are planted in a once barren part of our yard. We are on a steeply sloped lot and have more bad soil than good.

The butterfly bush’s blooms will reach six to eight inches, and the stems grow long and gracefully cascade once the buds weigh down the limbs. The plants tolerate pruning even during the peak of the season. Definitely count on trimming them back in the fall.

Regardless of how pitiful they look in the winter, they spring back to life this time of year. We don’t have blooms yet but the butterflies are already returning.

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More birds

When I write about something, I love to receive feedback. And you always comment on the columns I write about birds, so I keep, ahem, writing about birds. Right now, the backyard birds sound like a symphony of chirps, peeps, caws and twitters. We spend a lot of time in the yard and on the deck and have sharpened our ears to certain calls.

We well know our red-shouldered hawks’ hearty and screechy calls and the mystic “who whooos” of our barred owls. Discerning the sounds of our songbirds is a little more challenging. They tend to blend together, creating an invigorating harmony.

I have discovered a website that is essential to the backyard birder who wants to know which feathered friend makes which chirp. It’s www.identify.what bird.com. Go to this website and type in the birds in your backyard (if you aren’t sure, the website will also help you identify them). Then click on each bird’s call.

The recordings of the calls of the northern cardinal, the Carolina chickadee and the house wren are so crisp and clear, it’s hard to tell if I’m listening to the sounds of my backyard through the kitchen window or recordings through the computer speakers.
 

Ah, the promises of spring.

Contact Cathy Weaver at CWeaverNR@gmail.com.