Shadows grew long on January, and she disappeared into the gray.  February arrived with sun upon her shoulders but winter upon her lips.  Although the groundhog predicts another six weeks’ of Winter, there is a glimmer of hope, an inclination that the season of renewal is not so very distant.  The distinct and dulcet tones of the bird song.

Winter birds, like Chickadees, Woodpeckers and Cardinals are some of the first to announce Spring’s arrival. According to John Hanson Mitchell, an Editor with the Massachusetts Audubon Society, “the changing light has a hormonal trigger that starts the birdsong.” Apparently, our feathered friends have photoreceptors in their brains that record the length of darkness each day. As the darkness shortens, and days lengthen, birds, just like humans, get Spring fever. So the promise of Spring is real. Nature says so, and I’m inclined to believe she knows what she’s talking about.

It’s never too early to start thinking and planning for Spring. Reach out to Sweeney’s to schedule your Spring Clean Ups, Mowing and Maintenance Services, and any and all of your Spring gardening projects!  We proudly serve the communities of Villa Park, Elmhurst, Oakbrook, Oakbrook Terrace, Glen Ellyn, Lombard, Wood Dale, Itasca, and more!

Plant of the Week

Songbird Blue Bird Columbine

Clusters of large, light blue and white bi-colored flowers bloom atop sturdy stems April – May.  Prefers sun to partial shade, and moist, well-drained soil.  Grows 12-18″ tall and 12-18″ wide.  Attracts butterflies and hummingbirds.  Deer and rabbit resistant.

“When the Sun of compassion arises darkness evaporates and the singing birds come from nowhere.”

-Amit Ray

Warm wishes,

Kim Sweeney