I get to play tag in my garden.
So I got tagged. Thank you R.W. Ley for the tag. Now it's my turn to share the fun. I'm IT!!!
Okay, these are the rules;
1. Link to the person who tagged you (I did that)
2. Post the rules on your blog (I'm doing that now)
3. Write six random thoughts about yourself (see below)
4. Tag six or so people at the end of your post (see below)
5. Let each person know he or she has been tagged (I will do that)
6. Let the tagger know when your entry is posted (I'll do that, too.)
Random Thoughts About Me:
1. My Cavalier looks like I live in it most of the time.
2. Despite all of the years I've lived in central Pa after graduating from Penn State, I never got into football. I do like the highly charged atmosphere of downtown State College when there's a home game.
3. I can't pick a favorite color. There are too many beautiful ones!
4. I know how to ride a horse, play the piano, belly dance, garden (of course), ride a bike, and swim.
5. I sleep best in complete darkness.
6. My knowledge of miscellaneous facts sometimes impresses people.
Now, for those I'm tagging; be careful out there because YOU'RE IT!!
http://www.mychurch.org/fumcallen
http://queenspalace.multiply.com/
http://coyotedreams.multiply.com/
http://www.mychurch.org/debnjim
http://yjustbreathe.multiply.com/
http://incrediblyrotten.multiply.com/
Enjoy the tag game and let's share the fun!
9/30/2008
9/22/2008
HERBS
I love herbs. They smell wonderful, add an attractive feature to a garden spot or a container, and are a great healthy way for flavoring meals and cold beverages, making soothing teas and so on.
Just yesterday, I used rosemary, cherry tomatoes, potatoes, a leek and two yellow peppers I had grown. Prostrate rosemary, the kind in my porch container, does not grow like a tree, but instead along the ground as you might guess from the name.
I roasted a small chicken. Springs of rosemary and cloves of garlic can be placed under the skin of the breast, the wings, and the legs. Also, place several sprigs and garlic inside the chicken.
In appearance and aroma, rosemary reminds me a great deal of pine trees. In colder climates, it can survive winter if brought inside in a container. However, it needs light and some humidity. I haven't been able to carry it through the dry indoor heat of February and low light of my apartment.
At least two types of rosemary exist: bush type (similar to a small tree), and prostrate.
Dill has long been one of my favorite. I think of pickles that are made pleasantly tart and tasty with dill, mustard (seeds or powder) and black peppercorn. Here are a couple of dill pickle recipes
http://www.bigoven.com/10486-Quick-Fresh-Pack-Dill-Pickles-recipe.html
http://www.bigoven.com/10464-Quick-Dill-Pickles-in-a-Crock-recipe.html
Just yesterday, I used rosemary, cherry tomatoes, potatoes, a leek and two yellow peppers I had grown. Prostrate rosemary, the kind in my porch container, does not grow like a tree, but instead along the ground as you might guess from the name.
I roasted a small chicken. Springs of rosemary and cloves of garlic can be placed under the skin of the breast, the wings, and the legs. Also, place several sprigs and garlic inside the chicken.
In appearance and aroma, rosemary reminds me a great deal of pine trees. In colder climates, it can survive winter if brought inside in a container. However, it needs light and some humidity. I haven't been able to carry it through the dry indoor heat of February and low light of my apartment.
At least two types of rosemary exist: bush type (similar to a small tree), and prostrate.
Dill has long been one of my favorite. I think of pickles that are made pleasantly tart and tasty with dill, mustard (seeds or powder) and black peppercorn. Here are a couple of dill pickle recipes
http://www.bigoven.com/10486-Quick-Fresh-Pack-Dill-Pickles-recipe.html
http://www.bigoven.com/10464-Quick-Dill-Pickles-in-a-Crock-recipe.html
9/15/2008
I'd like to direct you to an article on a very interesting urban Chicago gardener named Carl Walton. Read about him here.
