This beauty can be found growing in the majority of the United States. It is native to the eastern U.S. - as far east as Kansas and Illinois and down to New Mexico and north to Wisconsin. It is also native to Ontario, Canada. Its vibrant pink or white flowers bloom in July through September and are about 1 inch in diameter with 5 petals. The unique star-shaped center of the flower is yellow-green and outlined with a red border. Anthers on the … [Read more...]
Bear’s Foot or Hairy Leafcup
Native to the eastern United States, up to Michigan, and across to Texas and Kansas, this perennial plant can be found in forest gaps, along the edges of fields and forests, in thickets, bottomlands, and grasslands. It can grow in full sun or part shade and in a wide range of soil moisture conditions. Plant Description Bear’s foot (Smallanthus uvedalius (L.) Mack. Ex Small (synonym: Polymnia uvedalia)) can grow to be eight to ten feet tall. It … [Read more...]
Choosing Binoculars for Backyard Bird Watching
If you like to watch the birds and other critters that visit your backyard habitat, you need a decent pair of binoculars to do so. There are a lot of low cost binoculars out there, but they will frustrate you with poor visibility, difficulty with adjusting them, or even poor durability. Expensive binoculars tend to have too high a magnification level and/or lens size for the purpose of looking at wildlife in your backyard. Ideally, a nice … [Read more...]
False Garlic (Nothoscordum bivalve)
I love the flowers of false garlic, which bloom in large numbers, but as the blooms fade, the grass-like leaves are quite abundant. I prefer not to have them in my flower beds, but I leave it blooming in the lawn and will not cut the grass until the blooms are done. It blooms in early spring in sunny locations with well-drained soil. Plant Description Also known as crow poison, Nothoscordum bivalve is a perennial flowering plant that grows … [Read more...]
A Fresh Start: New Garden in a New Home
Life changes quickly and often – that’s just the joy and challenge of being alive. Going with the ebb and flow is sometimes difficult, but learning to do so is one of the most important things that I strive for. I’m not always successful, but when I am, life is much more pleasant. I moved this past weekend, leaving behind my nearly two acres of yard, which I had cultivated into multiple garden beds and vegetable beds. If I’m honest, I have to … [Read more...]
Echinacea species – Flowering plants for bees, butterflies, and birds
Butterflies and bees just love coneflowers in the genus Echinacea. You are probably familiar with purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea), but there are many cultivars now available in a variety of colors: red, pink, white, orange, yellow, cream, green, and gold. There are even Echinacea flowers with double blooms. Echinacea is native to the central and eastern United States and can be found growing in prairies, fields, and even in open woods. … [Read more...]
Attract Hummingbirds and Butterflies with Bee Balm (Monarda spp)
If you’re looking for a native, perennial plant to add to your garden that will be easy to care for, add great color to your garden, and also attract hummingbirds, bees, and butterflies, bee balm (Monarda sp.) is a good choice. Hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees feed on the nectar of this flower. According to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Monarda has a special value to native bees. Bee balm is in the mint family; its leaves are … [Read more...]
Butterweed – Mississippi Wildflower
Every spring a common Mississippi wildflower, a patch of Butterweed, shows up in my lawn. They come up in the same spot every year, and I just mow around them until they are done blooming. In combination with Philadelphia fleabane which also blooms at this time, they make a pretty landscape. Butterweed is in the Aster family, so they flowers resemble small yellow daisies and they cluster at the top of the stem. The stem is hollow and has a … [Read more...]
Food Plants for Butterflies and Caterpillars
If you like butterflies, than planting both plants that host the larvae and feed the butterflies are important. These are some of the flowering herbaceous plants (and one vine) suitable for planting in the southeast for the butterflies that we have here. Flowering plants that are host to larvae of the butterfly Flowering plants that provide nectar for butterflies This gulf fritillary butterfly emerged from a cocoon in my yard in 2015. I … [Read more...]
Purple Passionflower: Passiflora incarnata
Purple passionflower, also known as maypop, is a relatively quick-growing, perennial, herbaceous vine in the Passifloraceae family. You can find this vine growing throughout the Southeast from Texas to Kansas up to Pennsylvania and down to Florida. In Mississippi, I’ve often seen it in pastures or open fields. It’s a great addition to an arbor or trellis and provides necessary food for the larvae of several butterfly species. The flower is … [Read more...]
- « Previous Page
- 1
- …
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- Next Page »
