The question of what to do with late season butterflies can be problematic. Should we bring them inside or let Nature take her course? The question arises frequently in late fall, when temperatures vacillate wildly. San Antonio saw temperatures span … Read More
Natural Wildlife Federation author and naturalist David Mizejewski will appear at the 2019 Monarch Butterfly Festival on Sunday, October 20, to discuss and sign his book, the second edition of Attracting Birds, Butterflies, and other Backyard Wildlife. Don’t let the title … Read More
In June we posed the question: should we push for 500 pollinator habitats by 2020? The overwhelming community response: “Let’s do this!” An informal two-question poll of 96 community members conducted on various social media platforms resulted in 93 YES … Read More
It’s been a little more than a year since we launched our 300for300 Pollinator Habitat Challenge, a community initiative to encourage pollinator friendly landscaping in San Antonio. In March of 2018, we set out to create 300 pollinator gardens for San … Read More
Recent rains and a campaign to get Cowpen Daisies into area gardens as San Antonio’s “unofficial” pollinator plant of the year appear to have spawned an early crop of Bordered Patch butterfly caterpillars in the Alamo City. A mound of Chlosyne lacinia caterpillars … Read More
No longer the niche interest of gardening geeks, pollinator gardens and native plants are gaining traction–especially in areas of the country prone to long hot summers and drought. Growing awareness of climate change, sustainability issues, and insect decline have encouraged … Read More
Like many members of the sunflower family, Cowpen Daisy, Verbesina encelioides, germinates easily from seed. Sometimes called Butter Daisy or Golden Crownbeard, Cowpen Daisy is sometimes included in native seed mixes, but it’s almost impossible to find the seeds for sale on … Read More
Attention citizen gardeners! We need your help in creating demand for an unsung hero of the pollinator garden, Cowpen Daisy, Verbesina encelioides. To get this plant some well-deserved attention, we’re naming it “San Antonio’s unofficial pollinator plant of the year” … Read More
Congratulations, San Antonio! We rallied in December to hit and surpass our goal of 300 new pollinator habitats for San Antonio’s 300th birthday, finishing the year with 325 gardens pledged. The year-long initiative, launched here at the Texas Butterfly Ranch … Read More
Late November means “slow season” at Flutterby Gardens, a commercial butterfly farm in Bradenton, Florida. But that doesn’t mean Connie Hodsdon can sleep in. Hodsdon has monarch eggs to roll. The pentas, one of her favorite nectar plants, need to … Read More