SURPRISES ARE MANY
Much of the latter weeks of August into the first week of September was dry here. It looked as though my garden was finished. Amazing what a little rain -- well, we had a lot -- will do. Among the dry and dead plants, color appeared in spots I had given up on.
Bright fresh red raspberries welcomed me last week when I arrived at my plot.
(Thanks to Sharon and Mark for the plants!) I loved the Shasta daisies, too, when they bloomed. Are you surprised that I never got to my car with the berries? Sweet, fresh and ripe and rinsed just a little with the hose. A nice snack from the garden.
Daisy-like flowers of pink, blue and yellow appeared in the second bed. I don't remember planting them, but I was tickled. Perhaps they were from the unproductive seeds I planted last season.
More tomatoes, of course. I have pink medium-size tomatoes, and both red and orange cherry tomato plants.
Much of the latter weeks of August into the first week of September was dry here. It looked as though my garden was finished. Amazing what a little rain -- well, we had a lot -- will do. Among the dry and dead plants, color appeared in spots I had given up on.
Bright fresh red raspberries welcomed me last week when I arrived at my plot.
(Thanks to Sharon and Mark for the plants!) I loved the Shasta daisies, too, when they bloomed. Are you surprised that I never got to my car with the berries? Sweet, fresh and ripe and rinsed just a little with the hose. A nice snack from the garden.
Daisy-like flowers of pink, blue and yellow appeared in the second bed. I don't remember planting them, but I was tickled. Perhaps they were from the unproductive seeds I planted last season.
More tomatoes, of course. I have pink medium-size tomatoes, and both red and orange cherry tomato plants.
9/11/2008
THE EXCESS AND ABUNDANCE OF HARVEST
Zucchini's reputation for proliferation is well-deserved. Even a bad year for the vegetable can provide enough to share with others. According to the book The Vegetable Gardener's Bible (Edward Smith, Storey Publishing), stories circulate in New England about gardeners so desperate to get rid of their excess "zukes" that neighbors find a zucchini-filled car when leaving the house to go to work in the morning.
It stands to reason that the vegetable has been incorporated into many meals and recipes. BigOven.com lists 250 results with a search for zucchini. Some recipes are really unbelievable -- Zucchini Oatmeal Cookies for instance.
Tomatoes are often equally prolific. Some years it seems like they'll never ripen, so recipes for green tomatoes pop up in women's magazines, cooking and gardening websites, and on morning TV shows.
My cherry tomatoes often become ripe in large numbers on the vine, split, and become fruit-fly food very quickly. Even if I discard these, the numbers still favor enough for tomatoes at every meal if I want.
I planned my garden for salsa this year. Some is in the freezer. I didn't plan well enough. My cilantro dried and "went to seed" before my tomatoes began to ripen. Cilantro seeds can be saved though if you want to start your own plants next year. The seeds from this plant, also known as coriander, are used in cooking.
Perhaps I should look into an earlier producer for tomatoes, and one that goes all season. Patchwork Farms used to sell Arkansas traveler, which is supposed to produce all season. Maybe I can find it or something similar.*
BigOven.com has some great ideas for storing tomatoes:
Store tomatoes away from sunlight and heat and at cool room temperatures.
Do not refrigerate tomatoes for any length of time (don’t buy them from refrigerated cases). Low temperatures destroy the flavor. One convenient method is this:
"Freeze tomatoes in slices, chunks, or even whole. These can be used for cooking. Double bag them and use within twelve months."
Onions did well this year. I grew a number of red and sweet white ones. Certain types are best-suited to storage, and conditions must be right. Sweet onions are more susceptible to damage when stored.
All onions, in the ground and afterward, can be eaten by maggots, as I discovered. Thankfully, I only lost a few. It's not pleasant to cut through an onion that has rotted. Blah!
Here's another sample from my garden ...
Sunflowers on the right. Lavender, oregano in flower (dried) and fresh basil from right to left.
