Archives

BACKYARD SECRET – BUTTERFLIES HAVE AN ODD WAY OF TASTING THEIR FOOD

Aug23

          We taste food by placing it in our mouths; such is not the case with butterflies. Unbelievably, butterflies taste food with their feet. It seems that when a butterfly lands on a flower, before it unrolls its straw-like proboscis and begins dining on the flower’s nectar, they taste the potential source of food through their feet.  They are able to accomplish this amazing fete because their feet are cloaked with cells (chemoreceptors) that let a butterfly know whether the flower contains sugary nectar.

     

BACKYARD SECRET – HOW MUCH NECTAR DOES AN ADULT E. TIGER SWALLOW EAT IN A DAY?

Aug19

         The Eastern Tiger Swallowtail is one of the largest butterflies commonly seen in Georgia yards.  In spite of its relatively large size (wingspan -3.5 – 5.5 inches), this colorful butterfly consumes only 0.0014 – 0.0105 ounces of nectar daily.  To put this in perspective, a standard-sized paperclip weighs only 0.04 ounces.

SPURRED BUTTERFLY PEA – AN ATTRACTIVE WILDLIFE FOOD SOURCE

Jul27

          Whenever I discover a new native plant or animal in my yard it is a great day.  My latest discovery took place this morning when I stumbled across a new native plant growing on my property within minutes of the time I set foot outside.  As I began my daily walk around my yard, I spotted a handful of attractive lavender blossoms blooming inches above the ground.  As it turned out, I had found a couple of native perennial vines that had just begun flowering.  This plant is the spurred butterfly pea (Centrosema virginianum).

          Spurred butterfly pea vines attain a length only seven feet or so. A single plant will only spread over an area measuring one to three feet in diameter.  My two plants cover far less of the dry, clay hillside where they are rooted.

          Although the plant is much smaller than many wildlife food plants, it provides food for a wide range of wildlife.  Two species of butterflies (northern cloudywing and long-tailed skipper) use it as a host plant.  Its foliage is consumed by white-tailed deer and other herbivores. Even gopher tortoises will devour the plant’s leaves. The butterfly pea’s seeds are eaten by songbirds, and quail.  While such uses are important, is perhaps more valuable as a food source for many native bees and other pollinators.

          Since this fascinating native plant is a source of wildlife food and is also attractive, you should consider adding it to the list of the native plants growing in your yard.

CONFLOWERS – A GREAT ADDITION TO YOUR GARDEN

Jun21

       One of our favorite garden plants is a native called purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea). 

       This native perennial is a magnet for butterflies, bumblebees and other pollinators. In addition, its seeds devoured by a number of birds such as sparrows, eastern towhees, nuthatches, Carolina chickadees, tufted titmice, and northern cardinals.

       One of things I like best about the plant is that it blooms from May until September.

       While it will make a great addition to most Georgia flower gardens, when you purchase purple coneflower plants you need to know if you are buying true native coneflowers or one the many cultivars on the market.  These plants bear fanciful names such as Secret Affair, Avalanche, Coconut Lime, cotton candy, Fatal Attraction, Lilliput, Meringue, and milkshake.

       While these variety might be of value to wildlife, far too often cultivars are showy but lack the ability to produce nectar, pollen and seeds.  I can attest to the value of native purple coneflower, however, I know nothing about any of the cultivars sold in nurseries across the state.

       If you have found any of the cultivars of value to wildlife, please let me know.

 

 

CONTAINER GARDENING FOR WILDLIFE MADE EASIER

May27

          Gardening for wildlife is being adopted by an increasing number of gardeners each year. One form of wildlife gardening that is growing by leaps and bounds is gardening in containers.

         While container gardening is nothing new, growing plants that are of value to wildlife is.  Container gardening for wildlife allows gardeners to attract wildlife to small places. In addition, is allows people that are physically unable to engage in traditional gardening to continue their hobby. 

       One of the problems that plagues container gardening is moving large pots from one spot to another.  A large container full of soil is very heavy and difficult to move about.  In addition, it can be quite expensive to buy enough soil to fill a large pot.

       An excellent way to solve this problem is to fill third to half of the pot with a lightweight filler. Innovative gardeners are using variety fillers such as plastic bottles, bags and nursery pots as fillers Some even employ large chunks of Styrofoam. Others are using organic fillers such as pinecones, and wood chips. 

       If you want to make container gardening for wildlife less expensive and easier, you should consider using lightweight materials as fillers.

       If you have used this technique, I would appreciate it if would let me know if your efforts proved to be successful.

 

BACKYARD SECRET – PLANTING GROUPS OF PLANTS BENEFIT HUMMINGBIRDS AND OTHER POLLINATORS

Apr1

     

        If you are looking for a simple way to benefit hummingbirds, butterflies and other pollinators, plant nectar plants in groups of the kind.  You will find that mass plantings enhance the beauty of your yard and makes it easier for these valuable backyard neighbors to locate plants bearing nectar. 

