Meet Nugget Junior

This morning while gardening Jackie photographed

rose Emily Gray, a highly scented rambler gracing

the back drive border out of sight in this shot;

clematis Doctor Ruppel climbing the weeping birch;

a row of blue irises with the bonus of a yellow stowaway in the bag of bulbs;

Nugget,

and his son Junior, still not qualified to wear the red jersey.

After lunch I managed the photoshoot.

On the kitchen corner of the patio we have delicate magenta gladioli Byzantinus blending with deep blue verbena Vectura and pink pelargoniums,

in turn reflecting similarly hued diascia potted above cascading Erigeron.

Nearby stands this peach rose we inherited.

Ornamental alliums of a number of varieties are gradually un-peeling throughout the garden.

Nugget attempted to encourage his son to feed from the suet pellet tray, but the youngster was deterred by my wandering around

the vicinity of the wisteria arbour.

I therefore focussed on this from above, showing how the rose Paul’s Scarlet and the clematis Star of India are poised to replace the fading pale blue blooms.

Later Jackie came in for her camera when Nugget and Junior both occupied the tray. Unfortunately they were gone by the time she returned.

Later, Nugget left Junior to his own devices while he flew off with a pellet for the next brood. Apparently robins are such prolific breeders that they can produce 3 to 5 clutches of up to five eggs a year. As soon as the youngsters earn the red jersey they are chased off by their father, so Junior will soon go and find someone else’s garden.

The marigolds in the Oval Bed continue to proliferate.

In the Rose Garden For Your Eyes Only is bushing out nicely, while Gloriana towers above it;

Schoolgirl vaults the arbour;

and flamboyant Festive Jewel,

sprightly Summer Wine and middle-aged Madame Alfred Carriere

carelessly cavort in concert.

This evening we dined on minted lamb steaks, boiled new potatoes; crunchy carrots and cauliflower; and firm Brussels sprouts with which Jackie drank Hoegaarden and I drank more of the El Zumbido Garnacha, Syrah.

 

 

112 comments

  1. I’m a bit fan of Nugget, so was very happy to meet Junior! It must be such fun to see them every day. And it’s a good thing you don’t have a cat!

  2. Nugget is teaching Junior well. I don’t think he’ll find as nice a garden anywhere to compete with Jackie’s handiwork!

  3. Wonderful to see Nugget Junior is thriving well… Those Roses wow Derrick… Ours are in tight bud… πŸ™‚ loved your photos as I always do.. πŸ™‚

  4. Nice to meet one of the new brood though I hadn’t appreciated that Robins had so many. The garden is looking so colourful. I’m very impressed you know the names of all the plants. Of course, you could just be making them up and I would be none the wiser.

  5. So at what point does Junior get the red jersey? It’s good to know that Papa Nugget takes a leading hand in teaching him the ways of the world. The breeding rate is quite phenomenal I’m guessing Mrs Nugget is quite exhausted!

    1. Both parents must be knackered. Nugget is shooting back and forth from dawn to dusk. He arrived as a juvenile with a developing jersey last July, so I guess we will lose junior about then.

  6. Mrs Nugget must be having an exhausting time, but poor old Nugget is also starting to look a bit worse for wear. Interesting how he never migrated for winter. He’s obviously found his happy place in your garden.

    1. Nugget does look rather tatty. He is up at dawn and continues to feed late into the evening. The current brood is at least the second. Thanks very much, Gwen

  7. The flowers are so beautiful, carelessly cavorting or not. It’s exciting to see Nugget Junior. Do Mr. and Mrs. Nugget stay together after this season and multiple broods?

    1. We haven’t discovered whether they are monogamous or not, although some birds do mate for life. I guess we will find out. Good question, Merril. Thank you very much.

  8. Oh… Derrick… Nugget Junior, is a cute one….. and his appearance has made my… and I see a tear drop to my keyboard….

  9. Your and Jackie’s photos and words are especially lovely today. And I just LOVE that Nugget brings his junior around! Very special, indeed! And interesting facts about the red jersey being the signal to send junior off to find his own way. Nature is an endless source of interest.