An arrangement from earlier in the season. (above and below)
The miniature decorative pumpkins grew in my garden, too. Last year, I bought some at a farmer's roadside stand. I decided to cut some and scoop out the seeds. Then I spread them on layers of paper towels on a cookie sheet to dry. I stored them in a plastic baggie over the winter. One vine produced the same type of fruit as the parent seeds. The other vine had larger squash in different shapes. Perhaps this was from cross-pollination. One was green, and somewhat round, when I picked it. One my living room table it has been turning pumpkin orange. (Perhaps I will have a photo of it to share soon.)
Enjoy the abundance of tomatoes, onions, potatoes and anything else you get throughout the growing season. It's better, I say, to be blessed with too much than to be disappointed by your garden's production. I have fantasies about storing greater amounts through canning and drying since I have a small freezer; however, I have come to realize that I must take it a few steps at a time. I'm only one person and I work full-time. In anticipation, I'll keep learning in the hopes that those skills grow, too.
Zucchini oatmeal cookies
tomato storage
*Here's the story behind the tomato, including its name. Arkansas Traveler tomato.
A little bit about onions
Article on seed saving with links to others
Zucchini's reputation for proliferation is well-deserved. Even a bad year for the vegetable can provide enough to share with others. According to the book The Vegetable Gardener's Bible (Edward Smith, Storey Publishing), stories circulate in New England about gardeners so desperate to get rid of their excess "zukes" that neighbors find a zucchini-filled car when leaving the house to go to work in the morning.
It stands to reason that the vegetable has been incorporated into many meals and recipes. BigOven.com lists 250 results with a search for zucchini. Some recipes are really unbelievable -- Zucchini Oatmeal Cookies for instance.
Tomatoes are often equally prolific. Some years it seems like they'll never ripen, so recipes for green tomatoes pop up in women's magazines, cooking and gardening websites, and on morning TV shows.
My cherry tomatoes often become ripe in large numbers on the vine, split, and become fruit-fly food very quickly. Even if I discard these, the numbers still favor enough for tomatoes at every meal if I want.
I planned my garden for salsa this year. Some is in the freezer. I didn't plan well enough. My cilantro dried and "went to seed" before my tomatoes began to ripen. Cilantro seeds can be saved though if you want to start your own plants next year. The seeds from this plant, also known as coriander, are used in cooking.
Perhaps I should look into an earlier producer for tomatoes, and one that goes all season. Patchwork Farms used to sell Arkansas traveler, which is supposed to produce all season. Maybe I can find it or something similar.*
BigOven.com has some great ideas for storing tomatoes:
Store tomatoes away from sunlight and heat and at cool room temperatures.
Do not refrigerate tomatoes for any length of time (don’t buy them from refrigerated cases). Low temperatures destroy the flavor. One convenient method is this:
"Freeze tomatoes in slices, chunks, or even whole. These can be used for cooking. Double bag them and use within twelve months."
Onions did well this year. I grew a number of red and sweet white ones. Certain types are best-suited to storage, and conditions must be right. Sweet onions are more susceptible to damage when stored.
All onions, in the ground and afterward, can be eaten by maggots, as I discovered. Thankfully, I only lost a few. It's not pleasant to cut through an onion that has rotted. Blah!Here's another sample from my garden ...
Sunflowers on the right. Lavender, oregano in flower (dried) and fresh basil from right to left.
An arrangement from earlier in the season. (above and below)
The miniature decorative pumpkins grew in my garden, too. Last year, I bought some at a farmer's roadside stand. I decided to cut some and scoop out the seeds. Then I spread them on layers of paper towels on a cookie sheet to dry. I stored them in a plastic baggie over the winter. One vine produced the same type of fruit as the parent seeds. The other vine had larger squash in different shapes. Perhaps this was from cross-pollination. One was green, and somewhat round, when I picked it. One my living room table it has been turning pumpkin orange. (Perhaps I will have a photo of it to share soon.)
