Monarch Butterflies There were afternoons in late September and early October when five or six Monarch butterflies would be in my small front yard plus about the same number of them in the back yard, also a small lot. The Monarchs appeared only for a week or two. They were migrating south ahead of the… Continue reading Wildflower Meadow, Fall 2024
Category: Pollinator Meadow
Wildflower Meadow, Summer 2024
This year was productive in terms of seeds and pollinator insects in spite of five weeks without rain in May/June followed by over three weeks of rain in July. I suppose species diversity increased as in previous years, but what I notice most in an increase in population sizes.
Native Pollinator Species Density and Diversity
I made a video of the flying insects that are drawn to the native wildflowers in my tiny back yard. The pink flower heads are joe pye weed, and the white flower clusters are white boneset (late boneset).
Pollinator Meadow 2023
There was an eight-week drought in April and May that caused the local rabbits to eat a lot of plant varieties they normally ignore, but the rains came in June, and the year recovered somewhat. By August, there were numerous Tiger Swallowtail and Gulf Fritillary butterflies, although not as many as 2022. I have many… Continue reading Pollinator Meadow 2023
Patrolled by Owls
When you sew native pollinator seeds, stop mowing, and allow natural meadow to emerge an replace a lawn, you will have many visitors. I’ve noticed that since my yard now has many songbirds and chipmunks and shrews and rabbits, there is usually a hawk or owl watching it hungrily. Needless to say, I see many… Continue reading Patrolled by Owls
Seed Harvest 2022
Each year I feel anxious until I have some seed gathered for next year. The tangles I have growing in the front an back are pretty dense in terms of the number of species of vegetables and flowers. The vegetables include tomatillos, groundcherries, peppers, squash, pumpkins, okra, and several varieties of heirloom tomatoes. The flower… Continue reading Seed Harvest 2022
Sunflowers and Butterflies
The front and back yards are tangles of heirloom vegetables and wildflowers of many different types, and that draws a lot of butterflies, especially the large yellow tiger swallowtails. Mexican sunflowers (Tithonia rotundifolia) and various varieties of sunflowers dominate about half the area with full sunlight, with cosmos, coneflowers, and zinnias making up most of… Continue reading Sunflowers and Butterflies
Flower Meadow & Rate of Change
The large maple in the back yard was home and pantry to all sorts of birds and animals, and so I wasn’t happy taking it down, but it needed doing. The maple was asymmetrical and leaning over the house. The issue was using a lot of energy to change things very fast and move all… Continue reading Flower Meadow & Rate of Change
Male Rhinoceros Beetle
This is a male specimen of the eastern Hercules beetle (Dynastes tityus), a species of rhinoceros beetle native to the eastern US. I saw one of these only a handful of times growing up, and I was amazed each time. I associate them with years when June is rainy, and the plants are fat and… Continue reading Male Rhinoceros Beetle
Biodiversity and Ecological Value
At least half of my time tending the pollinator meadow is spent removing invasive evergreen seedlings: monkey grass (liriope), Japanese privet, wintercreeper, English ivy. These plants might not feed most insects and other animals, but birds love the seeds and poop them all over creation. The problem is that these plants displace native species that… Continue reading Biodiversity and Ecological Value