New England Asters are some of my favorite flowers. I know when the asters bloom in my garden that fall is truly here and the calendar year is coming to the end. New York asters are similar flowers. I am not sure what the difference is between the two species. They both are great for […]
pollinators
Pollinator Syndromes: How to Predict Which Flowers Insects Will Like
Pollinators are those animals that give the invaluable service of helping plants reproduce and create seed or fruit that humans and others eat. There are many pollinators including bats, bees, beetles, birds and butterflies. The flower type, shape, color, odor, nectar, and structure vary and attract different pollinators according to the pollinators likes and needs. […]
Red Admiral Butterfly and Flowers That Attract Them.
A Red Admiral butterfly was sipping nectar from the Purple Coneflower (Echinacea Purpurea) in my garden the other day. When I see a Red Admiral, I always catch my breath. It is something about the curved band of red on the dark black wings that delight me. These aren’t big butterflies but their colors are very […]
New England Asters are a Buffet for Pollinators
From my nature journal – October 14, 2015 The New England Asters in my garden have finished blooming. The deep pink flowers began opening in late September and had a crowd of bees, flies, and beetles around the blossoms until last week. New England Asters (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae) are native from Massachusetts and Vermont to North […]
Gossamer Butterfly Family (Lycaenidae)
Gossamer Wing family butterfly is called the “gossamers” because some of the butterflies have wings, which are so sheer and delicate the wings look like the soft, filmy, sheer fabric called gossamer. They are also called “the little butterflies” because many butterflies in the family are small with wing spans of ⅞” to 2’’ (22 […]