Hi everyone,
Over the past few days we’ve had bands of robins pause in our back yard long enough to fill up on water and rest a bit before moving on. I don’t know where they’ve come from or where they’re headed. Robins have been described as restless migrators. They don’t mind cold weather but when the ground temperature chills and drives earthworms too deep to catch, it’s time to move somewhere south until things get better.
The birds passing through here could be headed to Florida but they may not know themselves. It could be Texas or Mexico. Sometimes they fly in large numbers, but not always. Sometimes they may not make more than 40 miles in a day, but in good conditions they might fly 200 miles. Sometimes they sing as they fly along, sometimes they hold their songs until they reach their destination and start thinking about sex.
Robins tend to scatter out when they reach warmer temperatures. During their winter months they may take a worm now and then but mostly they prefer berries and other fruit. I can’t blame them for that. Who wants worm breath during mating season!
Meanwhile, other birds stay right here, hunker down when the cold wind blows, but otherwise carry on. Our bird feeders are busy social places. Some of our guests prefer to dine lakeside on brilliant mornings. 
Lucky me!
The geraniums, at least some of them, need to be saved. Maybe we’ll try that trick of hanging them upside down in the garage and maybe this time we’ll remember to water them during the winter. 
A pair of palms are headed for the dining room. The coleus may have to fend for themselves, same as last winter. We thought they had died but this spring they suddenly came out of the soil bigger and better than ever. We have thirty plants in pots around the patio this year. They are thirsty all the time but they have repaid us handsomely. Does anyone else take plants in for the winter?
