It is February 20, and 82 degrees in the quiet wild today! Everything in the natural world thinks it is spring. Below are a few images of plants that have decided to start producing buds.

The Turk’s Cap is having a vigorous rebirth this year!

I am so excited that the Milkweed plant came back after the freeze. There were so many Monarch butterflies last year that I want to be prepared this year.

The Rose of Sharon produced blooms all through the spring and summer last year. The buds on it look very healthy.

The American Beautyberry survived my replant last year and is covered in healthy buds this year! The birds love the little berries that grow on the stems.

Lantana is such a hearty plant. I cut it back all the way to the ground, and it comes back with a vengeance. The birds absolutely love to hide in this bush, and the butterflies and hummingbirds love to eat the pollen in the flowers! In the late fall, when the bush starts to get dry and lose its blooms, the birds eat the seeds left on the bush. It is a very popular plant throughout all the seasons in the quiet wild!

The Blackberry bush is a new addition to the quiet wild this year. I am very excited that it has started to bloom. I can’t wait to see if the birds like the berries it produces.

These Poppy buds are covered in little hairs. I love the way they look! I wait impatiently for the flowers to bloom.

These Delphinium are new additions to the quiet wild, also. Like the Poppies, they are covered with tiny hairs. The bud’s shape is so unusual, a little bit like a scorpion’s curved tail. Nature is fascinating!

The Vitex bush was one of the last plants to start producing buds in the quiet wild this year.

It is not just the plants that are preparing for spring. The Eastern Bluebirds have spent the last couple of weeks searching for a place to build their nest for another brood. One pair has chosen the bright blue birdhouse, a new addition to the birdhouse choices this year. As I have been cutting back plants, I have thrown some of the smaller twigs and stems in the flower beds for them to use as they build their nest. It is so much fun to watch them go into the little birdhouse hole with a branch to add to their nest. I look forward to watching another group of baby birds in the quiet wild!

This is such an exciting time to experience nature. As a naturalist, you have to learn to live with the ugly that comes after the winter months and the freezes. But when the temperature gets just right, and the sun begins move to a slightly different place in the sky, small buds begin to peek out. It is delightful to see the green leaf or bud peeking out of the brown stem! I feel so fortunate to observe nature do its spring dance of rebirth and growth. The plants and animals provide me with entertainment and pure joy as I putter around the quiet wild. I look forward to sharing the spring happenings of the backyard with you.