This time of year we have at our feeder the residents (northern red cardinal, blue jay, mourning dove, chipping sparrow, indigo bunting, tufted titmouse, and our state bird the brown thrasher which has as many calls as a mockingbird) and the visitors (dark eyed junko, white breasted sparrow). And this year a striking new visitor – the rose breasted grosbeak.
I count the grosbeak and buntings among the beautiful.
Next to the chicken coop is a mulberry I planted some 4 years ago and, tho it’s supposed to be adaptable, it has never thrived or produced fruit. Maybe I noticed this last year and paid no attention, but this year I decided to follow up.
This infestation is difficult to resolve organically. I cut the 8 ft tree into small pieces, placed them in a garbage bag and will drop off at the local waste disposal site. I left a few inches of trunk at ground level which shows no sign of attack and will see what develops next year. Tho some distance away I did not want my fruit orchard to receive the attention of the female beetle.