Native Gardening

[seandelevan]

For several years I’ve had a massive swamp milkweed at the edge of my pond….and never saw any Monarchs or their caterpillars show any interest in it….until a few days ago….but not on the massive mother plant, but on two tiny sprouts several feet away…one on each…and of course they had decimated them in a matter of days….I noticed one made it to the mother plant and has began its pupa stage….no idea where the other one went.

 

[mrsclem]

Last year they loved the butterfly weed plant, this year it was the swamp milkweed. Ended up releasing 158 monarchs and 25 black swallowtails.
I'm redoing my butterfly garden and have lots of native plant seeds to start in the spring.

 

[addy1]

Ended up releasing 158 monarchs and 25 black swallowtails.

You are the butterfly queen!

I bought 7 button bushes, fringe tree, sweet pepperbush, 2 bushy st johns wort, all native all good for all the pollinators not just my bees.

Now need to find a place to plant. I was reading the button bush can be in up to 3 feet of water, so going to put one in a pot in one of the small ponds and see how it does.

 

[seandelevan]

Last year they loved the butterfly weed plant, this year it was the swamp milkweed. Ended up releasing 158 monarchs and 25 black swallowtails.
I'm redoing my butterfly garden and have lots of native plant seeds to start in the spring.

I did the same. Have coneflower, liatris, blue and red cardinal flower, and bee balm surrounding my pond.

 

[mrsclem]

Seeing a lot of monarchs today. We were close to the migration path but seems like now word has gotten out that we are butterfly friendly!

 

[brokensword]

Seeing a lot of monarchs today. We were close to the migration path but seems like now word has gotten out that we are butterfly friendly!

it's all those signs you tacked to the telephone poles...

 

[JBtheExplorer]

Seeing a lot of monarchs today. We were close to the migration path but seems like now word has gotten out that we are butterfly friendly!

I haven't seen any in three, maybe four weeks. It's been so strange. Usually I see quite a few all September long. and I have seen any painted lady butterflies at all this year, which is really weird.

 

[BKHpondcritters]

I haven't seen any in three, maybe four weeks. It's been so strange. Usually I see quite a few all September long. and I have seen any painted lady butterflies at all this year, which is really weird.

It was an off year for butterflies in my yard, too. (northwest NC) Very few American painted ladies (which is our more common one) Zero painted ladies, zero common buckeyes, fewer tiger swallowtails and great spangled fritillaries than normal, even the silver spotted skippers were down in numbers. The only ones we had an increase in from normal was the Diana fritillaries - those were in abundance this year. We are also just now getting monarchs migrating through, but there does seem to be a lot of them.

 

[JBtheExplorer]

It was an off year for butterflies in my yard, too. (northwest NC) Very few American painted ladies (which is our more common one) Zero painted ladies, zero common buckeyes, fewer tiger swallowtails and great spangled fritillaries than normal, even the silver spotted skippers were down in numbers. The only ones we had an increase in from normal was the Diana fritillaries - those were in abundance this year. We are also just now getting monarchs migrating through, but there does seem to be a lot of them.

Very strange year. I had more skippers than usual, and monarch activity was relatively normal during summer. Really surprised by the lack of Red Admirals and Blue-spotted purples this year. They've been the most common visitors since I started my garden, but only a couple of each this year.

 

[JBtheExplorer]

Eastern Red Columbine

Redtwig Dogwood

Wild geranium

I can't remember if I shared anywhere on the forum or not but my Eastern redbud bloomed for the first time this year

 

[JBtheExplorer]

Bumble bee in hairy beardtongue along my driveway. This is in the woodland strip that I started to restore a few years ago. It used to be a weedy mess but its changed significantly. Hairy beardtongue, wild geranium, eastern red columbine, wild ginger, redtwig dogwood, yellow violet, brown-eyed susan and more grow here. Very few weeds have returned other than dandelions.

Meadow anemone growing under one of my birdhouses.

My neighbor's tuliptree is blooming. I have three of these in my yard but they're only a 3-4 years old and wont flower for another 12+ years. It's not native in Wisconsin. Unfortunately its range ends just a bit southeast of here, but its still beneficial to native wildlife and a host plant for the eastern tiger swallowtail.

 

[BKHpondcritters]

Bumble bee in hairy beardtongue along my driveway. This is in the woodland strip that I started to restore a few years ago. It used to be a weedy mess but its changed significantly. Hairy beardtongue, wild geranium, eastern red columbine, wild ginger, redtwig dogwood, yellow violet, brown-eyed susan and more grow here. Very few weeds have returned other than dandelions.
View attachment 151519

Meadow anemone growing under one of my birdhouses.
View attachment 151518

My neighbor's tuliptree is blooming. I have three of these in my yard but they're only a 3-4 years old and wont flower for another 12+ years. It's not native in Wisconsin. Unfortunately its range ends just a bit southeast of here, but its still beneficial to native wildlife and a host plant for the eastern tiger swallowtail.
View attachment 151517

Don't worry. Once your tulip trees get going you'll have more of them than you know what to do with. At least here in NC they grow like weeds.

 

[JBtheExplorer]

Don't worry. Once your tulip trees get going you'll have more of them than you know what to do with. At least here in NC they grow like weeds.

I'd take endless tuliptrees over endless boxelders any day!

 

[JBtheExplorer]

Spiderwort has bloomed.

 

[rubyduby]

That is SOME color JB...hard to believe nature could produce it...