Enjoy the abundance of tomatoes, onions, potatoes and anything else you get throughout the growing season. It's better, I say, to be blessed with too much than to be disappointed by your garden's production. I have fantasies about storing greater amounts through canning and drying since I have a small freezer; however, I have come to realize that I must take it a few steps at a time. I'm only one person and I work full-time. In anticipation, I'll keep learning in the hopes that those skills grow, too.Zucchini oatmeal cookies
tomato storage
*Here's the story behind the tomato, including its name. Arkansas Traveler tomato.
A little bit about onions
Article on seed saving with links to others
8/25/2008
WHATEVER THE NAME, THIS FLOWER KEEPS DELIGHTING ME
In appreciation for my patronage and for recycling their paper bags and plastic seedling trays, I occasionally get free plants from a local nursery. I became acquainted with lisianthus this way.
I have planted them each season since then. They are easy to grow, rather drought-tolerant and lovely as cut flowers. Full sun makes them thrive. Its beauty and variety of colors makes an outstanding individual plant, but grouping it with others is even more eye candy.
It may be possible to over water these, so, it pays to put them in well-drained soil. This I have found to be true because in my area there are long wet spells. The plant requires little space, grows upright and doesn't spread. When I remove the dead plants from the soil, I don't find the root ball to be much bigger than when I transplanted the seedlings in early summer. The purple bloom in the above photo is from a plant growing next to basil, one leaf of which is visible in the picture.
In my zone (6 and near the border of 5), they are annuals. They are native to warm areas of the U.S., Mexico, parts of South America and probably the Caribbean. In these warmer climates, they can be perennials.
For cut flowers, the dwarf version presents a challenge. I have found that the stem could not be cut long enough to make a good solo cut flower. It branches only an inch or two from the same section as unopened buds. Still, I have had a bud or two open in a vase if I do not cut too soon. The unopened buds look pretty, too, alongside open flowers.
The dwarf and the full-size versions are both nice in a container. I can imagine a row or small grouping of it front of taller, spikier plants that compliment whatever color the flowers will be. The pink and white lisianthus below shares close quarters with several other plants and has thrived. So, spacing may not be a problem.
And color is what keeps delighting me about them. Lisianthus -- I should be calling it Eustoma -- comes is a wonderful color selection. I have white blooms with a hint of yellow in a container on my porch. That same window box has this on the other end:
To grow them, it seems to be best to get seedlings from a local nursery or mail order. They can be difficult to grow from seed. Burpee has seedlings in a variety of colors available early in the year. (burpee)
How to grow lisianthus
In appreciation for my patronage and for recycling their paper bags and plastic seedling trays, I occasionally get free plants from a local nursery. I became acquainted with lisianthus this way.
I have planted them each season since then. They are easy to grow, rather drought-tolerant and lovely as cut flowers. Full sun makes them thrive. Its beauty and variety of colors makes an outstanding individual plant, but grouping it with others is even more eye candy.
It may be possible to over water these, so, it pays to put them in well-drained soil. This I have found to be true because in my area there are long wet spells. The plant requires little space, grows upright and doesn't spread. When I remove the dead plants from the soil, I don't find the root ball to be much bigger than when I transplanted the seedlings in early summer. The purple bloom in the above photo is from a plant growing next to basil, one leaf of which is visible in the picture.
In my zone (6 and near the border of 5), they are annuals. They are native to warm areas of the U.S., Mexico, parts of South America and probably the Caribbean. In these warmer climates, they can be perennials.
For cut flowers, the dwarf version presents a challenge. I have found that the stem could not be cut long enough to make a good solo cut flower. It branches only an inch or two from the same section as unopened buds. Still, I have had a bud or two open in a vase if I do not cut too soon. The unopened buds look pretty, too, alongside open flowers.
The dwarf and the full-size versions are both nice in a container. I can imagine a row or small grouping of it front of taller, spikier plants that compliment whatever color the flowers will be. The pink and white lisianthus below shares close quarters with several other plants and has thrived. So, spacing may not be a problem.
