March Butterflies!

 

A buckeye butterfly visiting the crucifer flowers.

Black swallowtail visiting the columbines.

And the plum blossoms.

The plum flowers were a big draw, tiger swallowtail & zebra swallowtail.

Tiger swallowtail appears to be laying eggs on black cherry.

The previous day, I'd researched the black cherry, learning that it was a host for them. Pretty timely!

I've just finished reading Doug Tallamy's FAQ book. Highly recommend!

One thought on the above book, Irony?

 Someone asked about wood eating bugs, asking whether they cared about native types vs exotics, and Tallamy's response included this nugget. 

"Mulberry trees have yellow interior wood, and something nasty is making it yellow. I cut down a mulberry tree 23 years ago, and most of it is still lying where it fell, not rotted or eaten!"

He seemed to think that was a negative.

Some of us grow mulberry because of it's rot resistance. 

This is a desirable attribute. I originally planted mulberry for future fence posts. 

Of course, the berries are nice to get as well.

 

The American Holly berries are finally ripe!

4 birds in pic...

The Cedar waxwings have finally decided that these holly berries are ready. The tree is so tall that I can't see the birds until after I take a picture and examine it on the computer!

The holly tree.

Not seeing the other birds yet.

With berry

Mid-flight!

Bird scaping the Garden

Last year, I cut down several cherry laurel trees. I felt like my garden was getting overrun.

Seems like the wrong thing to do now.

So cute!

3 cedar waxwings in the cherry laurel.

4 waxwings and robin

Cardinal

 I'm moving some seedlings to the fence line. I don't know if they'll do well there; other trees I've moved to the perimeter have died. Still seems like a good spot if I can discover plants that will tolerate the conditions.

I have several hollies that I keep eyes on, but the birds haven't yet decided the berries are ready.

 

American Lady

 This American Lady butterfly came out with the warmer temps this last week.

It got me researching the difference between this one and the painted lady.

Seems there's a white dot on an orange bar that the painted lady doesn't have, which doesn't seem real noticeable when they're out in the garden. Otherwise, count the eyespots.

The missouri prairie foundation explains with pictures

There are other differences. 

In 2016, I posted several pictures of the American lady depositing eggs on cudweed

The painted lady uses thistle as a host plant. Unfortunately, I can't seem to keep thistles growing in my sandhill garden. I had a nice patch one time, back in 2013. I can't recall caterpillars on the thistles.

End of January 2026

This winter, I've gone through a lot of firewood. Burned most of the oak that I could split with an axe... Needed a handle in the maul before I could work on the elm.

New ironwood handle

This elm isn't easy to split.

8 homemade handles, 4 osage orange, 3 ironwood, and 1 maple.

I am very glad to be south of that ice storm that so much of the country is dealing with.

The hellebore are in flower.

Early daffodil

Ebony spleenwort

 

Snow Day 1-18-2026

 I woke up to wet steps in the dark, the tv was going on about how snow was coming.

I got busy digging out some poppy seeds, to scatter over bare spots in the garden, & I scattered seeds by flashlight.

And I started seeing snow flurries  before it got light.

Wall 2 wall snow coverage on the tv, Atlanta sent down snow chasers to drive around and talk to people out in the weather. 

The news from atlanta were encouraging people to get out and enjoy the snow, as the roads were fine to drive on.

The Macon crew said that there was no need to go anywhere, that the snow wasn't going to be any different from in our own yard.

Snow is rare here, I take lots of pics, this snow is supposed to be gone by afternoon.

The hazard hedge

House

Open area

Woodland.

Winter wonderland.

Hazard Hedge

 

When we don't pick up the fruit, we get clumps of seedlings under the hardy orange 
(Citrus trifoliata) shrubs.

 One year, I dug a bucket full of these little trees and planted them in a big patch in the vegetable garden, intending to grow them out enough to make a showing when I set them out on the property perimeter.

Unfortunately, these intentions don't always get accomplished in a  timely manner.

 They're taller than I am.
Getting in there with a shovel is a messy job. Waiting for winter means that I get protected from thorns by winter coat, and I wear fireplace gloves to work with these thorny trees.

All the clumps that I set out last winter seemed to do alright, so... dig a clump carry to new location in wheelbarrow to set out. carry water in truck afterward. I water once.

 Last Autumn, I was digging mahonia in town, seems like a hundred of them, they woulda been ideal for this hazard hedge, too bad I tossed them on the brush pile!