Pooter, lady slippers, & pulpits

 I had to get my pooter out of the cupboard. I only need it when the red lily bugs come out. Okay, not true, I use it in the fall when lady beetles try to come in the house! 

pooter  Wiki

One sucks on the short end, which had a trap (gauze) on the other end. The long tube you set by the bug and by sucking on it, the bug ends up in the jar. 

Everything is greening up!

Primula veris, the cowslip, common cowslip, or cowslip primrose

Trillium are scattered throughout the forest:

We have ladyslippers in our wetland. They are beyond the frog pond, on our furthest lot. Sometimes I forget to go find them! I found only two plants, We'll see. 

Here is one from May, 2020. The problem with May is the bugs come out. I think we already have blackflies. That's why I forget to go find if they are blooming!

Fred is being very careful, wary. She lost 3/4 kits to coyotes last year.

This was a big surprise. I was down in the forest, doing a walkabout. This is a jack-in-the-pulpit. I wonder if a bird took a seed down. 

I have them in my garden behind the house. 

Crumbly Acres in the cold

First, we have to laugh. We must. The grifter was grifted! It'll cost a $ billion to retrofit it, and add the specs the plane would need.

☔ We've been having rain showers on and off. It doesn't make for good critter watching! It's the kind of day when you think, 'oh good, I'll get those indoor chores done!' I did cross sewing off my list. I had two things to repair. 

I managed to put the garbage out, but bundled up. Yikes. A cold front rolling in from the north. Last night I placed my unplanted plants in the garage for warmth.

With the fires in Manitoba, we are grateful for rain.

It cleared up. Thankfully! Toddling on down to the trailcam, I remembered to check out Lady Slippers. Glad I did! They are nearly done. There is only one spot on the property when we can find them. 

The first photo, below: May 17, 2025. The next, May 25, 2020. I should have known! It was an early Spring.

Before the storm, the goldfish pond was too low. I knew rain was coming. 

The leopard frogs are in the grass.

Our 'new' Aspen grove. The previous owners always mowed this section of the back yard. When the Aspens began to fill in, they had to first fight those Spongy Moths. Then the deer thought the new foliage excellent. I think I have won, though. There is something about the bright greens in Spring.

Between #75, our release squirrel, and Winifred, we are being entertained. The skies cleared May 16th in the afternoon. At first we only spotted one kit. Turns out there are two. I read up on them, and it says they have between 2 - 9 kits. Sure enough.

YAM suggested Minifred! It'll have to be Minifred 1 and 2!

She is working hard!

The deer fence was tipsy. That needed fixing. I suspect Fred. She's eating for three!

It is great stuff.

Much as we enjoy Fred, she eats everything. Sadly, she likes milkweed, which we need for the monarchs. She chopped off it's head. 

I went out in the cold to see what I could do. This might discourage her! Silly thing. 

The bird songs are fabulous. On the Crumbly Acres camera, both the loon and cardinal. How random is that?! We've a lake nearby, and the loons often do a flyover.

   

 #75 is doing well. He's still reluctant to leave his nest box.

 

Every morning Joe goes to the tree and leaves a cup of striped sunflower seeds, as per instructions from RVWS. #75 will watch him coming!

Have a good week, all.

It's a miracle!

I finally had walkies with Cinnamon. He's been reluctant, until Monday, May 25th. I've missed my walkies with Daisy.

I went down to the trailcams. I was standing here, admiring my work on clearing the path with the lawn tractor, when I heard meowing behind me. The path leads to the empty duck box.



He's been to the pond alone. I've captured him on the trail camera focused on the dock. I knew he'd been down there.
Nutmeg still isn't comfortable being petted outdoors. We spent the winter keeping them indoors. I brought her a piece of wild catnip, called her, no way, and threw it towards her. She ran off. Cinnamon helped me find the lady slippers. He was so happy.



One lone male mallard duck on the pond. Now that the one duck is settled into her nesting box, the other two boxes are empty, we can walk around the pond again.



The pond is full of tadpoles!

tadpoles from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.




I just read an article on kitten socialization. You'll recall our two were found at the side of a road, sleeping and huddled together. The vet, who sold them to us, estimated that they were about 4 - 6 months old at that point. It's no wonder their fears are huge.

Socialization Tips For You and Your Kitten

Kittens have a prime socialization window which occurs at 2-7 weeks of age but can extend up to 14 weeks. During this time, the kitten is most receptive to new experiences. ...  After the window closes, unfamiliar people, objects and experiences are approached with caution, and the kitten may become fearful. In fact, the most common cause of fear and aggression is lack of socialization.

I had trouble with focus, because of my cataracts, but once I remembered I'd had it on manual focus, I did better. sigh. There were only two. We've had 4 or 5 in previous years. Thanks to Eileen, who showed photos of her captures, as I'd forgotten about them. They are so rare, and last such a short period of time.



The Lady Slippers grow on the edge of the wetland.

 

I called him, whistled, patted my leg, and by the time I turned around, he was roaring up the hill in front of me.