This year I planted some cornflowers that grew in front of the window. They were planned as degu treats, but with one thing and another, I didn’t get around to harvesting and drying them. They do look pretty sad to human eyes now, but they look damn delicious to the goldfinches. I rarely get to see them, so I was all the more surprised to find them within 30 cm of my nose, happily munching the seeds.
©Giliell, all rights reserved
©Giliell, all rights reserved
©Giliell, all rights reserved This one’s grainy because I took it with my phone
Great catches.
Cornflowers also grow here, though they used to be more common as weeds in rye fields than they are now. It’s called ruiskukka or ruiskaunokki (rye flower or rye beauty) in Finnish.
Lovely. It looks like an intrepid photographer with a telephoto lens not someone standing at the window.
Lovely birdies. I haven’t seen them in my garden for a while.
Lovely pictures of the pretties.
We’ve found the plant that guarantees gold finches in the garden is the teasel, though other thistles do pretty well too. The teasel has the advantage from the observers pont of view in that the seedhead is well clear of the foliage, so it’s very easy to see the gold finches munchng away. Plus you can still use the teasel head for perking up your brushed cotton or baize when the finches have finished with it.
I finally clued into what seemed strange. I am used to a North American Gold finch.
jrkrideau @ 5
Your goldfinches are in the siskin genus (Spinus), ours here are in the genus Carduelis. All are finches anyway.
While this bird is called Stieglitz in German, it isn’t very closely related to the economist Joseph Stiglitz.
Wait until I introduce you to actual robins.
How lovely!