And color is what keeps delighting me about them. Lisianthus -- I should be calling it Eustoma -- comes is a wonderful color selection. I have white blooms with a hint of yellow in a container on my porch. That same window box has this on the other end:
To grow them, it seems to be best to get seedlings from a local nursery or mail order. They can be difficult to grow from seed. Burpee has seedlings in a variety of colors available early in the year. (burpee)
How to grow lisianthus
8/21/2008
A TRIP INTO FAIRYLAND
A while back I blogged about Leucocoprinus birnbaumii, a lovely yellow mushroom that will grow in houseplant soil. It's not harmful to the plant, but don't eat it or allow pets to nibble it.
On a hike in Shingletown Gap with some friends, I felt like I had entered a fairy world in part because I saw so many colors and forms of fungi. Don't worry. We didn't eat any magic mushrooms, so all of the forest's magical qualities reflected in my photos are real.
Had a wedding party passed through here before we arrived?
The trail littered with and surrounded by beautiful white blooms was inspiring.
Extraordinary life forms were everywhere.
Perhaps these "seahorses" transported the bride and groom.
I can't put all of my photos in this blog, so if you want to see more, click this.
A while back I blogged about Leucocoprinus birnbaumii, a lovely yellow mushroom that will grow in houseplant soil. It's not harmful to the plant, but don't eat it or allow pets to nibble it.
On a hike in Shingletown Gap with some friends, I felt like I had entered a fairy world in part because I saw so many colors and forms of fungi. Don't worry. We didn't eat any magic mushrooms, so all of the forest's magical qualities reflected in my photos are real.
Had a wedding party passed through here before we arrived?
The trail littered with and surrounded by beautiful white blooms was inspiring.Extraordinary life forms were everywhere.
Perhaps these "seahorses" transported the bride and groom.I can't put all of my photos in this blog, so if you want to see more, click this.
8/20/2008
UPDATE
My croton produced "offspring" earlier this year. It's doing well. The picture above was taken just before I watered it. They wilt quickly.
Mine is in a self-watering container, which has been sufficient for quite a while; however, recently it has been harder to keep it watered. As you can see in the photo, the leaves are hanging downward on the parent stem. I need to start watering it more frequently and move it to a brighter spot.
Crotons come in a variety of forms and they can be very colorful. Mine has not had a lot of sun, so it has a lot of green. They are easy to grow, often available in places that sell plants, and they're quite attractive.
Once or twice a week, I place it in the shower alongside other houseplants. I use a tepid water spray for several minutes. Besides giving it a good soaking, this rinses dust from the leaves and keeps them glossy. The plant also benefits from the humidity.
In dry air, such as indoors in the winter, croton is suceptible to spider mites. These are very small, red bugs that resemble spiders. Once they infest a plant, it's not easy to get rid of them. So, it's best to rinse or mist the plant several times a week, and to do it year-round.
A page with some quick facts about the plant:
how to care for a croton
This web page recommends trimming leaves to make the plant bushy.
My croton produced "offspring" earlier this year. It's doing well. The picture above was taken just before I watered it. They wilt quickly.
Mine is in a self-watering container, which has been sufficient for quite a while; however, recently it has been harder to keep it watered. As you can see in the photo, the leaves are hanging downward on the parent stem. I need to start watering it more frequently and move it to a brighter spot.
Crotons come in a variety of forms and they can be very colorful. Mine has not had a lot of sun, so it has a lot of green. They are easy to grow, often available in places that sell plants, and they're quite attractive.
Once or twice a week, I place it in the shower alongside other houseplants. I use a tepid water spray for several minutes. Besides giving it a good soaking, this rinses dust from the leaves and keeps them glossy. The plant also benefits from the humidity.
In dry air, such as indoors in the winter, croton is suceptible to spider mites. These are very small, red bugs that resemble spiders. Once they infest a plant, it's not easy to get rid of them. So, it's best to rinse or mist the plant several times a week, and to do it year-round.
A page with some quick facts about the plant:
how to care for a croton
This web page recommends trimming leaves to make the plant bushy.
