Bird Paradise I have a Bird of Paradise plant, which has taken 7 years to flower? I've heard that this is normal?
Is this correct? Also, I'd like to know if it is ok to prune the 2 dead flowers, and just how low would I cut them ?
Seven years is longer than the average. When started from seed, they begin to bloom when they are about 4-5 years old--according to this article: http://www.bachmans.com/retail/tipsheets/indoor_plants/birdofparadise.cfm
Other sources say 3-5 years. This one had some additional info that may be helpful to you:
Is the browning edges of a bird of paradise normal?
I recently got a bird of paradise, I give it at least four hours of indirect sunlight a day, sometimes direct. I've yet to get a spray bottle to help with the humidity. I've put water on the leaves once to deal with that issue. It is near a heat vent, could this play a part? The leaves are a bit torn from recently being in a small green house and catching on some hooks while we were moving it. The actual edges are crispy, but the leaves are still green. Is this normal?
Good Morning Kirsie J ,
I just got back from walking at Venice beach. Then I had to take the wife to get a leg of lamb for Easter dinner. Please do not mess up on my (smile) favorite flowering plant. I hope I can be the cavalry.
NO! Brown and yellow leaves are not normal. Make sure your Bird of Paradise receives adequate moisture during the first six months. Both totally dry and soggy soil conditions will make the leaves yellow and eventually die. I think your heat vent is causing this problem. Your plant needs stable moisture conditions for at lease six months.
After the first six months (the establishment period), frequent watering and spray on leaves provides the ideal amount of moisture. During the winter months, made sure your soil is dry before watering.
Mulch will help your plant retain moisture and stabilize root temperatures. Do not put mulch against the plant base/stems. Leave an inch circular area around the stems free of mulch. Constant contact between mulch and the stems of the plant can cause stem rot. I use dried leaves and grass cuttings for my mulch.
Also, it is okay for the roots in your container to become a little crowded. It will not hurt your Bird of Paradise plant. That is completely normal for this type of plant.
Try to provide more direct sunlight. By the book, is not always right.
Please be a better nurse, and don't you hurt my favorite plant. Your rewards will be worth your effort. You can look forward to years of beautiful flowers. Does your plant have (smile again) a name?
Good luck Kirsie J. You and your family have a great Easter Sunday. Peace, from Los Angeles.
Within the Edition Classique – one of four editions of the NIVREL collection – the already popular concept of the red-coloured 12 on the dial is published in a rather plain, three-handed automatic watch.
For the last couple of years, two NIVREL models have shown a red 12 o’clock indication on their dial: The ‘La Grande Manuelle Red 12’ and the ‘Répétition Classique Red 12’. The design of the disctinctive 12 is inspired by aviation watches of the older days. Today, the red 12 is an allegory for the spirit of its owner who shows love for the detail and has the sense for small extraordinary specialties.
The special edition „Red 12 Automatic“ will make its contribution to the great success of the NIVREL watches with the red 12 design. Elegance and beauty give the distinction to the extraordinary character of this plain three-handed watch. Deliberately, NIVREL realized this watch without any additional functions in order to create a watch that can be worn at every opportunity. Therefore, close attention was also payed to the interaction between case and dial. Bezel and lugs are the gently curved case components that find its continuation on the dial in terms of form and density. Here, the generously curved arabic numbers are in wonderful contrast to the white lack that covers the dial. The red 12 o’clock indication places another special emphasis on the design. A single, short glimpse on the balanced hands in Breguet style is enough for the owner in order to capture the exact time in every situation.
Birds Foot What are those fictional birds called, with the little wings, the one foot and just a big old eyeball?
I remembered those little birds that were just big old eyeballs with features. I know they had one that was a spider, too, but see, I happen to be writing a book, and I wanted to use these fellas. If I recall, they called them Drakes, but I'm not quite sure. Any help?
If you use someone elses material for your own creation its called plaguerism. Call them something else and change their appearance until it is similar but different enough to be new.
Choosing The Right Toys To Keep Your Pet Bird Happy And Healthy
Many birds become very unhappy rather quickly due to the boredom of sitting in an empty cage. Birds have very active minds and strong beaks they need to work out in order to help keep them occupied and happy. Boredom is one of the reasons why many birds become pluckers and pull out their own feathers. This is why it is important to choose the right toys for your new pet bird.
When choosing a toy for your pet bird it is important to make sure that you choose a toy that is the right size. Some toys are specifically designed for smaller birds and are not always safe if you have a large pet bird. Larger birds have much stronger beaks and can easily break apart toys that were designed for smaller birds. This can be a potential choking hazard.
An extremely popular toy for many smaller birds are swing sets and Olympic rings. Many birds get so much enjoyment out of these two types of toys that they will in fact try to swing on both of them at the same time. Some larger birds also enjoy playing on swing sets, but the majority of bigger birds are not as fond of them as their smaller brethren. Toy ladders are a favorite of birds of all sizes but you have to make sure that you have adequate room in your pet bird's cage.
