A monarch, pipevine swallowtails, and goldfinches

There was a monarch visiting the Heliopsis and Joe-Pye in the pocket meadow in front of the house today. I didn't manage to get back out quickly enough to get a picture, but as I did come out (with iPhone in hand),  a goldfinch was feeding on purple coneflower seeds, and left quickly, with...

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More monarchs

A warm afternoon yesterday saw more monarchs nectaring on the big Buddleia, as they were heading south. These must be some of the last stragglers (I hope). By the weekend, temperatures look to be seasonally cold, and probably the first frost/freeze -- depending on the the lows.The first monarchs are expected in Mexico any day now....

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Still more monarchs

one of many monarchs nectaring on the large BuddleiaThe flow of monarchs continues;  the abundant Buddleia flowers are actively being visited, with the nectar resources shared with Painted Ladies, skippers and other butterflies, and bees of all sor...

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Monarchs, in abundance!

I wish I'd managed a photo today, but our one butterfly bush (Buddleia spp.) was covered in nectaring monarchs all afternoon, along with a few painted ladies and frittilaries.There were at least 25 monarchs visiting, at about 4 pm, when I went out to check with my gardening companion (and assistant, too).  Marvelo...

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Monarch migration

Check out my garden blogger friend Kylee's post about monarchs in her midwestern garden.W...

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Waiting for monarchs

I brought some Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) shoots and (dug-up) plants to share with a friend in the mountains.  She's "fostering" monarch caterpillars through Monarch Watch (I think).  What a great thing to do!I had plenty of milkweed in the Piedmont, but the chilly spring has meant slow emergence in the mountains.  And the numbers of monarchs overwintering was at a really low...

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Fall color

 A beautiful fall day had me admiring the purples in the dogwoods and the exuberance of the (non-cut-back swamp sunflower) in the border that we see from the porch.from the porchNormally, I would have reduced the stem height in June, but didn't this year.  The tall stems are now flopping dramatically,...

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A cloud of Monarchs

Monarch on HelianthusIt's been cloudy and cool the last couple of days, but Friday and Saturday were sunny and mild. There were clouds of Monarchs and other butterflies visiting the Buddleia and exuberant Helianthus (Swamp Sunflower) in the border that I see from my study window. (The Helianthus...

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