So Far, So Good

Cordyline terminalis or Ti plants, as they're commonly called, are winter bloomers ... mine are just starting to bloom.

Ahhh... Florida winters. No need to wonder why so many folks flock to our lovely state in winter. If the calendar didn't tell me it was January, I'd think it was April! Unseasonably warm and mild weather has graced our spring-like winter so far.

Winter/spring blooming (frost-sensitive) Queen's Wreath Vine (Petrea Volubilis)
has exploded its luscious lavender cascading flower on the metal arbor in the back garden.

When I look around my garden I see signs of new life and simultaneously I see signs of winter sleep. The gardener in me wants to trim and prune back as I notice decay. Then I give myself a good lecture about the dangers of prune-promoting growth. What if we do have a frost or freeze down the road? I'll let winter take its course and we'll wait to see just how many twists and turns, ups and downs it may make.

Tiger Swallowtail butterfly on Pentas in January!

Our dancing flower-friends are delighted by the abundant sunshine to warm their wings with our mild temperatures. Plenty of leaves on their host plants keep them laying eggs and sufficient nectar from colorful flowers keep them sipping throughout this winter.

White Peacock butterfly looks especially stunning while nectaring from Cosmos 'Bright Lights'. 

Cosmos planted from seed in late spring have not broken their cycle of flowering and reseeding since.

Milkweed (Asclepias) flowers serve up nectar for Monarch butterflies while the leaves and stems host Monarch larvae. 

Florida (some central but mostly south Florida) enjoys a population of non-migratory monarchs that live here year round. It's helpful that milkweed plants re-seed randomly all over the garden. There's never a lack of food or nectar for our flying friends.

Crimson red Pentas (Pentas lanceolata)

Favored by almost every pollinator, including our year-long, resident hummingbirds the long-tubular flower clusters of crimson red Pentas are populated with winged critters throughout the day. Plentiful supply of this practical Florida-Friendly perennial is purposely planted throughout my garden. I prefer the shrub-like variety that grows 4-5 feet tall and 3 feet wide. 

Mixing up cold-hardy plants (such as liriope, cast iron, agapanthus, walking irises) with shade-protected tropicals (such as bromeliads, xanadu, dwarf schefflera, shell ginger) and rhizomes (gingers) that go to sleep in winter ensures an evergreen pallet that carries my garden through every season. This winter 'Postman Joyner' Caladium  bulbs planted in early November continue to produce their bright red foliage in January.

This view from the sunny bed with mixed flowers and edibles through to the circle garden isn't as bright and perky as it will be in summer. I'm not wishing for one, but with a frost or freeze it would look a lot more barren. 

A side view of a mixed border of parsley, bronze fennel, self-seeding milkweed, yellow-flowering bulbine, violas, nasturtium, and African blue basil juts out in front of the woody and herbaceous perennial bed (mixed with Florida natives) behind it.

A mixed group of Florida-Friendly plants crowds a rarely-seen back corner of my garden.

Cordyline plants turn from their green-pinkish variations to their most vibrant and brilliant colors as the winter wears on.

Paperwhites, nasturtium, sweet alyssum, bulbine and a few broccoli starts blend in this mixed planting bed that juts out in front of a perennial grouping.

Paperwhite bulbs are inter-planted in the same soil with caladium bulbs. Two months ago this bed was filled with the bright, colorful foliage of 'Red Flash' and 'Peppermint' caladium. When my beloved caladiums retreat until spring, paperwhites spring out of the ground with fresh white winter flowers. 

Nasturtium

Nasuturtium seeds planted randomly, sprout during cool temps, to create low-lying color among paperwhites, alyssum and yellow-flowering bulbine.

Queen Emma Crinum

Tropical lushness portrayed by the giant purple leaves of Queen Emma lily (Crinum Augustum) is prized in the winter scenery. 

We are counting our blessings as this Florida winter holds out with glorious days of splendor. We've decided to enjoy it while it lasts. Cold weather will surely cycle back around at some point and remind us of the unpredictability of life and weather, too. Happy gardening, Meems

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If you liked this article you may also enjoy perusing:

Christmas Caladiums

Turf Grass Isn't Evil

Circle Garden :: Lessons in Patience

Visions of Colorful Caladiums

Butterflies of Autumn

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Meems

Butterflies of Autumn

In Central Florida butterflies can be seen year-round. The population of them decreases as winter arrives. If it gets very cold, as in freezing, they may disappear until it warms up, but they are hiding somewhere safe until the temperatures rise.