If you have a bird that has tendencies to pluck a lot, it would be in you and your birds best interest to buy toys which can be preened. Keeping your little buddy busy preening their toys means they are much less likely to spend time pulling out their own feathers. If you purchase a toy that has been made with cotton preening strips you need to pay close attention for any threads that begin to fray. A loose thread could easily tangle around your bird's neck or foot. Preening toys composed of feathers are significantly safer since you do not have the dangers of any loose threads.
Toy play gyms for pet birds are a lot like the gyms in which children play, and many birds get almost the same amount of enjoyment from their play gyms as children do theres. Most bird play gyms include climbing ropes, perches, ladders, seesaws as well as swings and a small bowl for treats.
There are certain toys you should think twice about giving your pet bird. Any toy that has a mirror or highly reflective surface may cause your bird to become bonded with its own reflection. Also toys with flimsy parts with tiny attachments that are not securely fastened such a small bells can also be a bad idea. If your bird manages to pull off any tiny part from one of its toys it may end up swallowing it, and the results could be fatal.
Lastly worth pointing out is the fact that many birds, just like children are quite happy playing with simple objects rather than expensive toys. For example, a paper towel tube or something like a wooden tongue depressor can be quite a joy for many birds. As always be sure to supervise and watch your pet bird closely to make sure they do not injure themselves with whatever it is that they are playing with.
Seeds Great Birds soo its muck up day coming up... any great ideas?
some good ideas so far
- alarms in high places
- order pizzas for teacher
- bags of bird seeds around the school
- itching powder on toilet seats
maybe even hire mopeds aha
please don't whinge about poor kids, poor teachers...
just contribute any more ideas you have got
-if a teacher drives an old car or a small car get a hole bunch of guys to lift it up and take it to the playground where its hard to drive out
-lock teachers into their classrooms
-run into the staffroom singing really loudly and banging on tables
-egg the school
-toilet rolls everywhere whether it be wet or dry
-grafitti teachers cars
-rap a whole teachers car in cling wrap
Basking In The Backyard Heat with Gazebo Bird Feeders
Ah, summer! Next to Christmas, summer is everybody's favorite time of the year. Backyard barbecues, fruit shakes, pitching somebody's little tent in the lawn, your kids trying to cool off in their inflatable swimming pool. Best of all, you get to spend days and days with your loved ones as you watch the various types of birds flocking in your bird feeder station.
If before, bird feeders are normally used by hobbyists, they are now the favorite subject of every nature lover. Hence, most of them would like to set up their very own bird feeder station in their respective homes.
With that in mind, bird watching has been a favorite past time of people from all ages.
Bird feeder craze is not mainly focused on the typical production of such devices but more on the availability of various options on styles, functions, and serviceability. Hence, today's kinds are all-embracing and extensive, rendering and presenting many choices.
Technical structures of bird feeders are so important to consider because these things will determine the quality and the kind of seeds needed to supply the birds' daily meal.
Much has been printed about the different bird feeding. Frankly, there are still many information gaps. What they do not know is that the entire success of bird feeding greatly depends on the type and style of bird feeder used and the kinds of feeds.
Using decorative and creative bird feeders do not just create an attractive and appealing garden or backyard. You can also lure different kinds of birds, which can extensively boost your gratification of your environment at home.
For people who are fascinated with bird watching, the utilization of an attractive bird feeder is not just an added attraction but also increases the bustle in your yard. With the accommodating feature of gazebo bird feeders, the amount of birds flocking in your bird feeding station is increased.
Bird feeders are available in various flairs and sorts. One of the most attractive bird feeder available in the market to day is the gazebo bird feeder.
Like real gazebos, the gazebo bird feeder is specially created to accommodate different types of seeds or other types of bird feeds. With its pavilion makeup, gazebo bird feeders provide spacious and attractive shelter and food supplier for most kinds of birds. They can also provide remarkable venues for resting. And because they are specially patterned next to the real gazebo, this particular type of bird feeder is considered as a good example of a decorative mark in a given setting.
To know more about gazebo bird feeders, here is a list of some of its advantages:
1. Spacious
Gazebo bird feeders are spacious. This particular type of bird feeder can accommodate more than 2 pounds of any seed mixture.
Hence, you do not have to check on it every now and then just to ensure availability of seeds all day long. With gazebo bird feeders, your little flying friends will definitely love to stay and devour on their favorite meal without having to run out of seeds.
2. Durable
Since gazebo bird feeders can hold much weight, you can be sure that the accompanying support is enough to hold the load. Most gazebo bird feeders have steel hanging cable fastened to the bottom of the bird feeder for additional support. Hence, you can be sure that gazebo bird feeders are durable and safe to use.