8/01/2008
ANIMALS AND PLANTS
I haven't mentioned this before, but it's good for gardeners and anyone with houseplants to know how to protect pets. Why? Some plants are poisonous. The ASPCA has an article on the increasingly popular sago palm, which is sickening and in some cases killing, pets.
Sago palm
They also have a long list of non-toxic alternatives; a link to it is in the article above.
I don't have animals in my garden plot, save for a few young rabbits. At home though, I have to make sure that no house plant drapes over my guinea pigs' pens, so all of my plants are on the other side of the room. I know that dangling "baby" spider plants or leaves of my spathiphyllum would be more temptation than my furry friends could resist. It would be something to play with and perhaps to eat.
Certain plants may be toxic to one type of animal and not another. I know that no part of the potato plant should be fed to guinea pigs. Mostly my little ones get spinach, parsley, a little cucumber, leaf lettuce, dandelion greens, broccoli and chard: all fresh green veggies (no mustard greens). They also get apple chunks, and seedless orange or watermelon pieces (the fruit, not the leaves or vines).
Poisonous plants for cats and dogs
I haven't mentioned this before, but it's good for gardeners and anyone with houseplants to know how to protect pets. Why? Some plants are poisonous. The ASPCA has an article on the increasingly popular sago palm, which is sickening and in some cases killing, pets.
Sago palm
They also have a long list of non-toxic alternatives; a link to it is in the article above.
I don't have animals in my garden plot, save for a few young rabbits. At home though, I have to make sure that no house plant drapes over my guinea pigs' pens, so all of my plants are on the other side of the room. I know that dangling "baby" spider plants or leaves of my spathiphyllum would be more temptation than my furry friends could resist. It would be something to play with and perhaps to eat.
Certain plants may be toxic to one type of animal and not another. I know that no part of the potato plant should be fed to guinea pigs. Mostly my little ones get spinach, parsley, a little cucumber, leaf lettuce, dandelion greens, broccoli and chard: all fresh green veggies (no mustard greens). They also get apple chunks, and seedless orange or watermelon pieces (the fruit, not the leaves or vines).
Poisonous plants for cats and dogs
7/21/2008
“The caterpillar does all the work but the butterfly gets all the publicity”
George Carlin (American stand-up Comedian, Actor, Author. 1937-2008)
I wonder if butter has anything to do with the common name for the lepidoptera. Many of them have noticeable yellow coloring. Perhaps this reminded observers of the color of butter. Whatever the reason, they are part of the wildlife that I would like to help thrive with what's planted in my garden.
Butterfly gardening is the practice of planting specifically to attract these delicate, fluttering insects. I don't have the space to create that kind of specialty garden, but that's not necessarily needed. This may be especially true for me since my plot is only one of about 45 in a community garden. Many other gardeners' plants attract them. It's nice to remind myself that the variety of plants growing there isn't strictly a smorgasbord for undesirable pests.
Along with the butterflies, I see hawks, robins, a young rabbit (I'm sure there's more than one), ladybugs, earthworms -- your basic soup to nuts of garden creatures. Last week, I got a kick out of seeing goldfinches darting from my sunflowers to a neighboring plot.
By reading P Allen Smith's article about his butterfly garden, I discovered that ideally you want to choose plants that allow the larva a place to grow and the adult a place to feed on nectar. I am growing both parsley and fennel, plants that a variety of the larva prefer. Sweeeeeet!
For the adults, it's ideal to have flowers blooming all summer. I live in Pennsylvania so I decided to seek more information, something that would help me know whether or not I'm choosing plants suitable for local varieties. The web page of Butterfly Haven is filled with information on butterfly gardening in Pennsylvania. It's located in New Ringold, which is not far from where I spent my childhood. Maybe I'll get to visit it; if I do, I'll be sure to share any pictures here.
Butterflies enjoy nasturtiums.
My final concern is that I must learn about what the most common local butterflies, both larvae and adults, look like. In removing pests by hand, I don't want to mistake beneficial or neutral insects.
So, check out those sites and do some more searching.
Side note: when it comes to pest control, my goal is to do as little as possible. Why?
1: less labor for me.