Monarch on Agastache 'Black Adder'

The autumn garden is filled with an abundance of pollinator activity, including many varieties of butterflies. Agastache 'Black Adder' is a popular stop for all the nectar-sipping critters in my garden.

Gulf Fritillary on 'Black Adder'

Long-tailed Skipper on 'Black Adder'

Queen butterfly on milkweed flowers

The Queen butterfly is not as commonly seen in my garden as the other species discussed here. However, this year there seemed to be more than normal. The Queen butterfly is very similar in size and pattern to the Monarch.

Queen butterfly on milkweed flowers

Queen butterfly on milkweed flowers

Queen butterfly on milkweed flowers

Swallowtail plant (Christia Obcordata) is definitely not a butterfly even though it appears to have a gazillion wings of butterflies dancing around on graceful stems. This is not a plant that last more than a season in my garden. I buy them when I find them in late summer, pot them up in containers and place them in partially shaded spots. The leaves fade and drop off as the days grow shorter. You can read more about this unique plant in a previously featured post here.

Tiger Swallowtail on Pentas (Pentas lanceolata)

Pentas  (Pentas lanceolata) are an all-time favorite of mine and the pollinators in my garden. These are the old-fashioned, tall red variety that survive through most winters or return after being frosted back. The value of red pentas in my garden cannot be overstated. I love them and recommend them highly for year-round bright color in the dense clusters of red. Loads of pollinator activity, including hummingbirds depend on them for nectar.

Gulf Fritillary on Pentas (Pentas lanceolata

Tiger Swallowtail on red Pentas (Pentas lanceolata)

Tiger Swallowtail on red Pentas (Pentas lanceolata)

Chrysalis of Black Swallowtail butterfly

This summer and early autumn we had the privilege of seeing dozens of black swallowtail caterpillars transform from tiny eggs to each instar stage and molt into butterflies. It was a wonderful learning experience for our young grandchildren and just as thrilling for us to witness each metamorphosis.

New Black Swallowtail butterfly just out of chrysalis

We have pondered how a single Rue herb plant could have hosted so many caterpillars. All the leaves would be sheared off by hungry cats and as soon as they matured new growth would push out rapidly. It's a wonder of nature.

I hope you are relishing autumn days wherever you are. Happy gardening, Meems


If you liked these photos you may enjoy these previous posts also:
Butterflies Galore
Benefits and Beneficials: A Garden Teeming with Life
Autumn Makes A Grand Arrival
To Capture the Sunlight
Hello December


*** Please click over to Hoe and Shovel on Facebook to see the daily photos and discussions about plants there. Click on the LIKE button to be part of the conversation. We'd love to hear what you have to add.
Meems

Benefits and Beneficials ~ A Garden Teeming with Life

Zebra Longwing (Heliconiuscharitonia) butterflies were missing from my garden last year. It was sad not to see them. They had been so abundant in years past.

You can imagine my excitement when a Zebra Longwing butterfly appeared again this spring. As a matter of fact, I remember the exact day I saw the first one.

It was Easter Sunday. The family was all here and I made a little squeal as it gently fluttered past me during our annual outdoor egg hunt. This very landing was its destination that day, too.

Since that first sighting this Chaya Spinach Tree (Cnidoscolus aconitifolius) seems to be a regular hang out for them. (There are several now.)They are strongly attracted to the rather insignificant blooms that sprout up from the tippy-top of the tree.

The alternate landing zone, where they are seen most often, is on the firebush (Hamelia patens) shrubs. There are several planted throughout the garden (not pictured here). Zebra longwings living in my garden again is like receiving a hug from them.

Sharing the nectar on the Chaya is the ever-present monarch. They can be seen regularly, most any month out of the year. That does't mean I take them for granted. I delight at the lilt of every colorful flight across my garden.

I like knowing my garden is safe for every creature. I make certain of it by eliminating the use of pesticides and insecticides.

Nature has a way of balancing and taking care of unwanted critters when gardeners respect the eco-system God put in place. Even the spiders no longer feel like a threat to me. They are allowed to spin their homes and wait for prey to help with the balancing process.

Milkweed assasin is a mighty powerful worker around here. A favorite bright and eager predator of stink bugs, flies and aphids among other pesky insects. If all they ate was stink bugs that would be enough for me! What colorful attire and handsome profile they adorn to boot!

