The Late Winter Garden

Last time I checked the calendar, it's definitely late winter even though it feels like the end of spring going on summer. We really didn't have much of a winter this year at all, and that means less spring clean up in the garden. That's a good thing!

There's lots of Milkweed in the garden and it's all abloom. It has reseeded itself everywhere, and for the most part I leave it where it comes up.  Sometimes, I'll move it to create fuller bushes inside the borders of the flowerbeds. Even the Monarchs are visiting and laying eggs. That puts a smile on my face for sure! 

I've seen this solitary Robin at the fountain a couple of times in the past week. 

The large flocks were through in early January foraging the Camphor berries. He seems to be staying a bit longer to enjoy the sunshine and warmth. 

I've been enjoying a steady supply of tomatoes and kale all winter thanks to temperatures staying above the freezing mark.

The two bushes are so large that they are falling forward, so I've had to tie the plant to the post with, yes, that's an old pair of panty hose - lol! Works like a charm every time! 

New tomato plants went into the ground and planting tower today. Hopefully, it won't get too hot too fast, so that I can keep the tomatoes going for a few months. Very thankful for a mild winter!

The Best Things about Summer - June

Even though a Florida summer is long and never short on heat and humidity, there are lots of good things about our summer and here are a few of them ~ ~

Eastern Black Swallowtail on heirloom red pentas

Monarch on heirloom red pentas 

You can't beat the old fashioned red pentas as a nectar source in the garden. Plus, it seems to LOVE the heat!!

Zebra Longwings on Passion vine.

I believe this is Horace's Duskywing on the native Tropical Salvia. This is an exciting discovery because I don't think I've ever seen this butterfly in my yard before. Love new discoveries like this!

 The  little mosquito-eating machines are back in full force these days. Dragonflies are one of the best insects in a Florida garden, especially if you have bromeliads in the garden.  

Sometimes when I catch a dragonfly in a certain position such as this one, it looks like a little fairy. Perhaps that is how stories of fairies in the garden originated.  

I do not know the names of these dashing fellows, but I love the color variations and their paper thin wings. I can't imagine that the wind doesn't obliterate those fragile-looking, cellophane wings.

Now that I've photographed a few dragonflies and noticed how beautiful they are, I'm really smitten with them. I always thought a dragonfly was a dragonfly, but these little guys are just stunning! I had no idea that I had so many different species of dragonflies in the garden. How awesome is that! This one looks like another fairy, although I have to say they also look like stained-glass helicopters hovering in the air.

A young Red Cardinal hanging out in the trees. His parents must have shown him where the feeder is because I catch him there many times during the day. 

Plenty of pollinators taking advantage of all the wonderful summer blooms - like this purple pentas (my second favorite pentas) - in my garden.

Bees are lovin' the Agastache

Here's a close up of the chubby little bugger!

This little guy is loaded down with pollen on his feet and underbelly

And, I am thankful for Swallowtail butterflies in the making as they devour my parsley.

Now, this little guy - - definitely not thankful for him!!! He is probably one of the worst things about summer, with the exception of a devastating hurricane or having your house struck by lightning! He creates his own kind of devastation.

Don Juan roses still in bloom are a definite plus, especially when they're mingled with palm fronds.

The 'Kwanso' daylily is one from my late aunt and a real beauty on its super tall and super beefy stalks.

Love, love an abundance of blooms in the June garden.

And, last but not least, is the return of the crape myrtle. This one is 'Dynamite' and I would agree that that is the perfect name for it. What would a Florida summer be like without crape myrtles? I, for one, can't even imagine!

Purple Passion

My latest passion in the garden is the purple passion flower vine also known as Maypop! 

Everyday it's loaded with the promise of many new flowers to come.

The large buds open quickly each morning to reveal a quirky, other-worldly, exotic and downright funky looking purple flower. I read that the bloom contains a lot of religious symbolism. 

I weave some of the vine through the fence, while some of it dangles loosely.

It attaches itself with these curly tendrils to the Beautyberry that's planted beneath it.

  I've never seen any flower like it. Each flower is an intricate piece of art. Look at all the detail in that flower. If I were an artist, I wouldn't know where to start to capture all the amazing detail of this passion flower.

Each flower lasts only one day, and then slowly a small round fruit develops. I read that they will ripen later this summer, and I look forward to tasting it and perhaps making some tea with it.

I resisted planting this vine in my yard because I know it can have a somewhat invasive habit, but I relented because of one reason - Butterflies. The Gulf Fritillary and Zebra Longwing (our state butterfly) is also passionate about the passion vine. It is a host plant for their young. I caught a blurry photo of a Zebra Longwing in the lower left corner, as she and her friends flutter around this vine from sun up to sun down.  

