I have made up my mind to install some birdhouses in the backyard to encourage chickadees to nest. I plan to build my own. In fact, I planned to build several and place them in the backyard, hoping that one would be chosen. More...

I’ve been watching the chickadees at my feeder this winter. It's been easy to attract them to our garden with a feeder stocked with sunflower seeds. And as I daydream about impending spring, I’m wondering how I can encourage them to stay here all year. They seem to disappear come spring, and I wonder why there isn’t a pair of chickadees in every backyard. More...

If you want to see Toronto's first sign of spring, then you have to brave the cold of early March and get out into the swamps! Your reward is a view of Skunk Cabbage, one of our most unusual and intriguing native plants. More...

Down at the pond this week... male redwing blackbirds are back from their winter quarters in (Florida?). Each male sets up and defends a nesting territory in a cattail marsh. Competition for best sites is intense as when the females arrive in a few weeks they will choose a mate based on their territory location. More...

It is the flower buds of male plants that are hairy and sought after by florists. Look at the solitary bees that visit pussy willow in March. More...