Bad, bad doggie...

Our lab puppy {and I use that term lightly...he's two} is just so naughty! We actually had a fairly warm, sunny weekend & I was outside, planting my wildflower garden, wearing my favorite shirt when out of nowhere Jackson appeared, leapt through the air, mouth wide open...clamped on to my shirt and kept on running! It was like something out of the movies...there I was, standing in the garden, half my shirt gone...the rest in tatters...I could not believe it!! I've never seen anything like it...he is a such a bad, bad doggie...it's a good thing he's cute!

On the upside, I did get my wildflower garden planted {right behind my raised beds} and tidied up the garden a bit, scanning the ground for any sign of green peeking through the soil...nothing yet.

This afternoon, I was looking at all the butterfly/caterpillar identification books that I have on my desk {15} and realized that each book provides something different.

Some have better pictures or show different "instars" (stages) of the caterpillars and I really do refer to all of them, however I've found one that I go back to time & time again...It's a book by Judy Burris & Wayne Richards, called "The Life Cycles of Butterflies"

It won the Teachers' Choice Award in 2007, but I think it's a wonderful "adult" book as well! They have taken 23 of the most common butterflies and devoted four pages to each butterfly with amazing photos of the eggs, caterpillars and butterflies. It also has a section devoted to butterfly gardening...host & nectar plants.

But I think my favorite feature is the easy comparison guide for butterfly eggs, caterpillars, and chrysalises (cocoons) in the back of the book. I actually carry it with me when I'm egg & caterpillar hunting...yes, it's that good!

I have it in hardcover, but bought a paperback version {every bit as good as the hardcover} for my Mom on Amazon.com for about $11 {& free shipping!}

So, if you are thinking about adding a butterfly identification book to your collection, I would highly recommend this one!

Think happy spring thoughts...it's just around the corner, I can feel it!

Luckest Girl...

Sometimes I feel like the luckiest girl in the world! I returned home this morning from Jazzercise and found that my husband had done the dishes {that I really meant to do last night before bedtime} AND he had written directions {with sketches, I might add}, for the raised beds that I wanted to share with you today...I feel so loved!

If you're like me, you want a garden that looks pretty and is easy to care for, without spending a fortune. So, with that in mind, last fall, we built some raised beds in anticipation of expanding our butterfly garden this spring.

Since we live in Georgia, much of our yard is hard clay, so by building raised beds we find planting much easier. Also, I run drip hoses in the beds, under the soil to conserve water and help the plants develop a deep root system. And a good root system makes your little plants more drought tolerant during the summer's scorching heat.

Here are directions for the easy, small raised bed that we built. {I'll share the directions for the larger one later}

We built six of these 2' x 2' beds in an afternoon.

What you will need:

Two 5/4" Deck Boards
One 2 x 2" board - 8 feet long
32 Wood Screws 1 1/2"

First, cut the deck boards into 2 foot lengths (8 pieces). Then cut four pieces of the 2 x 2"board, 11 inches long each.

1. Position two of the boards, as shown and secure with 2 screws in each board to the upright 2x2.

2. Position two more boards and repeat step 1

3. Repeat for the second level, alternating the way the boards overlap.

4. Fill with 2 bags of potting soil!

The cost for building each bed is about $10 and should last 8-10 years!

We happened to be replacing some of the boards on our deck, so we just recycled the old boards for our raised beds...Cost: Free! {I love free!}

I'll take pictures of my new raised beds this summer when they're in full bloom, to share with you. So, be sure to take pictures of yours too...I'll post them here, so that we can see everyone's beautiful summer gardens!

In the middle of the night...

Have you ever woken up in the middle of the night with total clarity of thought? Well, that's exactly what happened to me last night. I was sound asleep and then like a bubble...I felt myself rising to the surface, then "pop", I was awake. And the second I woke up, I realized that with all my moaning about winter & the yucky weather, I had completely forgotten to tell you that if you're starting your butterfly garden from seed this year... it's time to start now!


Many of the plants that you will want to include in your garden, are perennials (they come back each year) and can be started from seed. It just takes a little advance planning, but will save you loads of money! The reason that you need to start now is "stratification". All stratification means, is exposing your seed to a period of cold, before planting. This will help the seed break its dormancy and germinate when the warm weather comes.


