By comparison, the excitement here in Portland was the first two butterflies of the year--cabbage whites.

Each one was in a separate yard, doubling the excitement.

Due to poor weather, there have been no angle-wing sightings yet.

Wow, Misssherry, that is one stunning RA. And I envy the number of butterflies you are dealing with already. It is wonderful. I have released several Anise Swallowtails so far and have seen some laying eggs on my fennel. I have also spotted the first GF of the season which is a first for this area. Last year I had a great number but it was later in the season and not the usual thing here.

While I was planting some new things yesterday a large yellow butterfly flew by me but too fast to see what it was. The West Coast Ladies have been around from time to time but that is about it so far.

By the way, I don't know if you saw my post last week about the Sonset Lantanas I ordered from Garden Harvest Supply. They came in great shape and I have planted them already. I also ordered more and got a Miss Molly buddleia as well. It came looking very healthy too and I planted it out front. So thanks for the tip. Murray

What plants do you use for the American Ladies, Sherry? I don't get many of these in my yard and I see very few around in the neighborhood.

It's been dry here, so I'm not seeing as many butterflies as I did a few weeks ago. Still, lots of monarchs and gulf fritillaries and I will see at least one or two Giant Swallowtails if I am out in the yard long enough.

I need to get a few more cassias. I see some Sulphurs almost every day, but not as many as I would like.

Larry, hehehehe! You're still king of the cabbage whites! :O

I'm glad your plants arrived in good shape, Murray - I'll have to remember the Garden Harvest site! Red admirals are among my favorite butterflies. I just love their coloring! Sonset lantana is the easiest to grow nectar plant I've got. It blooms from April to the first cold weather, which is usually in ?November - quite a long blooming period! On that thread where I bragged about Sonset, I mentioned that I've never fertilized mine, at least not directly - it may soak up fertilizer and water from other plants, since its roots are so big. But I felt sorry for it and threw a few handfuls of chicken manure around it and even watered it in! It's already big, and summer's not here yet. The pictures I've seen of Miss Molly are to die for, but I've run out of room in my garden, and butterfly bush won't survive the wet winters here planted directly in the ground - my garden has raised beds.

Tom, maybe American ladies just aren't common in Florida, at least in the peninsular part. They use Gnaphalium pensylvanicum/cudweed here, which has come up everywhere -
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I ordered another Christmas cassia and a buttered popcorn cassia, which I'm growing in containers now. I'm not sure where I'm going to plant them. I may leave the buttered popcorn cassia in the container all year, so I can bring in inside in winter - I know it can't take even a light freeze. I just had to try it, though, if for no other reason, to smell the leaves - they REALLY DO smell like theater buttered popcorn!

The dill that I planted in very shady spots is growing back, but then summer's not here yet, so the jury's still out. The black swallowtails sure do love it!

Sherry

Sounds like a great butterfly day Sherry! Wow. I would love to spend a day at your house just seeing all that there is to see there! :o)

Yes, this is a fun place for a nature lover to be, Angie!

Two more black swallowtails have emerged this morning, both females - I hope they find all those males! Also, one red admiral so far, and the lone cloudless sulphur - a male - have emerged.

Fun!

Sherry

Hello Neighboor!
Nice pic of a beautiful bf, I rarely see them, some years not at all. But then I have yet to plant specifically for them so that's what I deserve, I suppose.

I have been anxious to inquire about the status of your liatris.
Please tell me you have little starts all over the place!

Hi right back, neighbor!
I'm sorry to say I haven't found any little starts of liatris, but the season is still young, and I'm not sure I'd recognize them when they first come up anyway. I strewed about half of them in late fall, them strewed the rest in early spring, since I didn't know which would be the best time. I've had seedlings appear for some plants two years later, so there's still hope.
Here's one of the female black swallowtails - she was lingering at the cage door before she took off -
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Sherry

Sherry,

Found Pipevine caterpillars today! Yahoo!!