3. Safe
Gazebo bird feeders have remarkable lock design. It features a twist-lock facet that locks up firmly to a specific seed feeding container with a well emptied dish.
4. Chic
Aside from the fact that the gazebo design creates an added attraction to one's landscape or backyard, the different designs of gazebo bird feeders are also fascinating.
Gazebo bird feeders are available in wood and stained glass design. With that in mind, fashion is the definitely the next best thing to a typical backyard attraction.
5. Mess-free and spill-proof
Because of its spacious design, gazebo bird feeders are definitely spill-proof and mess-free. Hence, you do not have to worry on unnecessary growth of flowers in your garden, mostly within the area where your bird feeder is situated.
Since most bird feeders accommodate bird seeds, some consumers are not happy with the way unwanted flowers grow in their yard. With gazebo bird seeds, you do not have to worry at all. With its spacious trays and roomy areas for bird seeds, you can definitely feed your birds without the mess.
So if you want a well-organized bird feeding, it is best that you shop for durable items such as gazebo bird feeders.
About the Author
Lee Dobbins writes for http://birdfeeders.topicgiant.com where you can learn more about feeding your backyard birds as well as different types of bird feeders like the gazebo bird feeder
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Humming Birds Why don't my grandmother see any humming birds?
Hi, my mother-in-law has lots of humming birds in her yard but for some reason my grandmother says she hasn't seen any in her yard. She has her feeder out on the front of her porch but no humming birds have visited. Does anyone know how to attract them? Does it depend on where you live?
HAHA...KERFOS 1...YOU ARE SO FREAKIN FUNNY! NOT!!
From what I understand, if you put the right food out, they will come. It just takes time. I know they love yellow and red gladiolas flowers. We always had them every year once we planted those in the yard. Make sure the feeder is not to close where humans walk by all the time. We had one near our kitchen window and it seemed ok.
When shopping for bird feeders you are likely to encounter a number of different styles and designs. The type of bird feeder that is best for you might depend on the type of bird you want to attract and how close you want to be to them in terms of an observer of their daily habits.
For a real close up view of feeding birds you might want to consider window bird feeders. These types of bird feeders are attached to the window glass with suction cups. You can buy these types of feeders for smaller birds and also humming birds. Be sure to make sure this type of feeder extends far out enough away from the window so that the bird does not fly into the glass.
The screen tray birdfeeder, also known as steel mesh birdfeeder is a tubular silo that is filled with different types of seeds or nuts depending on what kind of bird you aware most interested in attracting. These are hung from a tree and can also be quite popular with squirrels. The most popular type of food used to fill a screen tray bird feeder is peanuts. However they can also be filled with raisins, mealworms, black oil or sunflower seeds.
If squirrels and other rodents are feasting too much on your bird seed you can also buy types of bird feeders that are the weight activated and spring shut once it detects the presence of a heavier small creature. You can also buy cage protected feeders or ones that are totally housed in metal. Other protective devices for your wild bird feeders include spinners, dippers and flippers. The purpose of these gizmos is to throw the squirrel off balance should it attempt to venture onto the feeding platform.
Decorative bird feeders are brightly painted because the purpose is to fool the bird into thinking they are feeding from a fruit tree. These are excellent for attracting songbirds, especially the oriole. To attract singing birds choose decorative birdhouses in colors such as yellow, orange, red or pink. These types of bird feeders are often made of plastic and might even seem a little tacky or not to your taste but it is this type of bird feeder that will appeal the most to different types of song birds, as well as humming birds.
There are many different types of humming bird feeders on the market. Perhaps the most popular are the large pink plastic vessels shaped like large bulbs or blossoms. These types of bird feeders have tubes that allow the hummingbird to suck up nectar in the same way as he or she would suck up nectar from the throat of a flower. However if you really want to observe a hummingbird up close then you might want to install window feeders.
If you want to attract wild birds, a wild bird feeder can be as simple as a wooden trough, a plastic plate set out on a table or a ball of suet hung in a tree. These should be placed some distance away from the house so the birds are not intimidated by a human presence.
You can make your own wild bird feeder from an old milk carton that is glued to a paper plate. A little door cut out of the bottom of the carton serves as the dispenser for the food and the top of the carton is left, as it is so more food can be added to the feeder as needed. The feeder is then hung in a tree with a long piece of invisible thread or skinny wire to discourage squirrels from getting at the food. This is one of those types of bird feeders that makes an ideal craft project for kids.
You can purchase a bird feeder in a retail store but sometimes you can save quite a bit of money by purchasing birdfeeders online. One benefit to purchasing a bird feeder online is that often you can buy one that is more eclectic or creative than one that you find in a store. There are also many niche sites that you should check into when purchasing birdfeeders online. These web sites are like small boutiques that specialize in particular types of bird feeders. Choosing a creative and unique design for your birdhouse can also prevent your backyard looking just like every one else's on the block.