The Great Migration

The days are getting shorter and the temperatures are dropping. Butterflies will soon be a memory for us here in Pennsylvania. For the past couple of weeks we have spotted quite a few Monarch butterflies stopping at our goldenrod and asters to fuel up on nectar before flitting in the direction of the South. It is time for their migration to the mountains of Mexico. I am sad to see them leave, but I realize that they would never survive during our winters. So I marvel at their beauty and the fact that such small, delicate looking creatures can fly all the way to Mexico to their winter quarters. It will be a long time before we'll see the first Monarch of the year here in the North. By that time, they will be several generations removed from their wintering ancestor. They need nectar along their journey, and milkweed plants to use as host plants for their eggs. If you want to ensure their survival, please plant milkweed plants in your yard.

Successes of the Gardening Year

It is time to take stock of the successes and failures of gardening year 2010. 

Annuals
The winners are: Zinnias. Even though the first growth was eaten by rabbits the zinnias made a nice comeback and are clear favorites with insects. Whether they're cabbage, eastern tiger swallowtail, black swallowtail, or monarch butterflies, or bumblebees, they make a bee line (pun intended) to the zinnias and ignore every other annual on our flower island.

Perennials
It's a tie between common milkweed/butterfly weed and Joe-pye weed. Besides the fact that milkweeds are the only host plant for monarch butterfly larvae, they are also very popular with insects. During their bloom they were literally covered with flying objects all day long.
Our Joe-pye weed (a cultivar named 'Little Joe') has grown much taller than last year. It is, in fact, taller than me. It enjoys a long blooming season and is a great draw for insects. And it doesn't look like a weed at all.

Great Expectations

Our native garden is still attracting many insects, and no wonder. While the common milkweed and butterfly weed are going to seed now, the purple coneflowers, black-eyed Susans, blazing star, and wild bergamond are enjoying many insect visits. The blue lobelias are beginning to open and the Joe-pye weed will not be far behind. It is vital to have continuous bloom in a garden to provide food for butterflies throughout their life span.
Yesterday morning we observed an exciting event: an adult monarch butterfly flitted around our milkweeds. We weren't quite sure what it was doing. And then it occurred to us: It was looking for places to lay its eggs. Finally, it placed its eggs underneath the leafs of the plants. A couple of times it flew away - apparently looking for other egg hosts - only to return and lay some more in our patch. That means that there are no other milkweed plants in the area. While we have no intention of cutting down our milkweeds, it is important for their survival to spread their eggs around to more than one habitat. It is sad that so many people grow nothing but lawn, which goes brown this time of year anyway. Wouldn't you rather have butterflies than brown grass?

Build It and They Will Come

On the rare occasions when we venture outside in this hot, humid weather we have had numerous butterfly and insect sightings. A monarch visited a common milkweed the other day; fritillaries, eastern tiger swallowtails, and an eight-spotted forester checked out the purple coneflowers; an eastern black swallowtail landed on the black-eyed Susans; and a spicebush swallowtail gave our spicebush a once-over (could it be that it was laying its eggs in there?).
The milkweed is also very popular with bees and other insects of all sorts. Next to bloom is the Joe-pye weed, which is already beginning to open. Word is out that our cafe is open for business. One reason, though, why our backyard is so popular is because none of the other neighbors have anything but lawn and alien plants. Build it - or rather, plant it - and they will come!