So, you have 2 choices, when it comes to stratifying...one is to plant in the fall and let the seeds overwinter and the other is to stratify in your refrigerator for 4-8 weeks before planting. Since winter will be over soon, we're going to use the refrigerator method. We should have just enough time...whew! {I can't believe I almost forgot to tell you about this...sorry}

Ok, here's how I do it. I mix the seeds with equal amounts of damp sand or potting soil...{damp, but not so wet that water will squeeze out of it} Then place the mixture in a sealed plastic bag and store in the refrigerator. The closer to eight weeks, the better, however I've had good luck with four.



Some of the flowers that you may want to start from seed are:

Swamp Milkweed & Butterfly Milkweed (for the Monarchs...)

Purple Coneflowers (nectar plant for all butterflies & host plant for the Silvery Checkerspot Butterfly)

Wild Senna & Partridge Pea (host plants for Sulphur Butterflies)

Purple Passion Flowers (Host plant for Zebra Longwings, Gulf & Variegated Fritillaries)

The other really great thing about all these flowers, is that at the end of the season, you can harvest the seeds! Just wait until fall, let the seed pods dry on the plant and then collect!


I love sharing seeds from my garden with family & friends... it makes a great gift from the heart and helps the butterflies at the same time!


So, you may want to save some money and start planning your butterfly garden now. Go ahead and buy your perennial seeds, put them in the refrigerator and relax knowing that when spring arrives your little gems will be ready to plant and grow!

If you have any problems finding seeds at your local nursery, you can find some of the varieties on the website under "Butterfly Garden Kits".

Happy stratifying!!

Spring is coming...

Oh my gosh! I was out walking the dogs this afternoon and I noticed that my Snowdrop flowers are coming up! I know this has nothing to do with butterfly gardening, except that spring really is on its way and soon it will be butterfly season! Hooray!

These particular Snowdrops have a special meaning, because my mother-in-law, Stella dug them from her garden for me, before she passed away. So I think of her each year, as the green shoots pop through the soil. I'm always so surprised to see them, because usually they appear when the days are still cold and dreary and thoughts of spring haven't yet entered my mind.

I also find it interesting, that in ancient times, the snowdrop flowers were a symbol of hope. So, I guess, it's quite appropriate that I feel so optimistic, when I see their little heads appear!

Warmer weather and beautiful sunny days are on the way...I can't wait!

Monday morning...

Well, today was off to a rocky start...running late, car on empty {ok, that was my fault...I did notice it was running low yesterday, then promptly forgot}, ice on the windshield, {again, my fault...forgot to put the car in the garage}, but none the less I managed to get to jazzercise in enough time to take my coveted spot in the back row, where I could comfortably work out my chubby little body, relatively unnoticed. So now, here I am, cozy & warm at my desk, looking forward to sharing with you today...

I was thinking about how much fun it was the first time I spotted a caterpillar in my garden, was able to identify it & didn't squish it. It was a Black Swallowtail butterfly caterpillar on my Dill.

I had just learned that you need more than nectar plants in your garden to attract butterflies. You need "Host Plants".

Host plants are the plants where the adult butterflies lay their tiny eggs and what the baby caterpillars eat. Each species of butterfly caterpillars will eat only a very specific group of plants {I used to think that caterpillars would eat any green leaves}.

And as luck would have it, I just happened to have Dill growing in my garden last summer. Which just happens to be, (along with Parsley & Fennel) one of the host plants for Black Swallowtail butterflies!

So, I dashed up to the garden and started to look. At first I didn't see anything and then I noticed one of the plants was missing most of its leaves and there, on an almost bare stock, was a fat green, yellow & black caterpillar! A Black Swallowtail!

Well, I immediately dug up the plant, caterpillar and all & put it in a pot, in a cage, on the back deck...it wasn't until later that I realized I could have just snipped off some of the leaves to feed the little guy and not the entire plant. Anyway, I had such great fun watching him grow, eventually turn into a chrysalis and then a butterfly. It was my first "wild" caterpillar!

So, if you would like to add just one host plant to your garden this year, you might want to consider Dill, Parsley or Fennel.

Just be sure to either grow it from seed, without using pesticides or buy an organically grown plant. I will grow mine from seed again this year, just to be on the safe side. But the good news is that the seeds aren't hard at all, to grow! Just pick a sunny spot, rake the soil lightly, sprinkle the seeds and keep moist! And don't forget to plant your nectar flowers close by, the Black Swallowtails will love you for it!

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