Finches are so peaceful,

and Goldfinches even more so… Not. Hormones are raging in the backyard right now, and there are lots of colorful wing displays during the daily fight for territory, dominance and food. It’s gotta be stressful. As you can see, the Goldfinches are transitioning to their summer feathers, and they look adventurously patchy right now too. These tinies lead a stressful life!

Back when I was gardening in San Francisco, I learned the only way to grow strawberries that I actually got to eat was to plant them in a hanging basket by the house. The squirrels were brave, but generally still too timid to come right to the house and try to get into a hanging basket.

So I did the same at our new place here in Oregon. And I found out a couple weeks ago that a bird had the same idea. Because as I was watering the strawberries, I discovered a tiny nest.

The eggs were tiny, dime-sized. The mother bird flew away before I could photograph her, but from the look of her and her eggs, I identified her as a House Finch. She’d made a nest from straw and goat hair, collected from our farm. 

A few days later, I found one of the eggs pushed out of the nest. When I attempted to move it back in, I noticed it was cracked. Nature is beautiful, but cruel. I took it out of the planter and disposed of it.

A few days later, the three remaining eggs had all hatched.

As I stood over the nest gawking, the momma bird sat in the Witchhazel tree behind me, squawking angrily.

The chicks were impossibly tiny, eyes closed, mouths open.

I checked on them every day to make sure there were still three, doing okay. They grew like weeds.

Soon they had wings.

And open eyes.

And feathers.

And then they were gone. I’d come out to check on them and they took one look at me and flew away.

The whole process only took about two weeks. So short from my vantage, but an eternity for them and their mom, I’m sure.

Thanks for choosing the Milk Barn Farm strawberry planter for your home, house finches. Same time next year?

Full video: Eurasian bullfinch, Ossi Saarinen

Full video: Common rosefinch. Singing birds. Beautiful bird with beautiful song, Wildlife World