Here’s a peek at the daylilies that were blooming in my gardens today. You’ll also see, on the bottom left, the fuzzy little rump of a medium-sized bumblebee that buried itself in a golden-colored bloom just as I snapped the shot. And on the bottom petal of the lavendar and white daylily, if you look carefully you’ll find a tiny little native bee.
What you can’t see: two baby bunnies and a baby chipmunk that were hiding under the foliage. I tried my best to get photos of them, but boy, are they fast-moving little critters! So: close your eyes, look carefully past the flowers and down deep underneath the leaves and… there! There they are!
Adorable, aren’t they?
I can’t believe how tiny this baby bunny is!
And I can’t believe that I said it was OK for my neighbor, Dan, to put Little Baby Rabbit in my yard… because it’s not like we don’t have enough rabbits. In just one patch of our (rather small) front yard last night we had four adult rabbits happily chomping on clover.
How could I say no? He’s adorable. And he needed sanctuary. Who could resist? I mean – just take a look. See that heart-shaped leaf in the upper left hand side of the image? It’s a cloverleaf violet. Now, think about how big a cloverleaf violet’s leaf is. Not very big. So, compare the size of the cloverleaf violet to the size of the bunny, and you’ll get an idea of just how teeny tiny Little Baby Rabbit is! (update: major brain fart in original post – kept thinking violet and writing cloverleaf. At 94F, it’s obviously way too hot for a brain that’s accustomed to -10F to function reliably.)
I know, I know. Baby Bunny is going to grow up fat and sassy from eating my flowers. But it needed a new home, as this little cutie had been discovered by Rudy. A very fast-acting Dan literally pulled it from within Rudy’s jaws. Poor Rudy! You could see him going, “Wadda ya mean, drop it! Dad! I’m a dog! I’m supposed to catch rabbits, right? No way am I gonna drop it. Right? Right? Oh. Wrong. Dang.”
The bunny was fine when Dan got it, which is amazing because this is one little bunny and Rudy is one big dog. After it got over its fright, it was hopping around with nary a problem and… yes… inspecting the yummy flowers. So when Dan asked, what were my options? Give BB a home or… um, well, what options? I mean, just look at those tiny bitty ears! Is there anything cuter than a bitty bunny and its little bitty ears?
*sigh*
I’m a softie. I admit it. Next thing you know, I’ll be planting carrots. For them.
This morning, as I peered out the window, I noticed that one of the asiatic lilies had a rather odd top to it. Sort of… fuzzy. And stripey.
Then I started laughing. It was a young chipmunk, so small that it could perch on the top of the plant to survey the yard.
He is soooooooo cute! Yeah, I know, he won’t be cute two months from now when he’s mowing down my cherry tomatoes, but still…
I’ve dubbed him “Half-Pint.”
Still coughing, but have some patches where I’m not – and yes, the ribs hurt like hell. However, I’m feeling better enough otherwise to meander about the yard a bit. Found this lovely patch of croci and couldn’t believe it. Usually, the buds last for, oh, two or three hours before the bunnies have them as a snack. James must be slipping – he missed these!
Aren’t they lovely?
For once, a flower that the bunnies do not like — but us humans find delicious!
It’s a chive!
If you’ve never grown chives, Oh Best Beloved, they are very easy plants to have in your garden. Mine grow even in thick heavy clay, with only half a day’s worth of sunshine, and they are quite hardy. The flowers are as edible as the leaves, but be careful – they are even more “potent” than the leaves with rich chive-y flavor.
They’re fun to toss into a salad to add some attractive visuals (who can resist eating flowers?) with a nice zest to boot!
Critters, Garden, Village Life | JAS | 
July 1, 2009 2:10 am | 
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