Sandy

Oh what a beautiful thing.....

I'm confident you'll get many plants from those seeds...
they just need a little time, as you already know.

I sure hope to see that liatris, Ron!

Sandy, I'm jealous! :)

Pipevine swallowtails are my favorite butterfly/caterpillar, and my vines are egg and catless. :(

Seriously, congratulations!

Sherry

Curious,

What kind of Liatris are we talking about?

It's L. pycnostachya, Sandy, the big one. It grows here and there naturally around here, just not on my property. The butterflies love it, so I'd love to have it!

Sherry

The Black Swallowtail photo is really great!

Bob

Nice! I see an RA once in a blue moon but that is it. Our cudweed is all pretty much dead from the heat and lack of rain, but never really see the ladies here either. On the bright side, we released #136 of the year yesterday. No eclosures (yet) for Easter however, which I had hoped for.

Congrats on the 136 butterflies so far! I guess you raise cats year round, or nearly so?
The cudweed here will start dying back next month and be completely gone by June - it's one of the first things to pop up in spring.
Sherry

Miss Sherry,

what kind of butterflies like pycnostachya? I'm wondering if it might be worth trying a few from the plant sale. I am in Minnesota though and we don't get as many butterfly species up here in frozen 4b.

My #1 butterfly plant is liatris ligulistylis. We had monarchs basically "living" in our yard because they couldn't get enough of it.(it is not commonly sold in garden centers)

I am excited because this year there seem to be FOUR little starts of liatris where each ONE plant was last year. Our liatris grew over six feet last year. I have seen it once in Minneapolis where it was about 7-8 feet tall. There were about two dozen monarchs swarming around it. The most amazing butterfly spectacle I have ever seen!

The monarchs won't be back here until mid may. Until then, I live vicariously through all of you :)

Tony

Tony, L. pycnostachya doesn't ordinarily get 6' tall here, only about ?4' or 5' or so. I don't think I've ever seen a liatris 7' or 8' - that's really huge!
If I were you, I'd stick to the L. ligulistylis - I may look into getting some myself.

Sherry

I wonder how this plant would do in Central Florida, zone 9B? It looks like it's a northern plant.

I just looked it up, Tom, and it's native to the north-central part of the country into Canada. It probably wouldn't do well here, and it would probably be even more ill-suited for 9B in Florida. It possibly could thrive here, though, so I'm still thinking about ordering one.
The lone sleepy orange and one more red admiral emerged yesterday - 'sure love releasing butterflies!
Sherry

Here is more info on ligulistylis. This says zones 3-6 but I have read other sites that say up to zone 8. It is supposed to be drought tolerant.

http://www.prairienursery.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_plant_info&cPath=64_2&products_id=225

again, I have seen it get much bigger than 5 feet. I am 6 feet and the plants were taller than me last season.

This is a plant where you want AT LEAST 10 together for maximum effect (we planted 25). They flower from the top so instead of staking them last year we chopped the tops if they got too droopy. If they threaten to grow larger this season I will definitely stake them. If you love monarchs, this plant should be your TOP priority. FYI- they do not flower the first year if you get small plants but it is totally worth the wait!

and the finches also LOVE the seeds after it's done flowering.

Last year I planted 4 or 5 L. ligulistylis and 4 or 5 L. pycnotachya. So far the L. pyc. is coming up and are about 5" tall now. But I don't see any sign of the ligulistylis. My tallest last year which was their first season was just short of 6 feet. The other two that bloomed last year were about 4 feet. None of the others bloomed so maybe they will this year. I didn't see any action on the blooms but with all the other choices I was not at all surprised. But I am definitely hoping the L. lig. will come back. It was very frustrating because I was watching every morning from my bedroom as soon as I got up to see the first of the tall guys put out their first bloom and just when I thought any day now, I woke up and looked out only to see that someone had come by and picked it off. I was soooo mad at first but I have a fair amount of that living on a busy street so I soon got over it. But the other two bloomed soon after and I got to see what they look like. It was also my first year for trying Vernonia which I planted next to the Liatris. Someone decided they liked that one too. If they do well this year, I think I will try more next year. Murray

I am pulling out a lot of Cosmos sulphureus plants that are popping up everywhere. I thought I cut the flowers back last year so I wouldn't have any, but.....

