Black Swallowtail Caterpillars

I am not sure if I ever mentioned it here, but I very much wanted to try to attract butterflies, particularly swallowtail butterflies because I love the way they look. My research led me to purchase dill, fennel, parsley and zinnias to provide a place for both the caterpillars and the butterflies to feed. This helps to keep the insects around and encourage them to lay their eggs here.

While I never witnessed any swallowtail butterflies, yesterday afternoon two black swallowtail caterpillars appeared on my dill plant and began eating away.

I am not sure how they found their way here, as I don't think they were born on the dill, but I am so glad they came.

They eat the dill so fast; there definitely isn't enough to sustain them, but I am glad they stopped by for a visit.

I hope the little guys can find their way to another tasty spot before a bird gets them!

Our bountiful garden

Yikes! It's been a long time since I've posted. Probably because it rained for most of June, and the first half of July. Therefore, there's hasn't been much to photograph or post about.

That rain helped something grow though. Check out the giant zucchini we grew!
That's more than 12 inches long!

And here it is on the place mat in the kitchen.



J's fig tree was also productive this summer. This is the first fig he was able to harvest. There were three original figs, but two fell off. This one made it to the table!

Bloomin' Flowers

One of my favorite commenters asked for photos of the roses. So here they are. And the peonies, too. Too bad you can't send smell through the inter-web. They smell wonderful.





And we will soon be charging an admission fee to Marshall Street Botanical Gardens. I can't have just anyone taking photos of my urban garden!!

Random Garden Photos

The rubber mulch that I put down next to the side of the house.
I need to get another bag or two, but
I am waiting for the weeds that I sprayed to die.

The hydrangea that Molly gave me for my birthday. It's still alive!!

The rose bush exploding with buds.

The peonies getting ready to open.

Memorial Day weekend is PLANTING weekend

This post is just so I can remember how many flowers I bought, so I know what to do next year.

Annuals that I bought:

• 4 - 8 packs of impatiens in red, pink, fuscia, and white from HD
• 2 - 8 packs of marigolds, 1 orange, 1 yellow from HD
• 2 - 8 packs of lobelia (various colors) from Mahoney's
• 2 - 8 packs of Verbena (red and pink) from Mahoney's

(I really want to put some annuals in some planters that will attract butterflies. This will include dill, fennel, hollyhocks, parsley, asters, and zinnias. We already have a huge butterfly bush in the front, but I also need some "host" plants (where the butterflies can lay their eggs, and provide food for the caterpillars). I think this project will have to wait until at least next weekend. I have put flower buying on hold for the rest of this weekend - even though I am already done with my to-do list for today!!)

For the vegetable garden we bought & planted:

• 4 tomato plants
• 2 eggplant plants
• 1 zucchini
• 1 cucumber
• 6 pepper plants
• broccoli
• lettuce
• sweet basil
• sage
• tarragon
  

We also started the following from seed indoors:

• summer squash
• green beans
• sweet basil

We put down outside:

• carrot seeds
• kale seeds
• beans

And we have "wild" arugula growing.

You can also see the watering apparatus that J fashioned out of PVC piping our first year of gardening. It was built before we made the raised beds, so it doesn't fit quite right, but it works just fine for watering.

Providing More Sunlight

Over Memorial Day weekend J and I put the vegetables into our two "square foot gardens." We have two 4'X4' raised beds that we use to grow quite a large number of vegetables. Anyway, I am getting distracted...

After everything was planted I noticed that the Sun Garden was not getting as much sun as it needed, or as much sun as it had in the past, so I decided we needed to take out some of the huge maple tree that hangs over our yard. I got out my tree lopper and did some lopping. And now we have much more sun in the Sun Garden. You'll see much more of the yellow house in the bottom two photos since I got rid of so many tree limbs.

Patriot Plantation Lily

For many years I have wondered what to do with the shady space below the almond tree. Only a special set of weeds have grown there in the past, and that needed to end. I knew hostas would be a great choice because they love shade, and often are what I see under trees as I check out people's gardens. As luck would have it, Mahoney's Garden Centers were having a sale on hosta, so I bought three Patriot Plantation Lily hosta to put beneath the tree. They are already a good size, and they have a white edge to their leaves, making them a bit more interesting to the eye.


As I was preparing to plant the hosta, I noticed the soil in the front is in terrible shape. It's very dense and full of clay. It doesn't drain well at all. Without ripping everything out and bringing in new soil, there isn't a ton I can do, but I decided that I would try to work the soil under the almond tree a bit before I put in the hosta. So I turned the soil over, and unloaded my composting bin, adding the compost to the soil. I also found a humus and manure mixture in the shed that I added to the soil. That should help a bit, and I will try to remember to add more compost and organic matter, particlarly carbon based items, to the soil each fall.


After J dug my holes, I put in the hosta, and we filled the holes in with soil and watered them. They look like they were meant to be there.


I am really pleased with my addition to the front. Hopefully they will survive the less than ideal soil conditions.