Like the Wicked Witch of the East in the Wizard of Oz, my annuals are not merely dead but “really most sincerely dead.” The temperature dipped below 20 degrees (F) over the weekend. Even the plants nestled against the house were no match for that kind of chill. The growing season is officially over.
The storm system that passed through on Friday afternoon brought blizzard conditions and 6 to 12 inches of snow to parts of Nebraska, Minnesota and South Dakota, but by the time it reached Wisconsin it was mostly a wind event with snow flurries.
I figured most of the migrating birds would’ve hitched a ride out of here ahead of the storm, but yesterday morning I still saw a few White-throated Sparrows in our backyard.
And the small flock of Red-winged Blackbirds that arrived in mid-October and has been spending most of their days in the tall arborvitaes making strange squawking noises, is still here too. They like peanuts:
I’m glad the cold weather finally arrived because some of my daffodils were starting to peek out of the ground. They needed a harsh reminder that spring is still months away.