Ohio Goldfinches head to local gardens to harvest seeds from the summer’s faded flowers
- When the flowers fade in the Fall, Wildflower Gardens come alive with the squeaky sound of Goldfinches.
- Goldfinches love Purple Coneflower and Coreopsis from the wildflower garden
- Wildflower Gardens provide years of entertainment for the nature lover
It’s late summer in a garden in Eastern Ohio. The flowers are mostly gone, and the leaves are beginning to turn brown. For some people it’s time to clean up the garden and get rid of the unsightly mess.
But by September the Wildflower Garden is still flourishing with activity as the Goldfinches arrive for the Fall harvest of seeds.
Most people with bird feeders know Goldfinches for their love of Thistle and Sunflowers, but in this Wildflower Garden in St. Clairsville, OH they gleefully gorge themselves on Purple Coneflower and Coreopsis.
The delights of a Wildflower Garden are many. Each year is new as different flowers appear because of the competition for space and light. Even daily, something different can pop up unexpectedly.
A large variety of insects also makes this Wildflower Garden its home during the summer months in Ohio.
This too can vary from year to year. Some years there are more Praying Mantes than can be counted.
But there’s always plenty of bees and butterflies to keep the senses aroused with the colors and sounds of bees humming and butterflies floating.
But after the blooms fade and begin to turn to seed, a new phenomenon occurs in the garden.
Little yellow visitors, perched atop faded stems, spread out over the landscape spending hours daily plucking seeds and chattering with friends.
If disturbed by sudden human activity, a dozen or more Goldfinches take flight to the trees to escape uncertain danger.
As soon as the coast is clear, down they go and continue like a family gathering at a Thanksgiving Feast.
The late summer garden may not be a pretty sight to superficial onlookers. But the beauty is still there.
Those who slow down and take it in see that the life of the garden continues on even after the color is gone.