       With that in mind, plant no less than 3-5 of the same variety together.  If have enough room for larger plantings, masses of plants measuring two to three are even better.

       I hope you will try this simple technique this year.  I suspect that, if you take this advice, the pollinators will love it and you will wonder why you have not adopted this gardening trip before.

BACKYARD SECRET – BUTTERFLIES ARE SOMETIMES SMALLER IN THE SPRING

Mar23

       Recently my wife and I were walking about our backyard on a recent March after noon we noticed that one of our native azaleas was in full bloom.  When we stopped to admire the beautiful blossoms displayed by the large native azalea, an eastern tiger swallowtail flew in and began nectaring at the shrub’s stunning blooms.  As we watched the butterfly feed, we both noticed that it was much smaller than the tigers we normally encounter.  This begged the question, “Why is this individual so small?”

       One possible reason for this is eastern tiger swallowtails overwinter as pupae in a chrysalis.  If a butterfly emerges earlier than normal due to unseasonably warm weather, it may be smaller because it pupated before reaching its normal size.

BACKYARD SECRET – BIRDS PREFER AMERICAN HOLLY BERRIES

Dec17

      Nowadays, homeowners are including hybrid and exotic hollies in their home landscapes more often than American holly (Ilex opaca).  However, if you are interested in adding an attractive evergreen tree that bears shiny red fruit that is relished by 29 species of birds, you would be better off, planting America holly than an exotic or hybrid holly.

       In addition, American holly berries typically have more nutritive value than the berries of nonnative hollies. This can be critical for birds that birds that forage for food throughout the winter.

       While some hybrid cultivars may be an exception to that rule, based on my experience the berries found on other hollies are often ignored or only eaten when American berries have all been eaten.

       Another reason why the berries found exotic and hybrid hollies are not consumed as often as American hollies – they are too large for some birds to swallow.

       Finally, American holly is an important addition to backyards because it serves as the primary host plant for the Henry’s elfin butterfly and is often used a host plant for the holly sallow moth.

AFTER FREEZE NECTAR SOURCES

Nov16

       This week much of Georgia suffered through the first freezing temperatures of the season.  At our home in Monroe County, the temperature fell to 27º.   Realizing that spelled trouble for many pollinators my wife and I brought in two plants (scarlet sage and pineapple sage) that have been hosting cloudless sulphurs for the past few weeks.

       When the weather returned to normal, we put them back on our deck. In a matter of minutes, they were once again being visited by cloudless sulphurs, syrphid, and hover flies. While our efforts did not benefit many pollinators, they did provide a few with much-needed food. In addition, we extended the time we can enjoy watching pollinators at work in our yard.
Based on our success I decided to visit our local nursery (Mossy Creek) to see if any of their plants had survived the cold and were hosting pollinators. 

       I no sooner got out the door of my vehicle when one of the nursery’s staff called me over to look at a stunningly beautiful butterfly. The butterfly turned out to be a zebra longwing; it was the first I have seen this year.  The whole time that I was there, the butterfly fed at lavender pincushion blossoms.

       While I watched, an American lady joined it.  Nearby, an Ocola and fiery skippers, and a couple of American ladies visited marigolds.  All of these plants had survived the severely cold weather.

       Later, our daughter told us that a hover fly was feeding on a late four-o’clock bloom beside her house.  She also saw several pollinators visiting coneflowers at a nursery in Columbia County.

       Admittedly, the weather was not kind to our gardens this year consequently; we did not have many sources of nectar available deep into the fall.  However, we pledge to do better next year.

       If you want to help late pollinators in your yard, the first thing you need to do is find out which pollinator plants can survive cold weather in your neighborhood.  One great place to learn find this information is your local nursery.  There is no better time do so than after our recent freeze.  Armed with this knowledge you will be better able to address the food needs of the pollinators living close by.

       When I returned home, I was carrying four pots containing cold-hardy plants that we are going to add to our yard. 

      

DEAD LEAVES ARE IMPORTANT TO MANY MOTHS AND BUTTERFLIES

Oct19

       Most of us do not enjoy raking fallen leaves in autumn, however, not raking leaves around butterfly and other host plants is one of the most important ways to ensure you will see your favorite butterflies and moths flying about your yard next year. 

       A beautiful day-flying moth, the snowberry clearwing, is a great example of a moth that benefits from not raking leaves beneath its host plants.

      The snowberry clearwing is a day-flying moth that frequents our flower gardens during the summer.  This stunning moth uses a handful of plants as its larval host; one such plant is coral honeysuckle.  This native honeysuckle bears long red tubular flowers throughout the spring and summer. After the moth’s bright green caterpillars have grown as big as they are going to get, they literally drop to the ground beneath their hosts and hide among the fallen leaves.  They then enter the next stage of their life; forming a cocoon and pupate during the winter.  This miraculous process only works if the caterpillars fall into a protective blanket of leaf litter.

       Other moths and butterflies also spend the winter in leaf litter.  With that in mind, when we refrain from raking the leaves under host plants, we benefit the moths and butterflies wintering among these fallen leaves too.