The real hot days of summer (la canicule) are behind us. Amelia and I found that this summer with the temperatures often between 35 and 40 degrees Centigrade, we were sitting less in the garden. Oh, well, I told her, it is a good excuse to go to the beach!
Now in late September it is milder and we can attend to the neglected tasks in the garden. And to admire the autumn flowers and of course to sit down for a cup of coffee.
Our garden is usually very peaceful, except for the chattering of the birds. But the garden would surely not be the same without the birds.
When we first bought this house we had very few visiting birds. Now I am amazed with the variety of the birds. They all need water, and so we have placed several watering havens for the bees and the birds.
The hoopoe has become a regular summer visitor to the garden.
The green woodpecker made a bright splash of colour in the garden. It is the first year that I have seen the woodpecker in the front garden.
The Redstarts have remained one of my favourite birds. This year they occupied four nests that I had made for them and they raised at least four young ones in each nest! We get both the black Redstarts as well as the common Redstarts.
Birds require plenty of water, not only to drink but to keep their feathers clean and their antics in the trough provide us with lots of amusement. We see Redstarts taking their bath almost every day at the moment.
I am almost sure that they actually enjoy frolicking in the water as much as my granddaughter used to do.
The sparrow make their nest under the eaves, and I am sure that they must have had three broods this year. Like all baby animals, they too look cute.
But without a doubt, my favourite, at least for this year, is the warbler (I believe it is the melodious warbler).
Sometimes we have mistaken it for a sparrow as it is shy and moves away quickly, but its fine beak is a give-away. The warbler has also started taking bath, but it is a quick dip in and out.
A couple of year ago, from a holiday in Malta, we brought with us a few seeds of what I call the giant fennel. It has grown to well over two metres high and its flowers certainly attracted the bees. Now in seeds, it seems to attract the warbler.
We shall certainly try to replant it next year, if nothing else to make sure that this beautiful bird keeps coming to our garden.
– Kourosh
a french garden 
Dear Kourosh, Thank you once again for taking us into your garden. I was surprised to see the Calla lilies and Astilbe still flowering. I believe your latitude is further south than we are south of Vancouver BC.
Migrating birds are beginning to arrive in great numbers. Many visit Boundary Bay briefly enroute south but some do overwinter.
Great flocks of Snow geese cloak the still-green fields after summering in the Wrangle Islands of Russia. Brant and Canada geese appear almost as soon as the pumpkins are revealed, they seem so relieved and joyful when they arrive and call to each other before settling into our sheltered waters,
Western sandpipers continue to Surinam and Peru from the Arctic and Dunlins give spectacular synchronized flight shows. The parade continues with varieties of dabbling ducks and the spectacular Trumpeter and Tundra swans that are usually on parade in small family groups of five. It is quite a sight when they fly over us.
The Bay is surrounded by agricultural fields that attract raptors and song birds. We have small sparrows and warblers that routinely visit our garden to feed and take advantage of the shallow pond.
Annas hummingbirds overwinter and we feed them from October till early Spring. We make sure we bring the feeder in on nights the nectar might freeze and wake before dawn to make sure the feeder is up by daybreak. We know these tiny birds can barely sustain themselves through a freezing night and are always relieved to see them arrive at the feeder,
Once again the season is turning. We find winter Hard even though it is very mild on the coast it is the low light that makes the season so long. We both grew up in sunnier climes and still miss it.
All the best to you both,
Regards Janine and B in BC Canada
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May thanks, Janine.
I find it so fascinating to read the experince of other people in different parts of the world. It does seem to me that we all have at least one thing in common and that is our love of nature: the flowers, the trees and the animals. Before coming to France we lived in Northern Scotland and now find the winters fairy mild here in France, so we are – I suppose – lucky that we can enjoy winter days more. That is why one day we decided to pack up our bags and move to France, even though all our family are elsewhere. Good or bad decision? Who knows?
I do hope that the winter for you in Vancouver will be sufficiently mild and that you will be able to enjoy nice walks in the countryside. I used to enjoy seeing the beautiful colours of leaves in Canada and the US, when we lived there. But that was a long time ago!
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Wonderful pictures Kourosh. We seem to be hurrying into fall here near Seattle. Have had some heavy rains but also some bright sunny days, but colder than normal temperatures! Outside tomatoes are done, succumbed to late blight, but the greenhouse is chugging along as are the scarlet runner beans and surprisingly strawberries. We just planted salad seeds, fingers crossed that we manage to harvest some baby greens in a few weeks. We just barely escaped a frost last night, very early for here, so I ran around covering things and moving pots inside. Wish we could join you for that cup of coffee!
Annie
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Thanks, Annie. You left the best for the last! Amelia and I would love if you could pop over for coffee.
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What a wonderful introduction to the birds of your garden. Do you ever worry if the birds will feast on the bees?
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Thank you. That is a good question. I have seen the birds sometimes near the hives, but if they take anything it is only the dead bees that have been brought out of the hives. We do not have any humming birds or bee eater bird here . I suppose there always opportunists, but meanwhile I feed our birds sufficiently, and hopefully that will do the trick!!!
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Some great pictures, I especially like the Hoopoe, i don’t think it visits our shores. Fennel is a useful garden plant for several reasons, I grow the Bronze Fennel, the pollinators like it.
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Thank you, Bria. I didn’t know about bronze fennel. I will look into it to see if I can buy the seeds here.
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Thanks, Kourosh, for continuing to share your garden with us around the world. Marvelous photography.
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John, it is always a pleasure to hear from you. Thanks.
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Kourosh & Amelia,
It’s been a real pleasure sharing your garden with you over the summer. Watching people such as yourselves doing what I mostly think about pushes me on to do more. The cold rain is beginning here in Switzerland, and like Janine’s geese we are looking to fly south. (The best birds have to be the common redstart chicks!).
Cheers, Malcolm.
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Wonderful photos Kourosh, and very envious of the diversity of birds you have visiting. Plus pleased the temps are back into a more equable range,
best wishes
Julian
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Yes, I agree they are wonderful photos. I belive the hoopoe is occasioanlly seen on the south coast of England but I have never seen one myself.
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Just seen this and it is nice to see familiar bits of your garden. All the best.
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