You mentioned Liatris getting up to 7' tall, and I thought of my Cosmos last year that got 7' tall, too. I have never heard of that happening, but it sure did. They were HUGE! They shaded out a lot of my other plants, though, so they are coming out this year.

I know Sandy is growing L. ligulistylis. I just have a bed of the regular L. spicata, which gets big enough for me. The Monarchs don't particularly like it, but the other butterflies do.

I plan to go to Horn's today just down the block from me to see if they have the Sonset Lantana I purchased last year from them. They have the most beautiful blooms on them, and the butterflies loved it. Some say it is pretty hardy, so think I'll try in the ground this year just to see.

I built a new bed beneath the Austrian pine, which was limbed up and now plants get almost full sun under there. That's where I am planting my Tropical Milkweed, Giant Milkweed, Salvia, Osteospermum, Borage, and probably the Dicliptera suberecta and possibly Salvia darcyi.

Then I cleared out another area in the very front for nothing but red Zinnias. Can't wait to see those.

My Fiesta del sol and Yellow Torch Tithonias just broke ground. They came up very quickly. They are out front, too.

I have not seen the Black Swallowtails yet, and my Fennel is just gorgeous and full and frothy looking, waiting to feed them. Come on BSTs.

The Dwarf Red Porterweed arrived blooming, as it did last year. And the Wooly Pyramid Bush is also blooming a beautiful pinkish purple. Supposed to be a real butterfly attracting plant, so will keep you posted. I have never seen it offered for sale, so grabbed it to see if it does everything it is touted to do. I tried to get a photo from Bustani, but it is no longer listed, so I guess they sold out of it. I sure hope I get seeds from it.

Sherry, love your photos, and I think the RAs are precious little cats. Don't you grow S. darcyi?

Susan

Here is a link that might be useful: Melochia tomentosa

The Melochia looks wonderful, Susan! I've tried S. darcyi, but it never thrived and never came back. I planted a S. darcyi hybrid last year that I ordered from Plant Delights - I paid a big price for it, but it didn't come back either. This is one reason I decided not to order Buddleia 'Orange Septre' from Plant Delights - just because a plant costs a lot and the owner of the nursery says they've "trialed" it doesn't mean it'll do here.
One of last year's new salvias that has done real well for me is S. 'Hot Lips' - it continues to grow taller and thicker, and it's in continual bloom. I love the variations in the blooms - some pure red, some pure white, but most an interesting combination. I've got S. 'San Carlos Festival' (that I ordered from Plant Delights) that only blooms once a year, also, a S. microphylla that also only blooms once, and thinly at that. I'd highly recommend 'Hot Lips' - in addition to its beauty and vigor, the butterflies (sulphurs mostly) and hummers use it.
Another vigorous salvia has been S. farinacea 'Henry Duelberg' - it's grown quickly to about ?3' tall, it's making beautiful blue flowers, but I haven't seen any butterflies or hummers using it. My S. coccineas didn't return, but they reseeded all over the place, so I transplanted the seedlings to spots where a small, red shrub is in order - they bloom continually, once they start, and the butterflies all flock to it. I also had two S. ?coccineas? that have coral pink buds which open to pale pink blooms, really beautiful! One died, but, surprisingly, one has returned and is now blooming. Makes me wonder if it's S. coccinea or something else, even though the leaves sure look like it.
My Salvia guaraniticas are about to bloom - it is over all the best salvia in my garden - hummers and many types of butterflies LOVE it, and it's vigorous, the electric blue color is to die for and, with a dab of fertilizer and water, it'll thrive, come back each spring, and colonize. You can plant the sprouts in places where you want more S. guaranitica.
The plant that's most interesting, though, is a Rudbeckia maxima/giant coneflower that I ordered from Bustani's last year. It floundered around, got browsed by rabbits (I think I've successfully sealed the gate where I think they were getting in, because nothing has been browsed in the garden this year, knock on wood!) and never grew much or bloomed. This year it's growing so fast you can practically see it, and the leaves are huge and healthy looking - I imagine it'll bloom, and I'll get to see those huge coneflowers!
I've thought about ordering Liatris ligulistylis, but I think I'll pass. I have so many nectar plants already, and I sure don't need any more plants to take care of!
I also planted two willows/Salix nigra, one in my garden and one close to the house and the well house. I'm keeping them wet at all times, they're not getting browsed by any critters, and the one by the pump house has red-spotted purple cats on it. Red-spotted purple cats are everywhere this year, most of them on wild black cherry. I planted the willows hoping that I may get viceroys some day. I got them in years past (before the hurricane) but I saw one last year in the fall and the year before, so there's hope for eggs and cats.
Well, I think I better stop typing - my hands are sore! :)
Sherry