2: other plot owners spray, so part of the pest population is already eliminated.
3: once I get rid of my pests, they may move in from other plots because I've eliminated the competition.
4: chemicals, even organic, can harm beneficial insects. In his presentation to a group of us at the community garden, a Penn State entomologist recommended using a pesticide geared toward the specific bug that plagues your crops. Thus, you get rid of the bug you don't want and reduce the chances of poisoning desirable inhabitants.
5: I want minimum interruption of what "nature" already does. For example, there's some benefit to allowing pests to eat a little of your crop; it keeps their population going and thus provides food for good bugs that you want to prey on them. This feeds a natural cycle.
I don't have an equation for calculating how much damage to allow. My only guidelines are these:
--if the plants survive and produce enough fruit for my use, I don't think I'll spray.
--the pests must not foster or transmit plant diseases; ex., the bacteria that causes wilt may travel with cucumber beetles.
While enjoying summer's garden bounty, take a mental inventory of visitors to your garden. Maybe you can encourage some to take off the chrysalis and stay a while.
George Carlin (American stand-up Comedian, Actor, Author. 1937-2008)
I wonder if butter has anything to do with the common name for the lepidoptera. Many of them have noticeable yellow coloring. Perhaps this reminded observers of the color of butter. Whatever the reason, they are part of the wildlife that I would like to help thrive with what's planted in my garden.
Butterfly gardening is the practice of planting specifically to attract these delicate, fluttering insects. I don't have the space to create that kind of specialty garden, but that's not necessarily needed. This may be especially true for me since my plot is only one of about 45 in a community garden. Many other gardeners' plants attract them. It's nice to remind myself that the variety of plants growing there isn't strictly a smorgasbord for undesirable pests.
Along with the butterflies, I see hawks, robins, a young rabbit (I'm sure there's more than one), ladybugs, earthworms -- your basic soup to nuts of garden creatures. Last week, I got a kick out of seeing goldfinches darting from my sunflowers to a neighboring plot.
By reading P Allen Smith's article about his butterfly garden, I discovered that ideally you want to choose plants that allow the larva a place to grow and the adult a place to feed on nectar. I am growing both parsley and fennel, plants that a variety of the larva prefer. Sweeeeeet!
For the adults, it's ideal to have flowers blooming all summer. I live in Pennsylvania so I decided to seek more information, something that would help me know whether or not I'm choosing plants suitable for local varieties. The web page of Butterfly Haven is filled with information on butterfly gardening in Pennsylvania. It's located in New Ringold, which is not far from where I spent my childhood. Maybe I'll get to visit it; if I do, I'll be sure to share any pictures here.
Butterflies enjoy nasturtiums. My final concern is that I must learn about what the most common local butterflies, both larvae and adults, look like. In removing pests by hand, I don't want to mistake beneficial or neutral insects.
So, check out those sites and do some more searching.
Side note: when it comes to pest control, my goal is to do as little as possible. Why?
1: less labor for me.
2: other plot owners spray, so part of the pest population is already eliminated.
3: once I get rid of my pests, they may move in from other plots because I've eliminated the competition.
4: chemicals, even organic, can harm beneficial insects. In his presentation to a group of us at the community garden, a Penn State entomologist recommended using a pesticide geared toward the specific bug that plagues your crops. Thus, you get rid of the bug you don't want and reduce the chances of poisoning desirable inhabitants.
5: I want minimum interruption of what "nature" already does. For example, there's some benefit to allowing pests to eat a little of your crop; it keeps their population going and thus provides food for good bugs that you want to prey on them. This feeds a natural cycle.
I don't have an equation for calculating how much damage to allow. My only guidelines are these:
--if the plants survive and produce enough fruit for my use, I don't think I'll spray.
--the pests must not foster or transmit plant diseases; ex., the bacteria that causes wilt may travel with cucumber beetles.
While enjoying summer's garden bounty, take a mental inventory of visitors to your garden. Maybe you can encourage some to take off the chrysalis and stay a while.
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