  10. I echo the same sentiments, the combination (of both your and Jackie’s photos) is wonderful – a real treat to start my morning. And, Nugget Junior is adorable too.

  11. Nugget is such a good daddy! πŸ™‚ So wonderful to meet Nugget Jr! I hope Nugget and his family continue to thrive! Thank you to you and Jackie for being a safe good haven for them! πŸ™‚

    I can imagine Mrs. Nugget saying, “Dear, could you please take at least one of the kids on an outing? I need a nap.” Ha! πŸ˜€

    You and Jackie have captured some beautiful photos to share with us today! Thank you! πŸ™‚ Good to see Madame Alfred Carriere cavorting carelessly! πŸ˜‰
    (((HUGS))) πŸ™‚

  12. I hope Nugget Junior, having learned to forage from feeders, isn’t thrown into too cruel a world, where he must find his own worms and insects! I love the calendula. They normally don’t last here and then revive in the fall, but they are doing well in our cool weather.

  13. It was nice to meet Junior. It’s good that he’s a little shy since not everyone is as robin friendly as you and Jackie. I had no idea robins could have so many offspring in a year! So much energy!

  14. Marvelous montage as usual, Derrick. Seeing the little one is a treat, and I knew for sure what awaited me in opening your post thanks to the title.

  15. Those morning shots are pleasant and fresh. Both robins and flowers are proliferating in your garden, donning and shedding jerseys gifted by Nature in turn. Thanks for introducing Junior.

  16. Watching the relationships between parent birds and their offspring is so interesting, and often touching. In my old place, there was no question that the same pair of bluejays brought their babies every year, to teach them where the peanuts could be found. Of course, eventually it might have been the ‘babies’ bringing their own offspring. Anyone who thinks birds don’t have memories hasn’t been around many birds.

  17. I enjoyed all the photos from your day, especially Nugget and son! He is attempting to teach his boy the fine art of backyard bird feeder dining.

  18. Beautiful photos Derrick, it’s lovely to see English flowers in an English garden, I miss ours in England. It will take time for us to develop our large garden space, I hope ours becomes as spectacular as yours.

  19. How sweet to have both father and son fluttering around! And you have SO MANY ROSES! I bet the perfume in your garden is magnificent!

  20. What a treat to see Nugget jnr. I have only recently understood why I have never seen a baby robin before – the lack of the chest colour threw me off the scent!

  21. Thanks so much for sending this link, Derrick. Such a great post, both florally and faunally (??? no such word, but there should be.) Nugget Jr. looks as big as his dad. Hard to tell when not side-by-side. I take it Mama is busy sitting on the next generation? I’ve been loving looking out at my garden all day from my studio because the house was full of Jesus and Eduardo fixing cracks and silitre and painting, Pasiano and son doing yard work, and Yolanda cleaning. (Yolanda insists on coming once a week even though I’ve been paying her to stay at home.) Yesterday she came to help Pasiano pull brush away from the wall so men can come clear it away. I did not ask either of them to do this..they are so dedicated, as I am to them. I made them a picnic lunch today and of course paid extra. Although I am horrified at the cause of it, I have loved just staying home. I’ve been doing lots of yard work and observing the life of my yard. Damn. Just missed a great photo of a finch sitting on my Mayan Calendar stone..Just want to have a camera in my hand all day long. So glad I had a huge picture window installed covering the entire wall in front of my work bench. My studio and open-walled gazebo with hammock make great observation spots.

    1. Thank you very much reading and for this description of your activity, Judy. It looks as if you have the kind of relationship we have with Aaron. He injured himself while fixing a door for us a couple of weeks ago. He couldn’t continue to work and had to go to hospital. I insisted on paying him for the morning. He insisted on coming back it the week to remove a lot of debris. We have noticed that all the fledgling birds, including the robins, are as big as their parents.

  22. How sad fpr Nugget junior if he is chased away from your garden. He will never find such a beautiful garden and welcoming hosts as with you two,

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