So the mexican sage (salvia leucantha) has started its new crop of flowers. The purple bobs pictured below right 
(click for larger – yes, there is a little bee resting quietly on a leaf there for some reason) will turn into long purple fronds with lots of individual bells containing flowers. Soon they will come, and they will keep coming. They’ll come and examine each flower closely and attentively, and I’ll be waiting for them, since they are so magical – appearing suddenly and dramatically as though dropping out of warp, with a wonderful and powerful hum. I’m talking about hummingbirds, of course. They love these flowers, and come and feed on them regularly.
The warp reference? They are fast – incredibly fast, and they can accelerate and decelerate astonishingly effectively. So if you’re lucky and standing still at the right point, there’ll be a hum and suddenly one is hovering a meter from you as though it just materialized there, splendidly attired in its iridescent feathers. For a moment it sizes you up, and then (if you’ve not moved too suddenly) it moves on to examine the flowers one by one, with a fast and precise motion that is mesmerizing to watch. It’s such a treat, and I’ll get it almost every day for months to come.
I can’t wait.
-cvj
Yes, that’s one nice thing about the move from New England to Southern California: there, we have only one hummingbird species, Rubythroat; here, we have several, and they’re far more plentiful here, too. A few years ago, I put in three rootstocks of Trumpet Vine (Campsis radicans), a lovely but invasive import from East of the Mississippi, and when it’s in bloom, it’s alive with hummers. As a result, we get lots of pods, from the birds’ pollinating action, and I never saw these on our vines in Providence. Now, alas, the Campsis is no longer in flower, and is getting ready to drop its leaves: no more hummers for us till June.
We do need to honor the bees, as they provide our Earth with a much needed service. Thank you for living in a place that can nourish these treasures over the long winters of the North. We look forward for their return next spring to pollinate the cherries, apples, and myriad of berries.