As Sown, So Reaped

Day 321 (see below for fire update): They think they're being naughty, those Steller's Jays, and won't let me catch a photo of them gobbling down sunflower seeds as fast as they can peck them free of the heads. However, I did not plant these. They did, and therefore I acknowledge that the harvest is theirs to reap.

Yesterday's rain knocked the 7-foot Cosmos jungle over, but with prudent forethought, I had staked the sunflowers. I was a little surprised they didn't topple, because the weight of a head this size is pretty substantial even with half of the seeds missing, but other than leaning a bit, the wrist-size stalk held the plants erect. Most of the plants are smaller and have multiple heads, but even so, they hold a decent supply of seeds and are sturdy enough to support a pair of Jays bent on having a hearty lunch simultaneously.

With some regrets, I pulled and discarded the Cosmos in order to clear my walkway. If the sunflowers had gone over, I'd have cut the heads and laid them out on the crow board. Maybe the Jays would have let me catch them in action if I'd spread the feast in one of their familiar haunts. Still, we all know that "forbidden" foods are the tastiest, and so far, I've been successful in keeping them off the grapes.