They lay their tiny little yellow eggs on top of the leaves,

 and when they hatch they chew on the leaves until they get big and transform into more Zebra Longwings.

 I was lucky to catch these two newly emerged butterflies drying in the sun one morning. 

I don't know why it took me so long to plant this vine, but I'm sure glad I did because I love seeing the gorgeous flowers and the fluttering butterflies through the French door. It's a real summer treat!

I find this flower so mesmerizing! I can't help but admire its bizarre, yet amazing bloom. 

The rock star Prince might have his 'purple rain' but I have my 'purple passion!'

A Feathered Nest

Shortly after I started working on my new garden, I hung a plastic gourd birdhouse from the arbor. I was hoping that a mama bird might use it to feather her nest someday. Nothing happened the first year, even though the Carolina Wren checked it out and placed a few sticks inside of it.

 But recently when I was working in the garden, I noticed the Carolina Wren flying back and forth to the gourd. I got all excited about it and headed inside to get my camera.

Standing far away from the nest, I zoomed in as far as I could and was able to see a couple of babies in the nest.  Isn't that the cutest little face ever? After mama flew away, I walked past the gourd and could hear the chirps of hungry little baby birds.

As I sat at the back of the garden and watched mama fly back and forth with tasty treats, I noticed that she was plucking Zebra Longwing caterpillars off the passion vine growing just a short distance from the gourd. 

That wasn't exactly what I had planned when I planted the vine but, oh well, there will be more Zebra Longwings in the future. And, perhaps, that is why she chose to feather her nest in the gourd. In the meantime, I'll just enjoy the striking purple flowers, and the adorable little wrens as they learn how to fly.

As my garden becomes more established, I'm happy - actually, I'M THRILLED - to see more and more wildlife making it their home.

Odd Couples in the Garden

As I sat on the back porch one morning, a familiar loud bird call caught my attention. I searched the trees in anticipation of a chance to see a magnificent prehistoric looking bird. Aww, there he was! Clinging to the side of an old dead tree snag in the vacant lot next to me. I never tire of seeing a Pileated Woodpecker.

He was busy chopping away at the tree bark with that large beak of his. Big chips of wood were flying through the air left and right as he worked to find a few tasty bugs.

 I saw another bird swoop in and was surprised to see that it was a Red-bellied woodpecker and not his mate. How cool it is to capture this odd couple in a photo together. 

The next 'odd couple' I discovered in the garden is REALLY odd! I moved my blue bottles (my version of a Southern blue bottle tree) to a new location right outside the breakfast nook window. 

Soon after relocating them, I would look out the window and see this dark brown lizard sitting on top of the bottle. The bottles catch my eye when I walk between the nook and kitchen, and sure enough, every time I walk by, this little guy is sunning himself. After a while it got to be hilarious! He even refused to leave when I went outside and took a photo of him. I guess he's taken a fancy to this pretty blue bottle and has claimed it as his own.

Wildlife in the garden can be very entertaining except for the two black Racer snakes that I saw chasing each other. I hope they're not planning on making a nest in my garden!!! 

Two Beauties!

My daughter took this stunning photo, and it's so beautiful that I just had to post it. 

This beautiful red Cardinal is sitting on a branch of our neighbor's beautiful Chickasaw Plum in full bloom last month. We are so lucky to be able to see this large tree from our patio. For the last two springs, I have thoroughly enjoyed watching the blooms, one by one, cover the entire tree creating one gorgeous blooming piece of art!

So glad she happened to look up at the right time and had her camera in hand!

This Week in the Garden

This morning I saw a wonderful thing! Daddy Cardinal brought one of his young uns' to my garden to show him where the food is. After feeding him a safflower seed, the little one followed him to the feeder where they ate breakfast. Dad then flew to the fountain to show him where to get a drink of water. That's the first time I've ever seen that, and I was so in awe of it all that by the time I got my camera they were gone. You can bet that I'll have my camera ready tomorrow!!!!

A new bloom in my garden. This little red hummingbird plant (can't remember the  name) is a shade specimen. It grows to about 3' tall with a loose habit. It very much reminds me of the Firespike plant. What do you think of my purple and red combo? I love using bold colors together that you wouldn't expect. Another favorite color combo is burgundy and apricot.

Finally, caterpillars are taking advantage of two large parsley plants in the garden.

 While I do love having fresh parsley available, I really planted them for the caterpillars to devour.

This red epidendrum orchid is really showing off in the garden these days. They are so easy to grow and once they start blooming, it's non-stop for at least 9 months. They delight in our full summer sun and humidity. 

Here's a close-up view of one of the red balls of fire!

The weatherman promises rain this week. We shall see! Hoping that a healthy dose of it falls on your garden this week!