Butterfly Gardens For Your Region
I grew up in the city surrounded by asphalt and concrete sidewalks, brick buildings and vacant lots ? but there was no lack of nature or butterflies in my life. Amid the sprawl of a decaying urban landscape, the overgrown vacant lots choked with ?weeds' attracted so many butterflies that they would perch on my shoulders and hands if I was still enough. These ?accidental' butterfly gardens provided all the ingredients that butterflies require to congregate en masse. These same ingredients can turn your garden into a fairy wonderland of fluttering wings and color.Over the past thirty years, butterfly gardening has become popular, both to attract the beautiful travelers and to help preserve species of butterflies that were dwindling due to human encroachment into their natural habitats. If you're planning a butterfly garden, it's important to keep in mind that there is no one recipe for a successful garden.
Butterfly species that are indigenous to different areas are attracted to different types of plants. In order to foster butterflies, you'll need to know the butterfly species that are found in your area, and provide them with plants that are favored food sources for adult butterflies as well as those plants that they prefer for laying their eggs and nourishing larva.There are, however, some standards that apply to all butterfly gardens. Wherever you live and whatever butterflies you hope to attract, you'll attract more of them if you follow a few simple basics:Plant flowers in clumps and drifts.Butterflies will flock to large expanses of flowers in similar colors that bloom at the same time rather than to single plants with just a few blooms. A carpet of violets, a sea of buttercups or a wide open field full of Queen Anne's Lace is sure to be visited by dozens of butterflies.Butterfly gardens need to provide both sun and shade.Like all insects, butterflies are cold-blooded creatures. They thrive on warm sun, and will bask on flat rocks or perch for long minutes on the branches of a high bush in the sunlight.
At the same time, they need shade and shelter when the sun is too hot, or on cool, cloudy days. An area that gets bright sun for at least 4-6 hours per day is the best spot for a butterfly garden, but don't forget to include landscaping details that offer shade.Butterflies love puddles.Add a sunken birdbath to your garden, or provide a cluster of rocks that traps rain water to give butterflies a cool spot where they can indulge their love of standing water.Regional Butterfly Species and PlantsDifferent species of butterflies frequent different parts of the country. You can find more information about which plants are best for your area at a local nursery, or the agricultural extension unit at a local university. For quick reference, though, here's a short list of butterflies and plants that they love by region.Northeastern N. AmericaFrom W.
Virginia up through Quebec and as far west as Indiana and OhioButterflies: Swallowtails (black, spicebush and tiger), Cabbage White, Pearl Crescent, Monarch, Buckeye, Red-spotted Purple, Great Spangled FritillaryPlants: Milkweed (monarchs), fennel, parsley, carrot and dill (black swallowtails), spicebush (spicebush swallowtails), nasturtium (cabbage white), violets (great spangled fritillary), willow, birch, beech, aspen, wild cherry (many species)Nectar Flowers: Buddleia, Heliotrope, Lantana, Milkweed, Mint, Pentas, Porterweed, Verbena and Zinnias.Southeastern U.S.Butterflies: Swallowtails (black, spicebush, tiger and pipevine), Buckeye, Pearl Crescent, Monarch, Cloudless Sulphur, Gulf Fritillary, Red-spotted purplePlants: Fennel, carrot, spicebush, dill, parsley, pipevine (swallowtails), wild cherry, poplar, sassafras, passiflora, wild senna, asters, milkweedNectar Flowers: same as northeastSouthern FloridaButterflies: Polydamas swallowtail, giant swallowtail, zebra longwing, Julia, gulf fritillary, orange-barred sulphur, cloudless sulphur, monarch, queenPlants: milkweed, wild senna, passiflora, wild lime, citrus, dutchman's pipeMidwestButterflies: Swallowtails, Buckeye, Cloudless Sulphur, Pearl Crescent, Cabbage White, Monarch, ViceroyPlants: Pipevines, fennel, carrot, dill, parsley, violets, nasturtium, wild senna, asters, snapdragon, verbena, cabbage, milkweedNew Mexico, TexasButterflies: Patch, Hackberry, Monarch, Pearl Crescent, Question Mark, Buckeye, Cloudless Sulphur, Gulf FritillaryPlants: sunflowers, passiflora, hackberry, wild senna, milkweed, nettles, astersArizona, California, NevadaButterflies: Western tiger swallowtail, anise swallowtail, two-tailed swallowtail, black swallowtail, pale swallowtail, pipevine swallowtail, cloudless sulphur, west coast lady, Monarch, gulf fritillaryPlants: Fennel, carrots, parsley, dill, wild senna, wild plums, buckthorns, wild cherries, wild lilacs, hollyhocks, ashes, willows, aspens, poplarsWestern States and Manitoba, Saskatchewan, AlbertaButterflies: Western tiger swallowtail, pale swallowtail, cabbage white, striped hairstreak, Wiedemeyer's Admiral, mourning cloak, monarch, great spangled fritillary, painted ladyPlants: wild plums and cherries, aspen, willow, poplar, sunflowers, buckthorns, wild lilacs, nasturtium, blueberries, ashes, violet, chokecherry..
This article courtesy of http://www.flowers-guide.netNew Valentine's Day Gifts Provide Alternatives to Traditional Flowers.
For those people who are looking for something to give their loved one besides flowers, Pixie Dust Gifts has come up with some alternatives. If their valentine has a sweet tooth, the "Hugs and Kisses Valentine Jar" is the gift for them. Filled with over 1.25lbs of Hershey's Hugs and Kisses Brand chocolates, this jar should satisfy those cravings and it also comes with a heart shaped card that reads:"I thought it would be neat, to give a special treat. So here's a Valentine Jar with Hugs and Kisses you can eat!"If their valentine lives in another state or is away serving in the military, then the "Separated Lover's Valentine Jar" is more appropriate. This jar is also filled with over 1.25lbs of Hershey's Hugs and Kisses Brand chocolates and it's heart shaped card reads:"A jar of Hugs and Kisses because we're so far apart, tied up with heartstrings straight from my heart!"Or perhaps their valentine is on a low-carb diet and would prefer something a little less calorie intensive yet still...
New Valentine's Day Gifts Provide Alternatives to Traditional Flowers.
Flowers > New Valentine's Day Gifts Provide Alternatives to Traditional Flowers.
Coin Collecting: Getting Started
(NC)-Okay. So you've been diagnosed with the collecting bug. Don't panic. Here's what you need to do: first, visit the library. Pick up some standard reference catalogues (for example The Charlton Standard Catalogue of Canadian Coins, or Haxby's Coins of Canada) and read them thoroughly, along with every book you can find on collecting.
Contact your local coin dealer or numismatic club, and ask them to recommend good websites and other resources. Become a member. Buy a magazine or two. That way they'll know you're not going to waste their time. You might also want to take a course.
The Canadian Numismatic Association offers one by correspondence at www.canadian-numismatic.org. Once you've done your homework, the next step is to decide what, specifically, you'd like to collect. The best advice here is to follow your interests. Collect what you love, and, again, learn everything you possibly can about your chosen specialty. Most collectors go for issues of a particular country...
Coin Collecting: Getting Started
Flowers > Coin Collecting: Getting Started