Alright, this is not the best picture (you may need sunglasses for the background) but it shows the "effect" liatris ligulistylis has on monarchs...there are 7 in this pic. I am going to make an effort to take some better liatris/monarch pictures over the summer

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I did not have luck growing it from seed but tried again with plants and all of them have come back from our past two winters...very hearty once it's established :)

Love that Liatris! Very pretty plant. I love most everything that has butterflies hanging everywhere on it, lol!

Miss Sherry, I planted Salvia 'Hot Lips' last year. It and 'Cherry Queen' both began putting on foliage early this spring. I was totally surprised that it made it thru the atrocious winter we had. I think they must be hardier than zone 7. Anyway, 'Hot Lips' has been blooming for a couple of weeks, some solid red, and some bicolor.

I have S. guaranitica 'Black and Blue' as well, and 'Coral Nymph' that reseeds yearly. I am hoping the 'Lady in Red' will as well, and I think I have seedlings coming up close to where I planted it last year.

The seed I sowed last year of S. subrotunda totally failed last year. I am sure it had something to do with our weird spring - low, low temps, and then very high temps for about 3 months.

My problems with Salvia is that I have problems with the Southern Pink Moth that consumes the blooms before they are able to open. I may have to be really mean this year and apply some BT Kurstaki to them, covering the plants around them. This is the only moth that attacks Salvias that I am aware of. Took me a while to figure it out. There's just too many of the little caterpillars to hand pick them all. And they particularly love the Black and Blue.

S. darcyi may just have to be grown as an annual, altho Steve swears it is perennial, and he is North of me by a considerable distance. I just know that most Salvias DEMAND sharp drainage, especially in winter. They don't like wet feet, and really don't like cold, wet feet. I will be planting it under the pine tree, between the sidewalk and driveway, which has a downward slope. The soil there is also very friable. The Lady in Red I grew there last year loved it and bloomed their heads off. I think there are a few Salvias that grow in bog situations, like S. ulginosa. I am still going to try to find Salvia penstemonoides (flowers like a Penstemon with long wands), Salvia regla, Mountain Sage (reseeds), and Salvia roemeriana, Cedar Sage.

I am still on the lookout for Stahys coccinea, Texas Betony, supposed to a good hummer/butterfly plant.

I might add that dogwooderitternet has several Salvias, most at reasonable prices. That's who I got my 'Hot Lips' from.

Susan

Here is a link that might be useful: Dogwooderitternet

Lovely pics, coolbutterfly, your garden looks great!!

This is the blog of one of the best known naturalists in Ohio. He was just at probably the best butterfly area in Ohio. He got some good pics. I wish I'd been with him. He was scoping out good butterfly areas for this weekend's butterfly quest. I cannot go because I'm too busy this weekend :(

Here is a link that might be useful: Butterflies and native plants