Friday, July 22, 2011

Rain At Last

It's finally raining today in Southeastern Wisconsin after a full month of all but dry skies.  In those parched 30 days, we had just about 1/4" of rain.

Having spent my entire life in America's Dairyland, I've seen other dry years and the havoc they wreak on life of all kinds.

With normal amounts of precipitation, Wisconsin is a lush and almost tropical paradise during the warm months of May, June, July, August, September, and often even October.  Things start cooling down in November.

Water falling from the sky is a deceptively simple phenomenon...it's best not to take it for granted or to complain about recreational activities ruined by unexpected showers.

I'm happy for every drop. 

Friday, July 15, 2011

When we purchased our current home, mowing the lawn took about 4.5 hours.  I've always used a self-propelled, walk-behind mower because I like to get some exercise in the process.

Nevertheless, 4.5 hours was too big of a time commitment.

I talked it over with my wife, and we decided it would be good to return a large part of the lawn to a more natural state.  Goal was to remove the sod and put in wildflowers.  The area we picked was on a slope so it wasn't usable as lawn anyway.

Next, I called City Hall and was told that as long as no neighbor objected, it was okay with municipal ordinances.  Just to be sure, I visited every neighbor who would be able to see the area and asked if he or she minded.  None did.

Wild Area Wide View
I left a barrier of about six feet of mowed grass--a collar--around what we came to call the "Wild Area" and hired a man with a small tractor to remove the sod.  He also supplied some boulders.  We hauled the sod to the recycling center ourselves, and it took many trips but finally we were ready to spread Meadow In A Can seed.  I would have preferred wildflower seeds from our specific area--Waukesha County, Wisconsin--but the price was high, about $1,500 for the amount we needed.

Now about 20 years later, our Wild Area looks natural and attracts a lot of birds, small mammals, and insects.  Bees and butterflies love it.  One day I even saw a fox under the evergreens.

The martin house has only attracted sparrows...but they seem like a happy bunch and have never complained that it isn't a true sparrow house.

Neighbors haven't complained either, and we've received some nice comments from people.

Click on either of the accompanying photos for a larger image.

Wild Area Close View

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Many Scratching Targets From Natural Scratch

Visit www.naturalscratch.com for many different scratching posts and planks and a slab.

From the original white cedar Natural Scratch to cork posts in 24- and 32-inch sizes and including a new, sisal-clad model.

There are also three different types of cedar planks and one cork slab if your cat likes to scratch a horizontal surface.

Each one comes with a easy-to-follow and use training booklet that makes training your cat to claw what you want it to and nothing else straightforward and achievable.  Cats do want to please their human companions, but need to be trained what to do.

Please visit www.naturalscratch.com for more information.