The rewards and benefits of purposeful gardening are numerous. One welcomed benefit is the discovery of caterpillars feeding off of host plants (Rue herb) installed just for them. I watch them chomp away progressing toward maturity. Butterfly caterpillars never fail to amuse. Seeing them satisfies my desire to provide a safe garden for them to reproduce.

Once in a while we actually get the privilege of noticing where they crawl to make ready for transformation. They often instinctively travel away from the host plant. This fat cat (Black Swallowtail) somehow made it to a neighboring container plant. It found the underside of a stiff bromeliad (Aechmea Blanchetiana).

Within a matter of hours its skin split down the center (I missed it) and formed its cozy home to hang. After a couple of weeks it will make its final metamorphosis into a Black Swallowtail butterfly. I hope it decides to live its short life in my garden and perhaps keep the cycle going.

I place a number of bird feeders throughout my garden. They lure the birds from the limbs of the trees down to human levels for a closer look at them.

Cardinals are plentiful here. We've counted over a dozen at once time as they swoop from limb to limb and feeder to feeder.

Small Carolina Chickadees are also numerous and play well with the wrens, Cardinals, Titmouse, and Mourning doves. They frequently gather at the feeders together.

One of my favorite bird families is the Red-bellied Woodpeckers. They have the most distinct soft,rolling call. It is easily recognized as it forages for insects among the tall oak trees.

I've observed butterflies and other pollinators in my garden over the years. I make efforts to identify which flowering plants they are most attracted to for nectaring.

If I notice they pay more attention to a particular variety such as the Florida-Friendly crimson Pentas (Pentas lanceolata) plants, I endeavor to spread that plant around the garden in numerous places.

I realize crimson-colored Pentas is a pollinator's smorgasbord when I see the sun catching the wings of all the tiny critters flying around them.

Can you see the pollen on the edges of this Tiger Swallowtail's wings? It is helping to spread goodness throughout my garden naturally.

A garden teeming with life is full with not only vegetation and but critters, too. My Florida garden has a wide variety of plant materials that attract indigenous wildlife. The benefits of organic gardening allow the beneficial insects and pollinators to live out their life-cycles fully, in freedom. If I happen to encounter some aphids on a plant, I exercise patience. I have confidence predator bugs will find them and rid the plant of pests for me. When I plant edibles I know the pollinators will transport necessary pollen for reproduction.

It's the most sensible and rewarding way to garden. What benefits have you discovered from the beneficial critters in your garden?
Happy gardening,
Meems
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You might want to click here to read my Lowe's Creative Ideas article, Attracting Pollinators, to learn more about how to attract pollinators to your garden.

Graceful Colors In Flight

Oh, it has been a spring to remember! Wonderfully mild temperatures with a stellar winter melding into this current season when we celebrate all things bright and new.

So it is no surprise that the butterflies stayed with us magically right through winter. We saw caterpillars feeding and chrysalises hanging on in January.

The current population of them is more like what we typically see in summertime. We are quite happy about the presence of these graceful critters at any time in the garden. As you can see from these particular photos Verbena bonariensis is a popular favorite among them.

Dragonflies play an important role in this subtropical environment. They are agile predators of numerous insects. They are equipped with powerful speed to hunt down flies, mosquitoes, and gnats out of the air. They feed on ants and termites as well. I do adore watching them in flight.

In the bright sunlight the buzzing and flitting about of beneficial insects is evident around the flowering plants especially. Syrphid flies, green sweat bees, bumble bees, honey bees, and many tiny flies that I do not know the names of sing their buzzing song as they diligently pollinate the flowers and edibles.

Splendidly colored wings and bodies to cherish in any garden. The underside of the bright orange Gulf Fritillary (below)is a masterful work of art.

Each one of these helpful beauties is a great reason to avoid the use of pesticides and insectides. Nature, when left to balance on its own, has a wonderful way of overriding the small amount of bad with the abundance of good.

The average lifespan of a butterfly (varies with each species) is only about 1 month. Isn't it amazing that the numbers of them in the garden doesn't seem to fluctuate!

They are busy creatures in their short life time. Each species needs their respective host plants to lay their eggs and provide food for the larvae. Once they mature into adults they will be looking for flowering plants to retrieve their nectar. Little do they know how much enjoyment and entertainment they provide to the gardeners who diligently work to attract them. :-)

Which butterflies are you seeing now in your garden?

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