Donna

Plans: I plan to focus on the front yard this spring. We have a blank slate in so many ways. We plan to keep the center of the front wild with bunchgrass, sage, some wildflowers I planted last year and rabbit bushes. There are three areas to focus on and I should probably select one to start with. Two are the beds on either side of the house near the port cochere that need plants. One side (right of the front door) has gravel and a weed controlling barrier in place. The other side is needing some work underground to drain water from the gutters away from the house so not ready for planting yet. We don't have plants now on either side of the house. The third area is between the gravel edging the circular driveway and the wild bunchgrass. I have ordered about 20 native plants and shrub but I need a plan on where to start planting them. I just signed up for a 4-session class on landscaping design at a nearby arboretum to hopefully get a solid landscape plan in place and then prioritize my projects. And I need to keep wildfire safety in mind as a priority. I have great resources - the class materials from this experience, local native nurseries, Audubon pals who know a LOT, the arboretum. Just need to "dig in" Can you tell from the photo it's windy in Ellensburg today?   Resources

Well, it was surprising to see the importance of ecoregions. I thought hardiness was the most important factor in selecting plants. Now I know in Ellensburg WA we live in hardiness 6B and Ecosystem 10E in the Columbia Plateau. I didn't know the Washington firefighting helicopters are based in Ellensburg. So interesting!   My efforts this year are in planting natives in front of the house. Last year I focused on a few wildflowers and several have survived - the prairie smoke and lupine in particular.  Our home is only a few years old and my efforts have been to get after the invasives once the soil was disrupted. Now it's time to add some beauty and larger shrubs. I am thinking about purchasing three oak trees to plant in the fall for the future we probably won't see but the birds will love.

In our shrub steppe we offer birds: Seeds and nuts : I don't know if seeds from rye, tumbleweed and cheat grass are attractive to birds but we have a LOT of it! Also two ponderosa pines (named Pondie and Rosa) :-). Berries and fruit: a plum tree and I just ordered 2 service berries, three snowberries and one choke cherry. Nectar, flowers and sap: Wood roses and nootka roses, mock orange and I am thinking our two new golden currents will flower. Also lupin, salsify, yarrow and I hope the kitten tails and prairie smoke survived the winter. Insects and spiders: Well, I don't really know. We see flycatchers so they must be eating something. Also grasshoppers, crickets, praying mantis occasionally. To my chagrin we occasionally get a millipede in the house. Other tasties: little green frogs Water: We have an irrigation canal across the back of our property that runs during farming season but no additional water near the house. Shelter and nesting: the ponderosa pines, a kestrel box that goes unused and lots of bunchgrass for ring necked pheasants and meadowlarks. I think occasionally owls nest in the grass too?

Activity 1: This is my first post and I'm so excited to share our recent experience with what we are pretty sure is a Say's Phoebe. We live in Central Washington on 20 areas of what is largely bunchgrass.   The couple built a nest in our wellhouse that has some open access and raised five little birds. We kept a camera on them and were glued to it from the time the eggs arrived until the little ones took flight.  The eggs arrived one a day but the babies all left within two days and now the nest is empty. I miss them and hope they come back next year! Now I assume they are on their way to Arizona or Mexico.