"Coffee. Garden. Coffee. Does a good morning need anything else?"
~Betsy Cañas Garmon

All is quiet here in the Container Butterfly Garden. Most butterfly action is muted, save for a couple of stubborn Monarch butterflies that refuse to migrate towards the coast. That can be solved rather easily, but what that is, I'll share in the next post.

Ahhhhhh... coffee and a winter garden: two lovers entwined in an inextricable dance of warmth, cold, sight, sound, taste, aroma, and scent. As the quote above begs the question, does a good morning need anything else on these cold, late season early mornings? Me thinks not!

The Cassia bicapsularis, commonly known as Winter Cassia or Christmas Senna, planted to attract and support the various sulfur butterfly species that visit the Container Butterfly Garden, has been going bonkers in growth and blooms. Quite stunning really. I love this plant, as its requirements are few. It gives a lot more than what it receives: kind of like a faithful dog.

I did have to butcher it a bit in September, as it was growing like crazy pushing up against the house and a bedroom window, shooting out longer branches to accommodate the forthcoming rain of beautiful yellow blooms. When butchering... errr... I mean shaping it, I noticed dozens of sulfur chrysalides hanging amongst its branches. I was very careful to not accidentally dump any in the green waste bin.

Upon closer inspection, I saw that virtually every chrysalid turned brown, not the bright green or tannish color healthy pupae of this family sport. Peering even closer, there appeared a small, round hole on one side of every chrysalid that signaled the once-present attack of some sort of predator fly or wasp. They inject an egg into the host caterpillar, where it hatches and grows along with its host. After the cat forms a chrysalis, the fly or wasp larvae eat the developing butterfly inside, eventually killing it. Upon pupating, an adult fly or wasp emerges, boring a hole in the side of the now dead chrysalis, ready to do its own thing.

-Andrew Kliss

Cassia bicapsularis, Winter Cassia

As a gardener for the City of Laguna Beach, I planted several C. bicapsularis in one of the parks I took care of, plus another cassia species, Cassia leptophylla. What a sublime pleasure it was to see Cloudless Sulfurs flitting about the C. bicapsularis. The C. leptophylla didn't get many visitors, but they were so young and somewhat anemic. As they mature, the leptophyllas should begin to attract sulfurs too.

-Google

Cassia leptohylla, Gold Medallion Tree

Both cassia species are topnotch candidates for attracting various sulfur butterfly species. The city of San Diego has lined many of its streets with C. leptophylla, and planted C. leptophylla and C. bicapsularis within its parks. It would be nice to see other municipalities follow suit, he said, as he cleared his throat rather conspicuously. Oh, yes; and on that note:

Bringing Monarch Conservation to Parks Nationwide is an article regarding an initiative to set up parks throughout the nation to help out pollinators such as butterflies. Below is a snippet of that article: 

"Public parks are ideal locations for creation of monarch habitats.  In most cities and suburban communities, park agencies are often the largest owner of public lands, and most of these lands are permanently protected for conservation.  NRPA brings the ability to coordinate the establishment of a network of interconnected parks and other public lands as high quality habitats that are dedicated to monarch and other pollinators.  In addition to habitat restoration, parks provide great opportunities for public education and support for citizen science as well as professional research."

C. biscapsularis is somewhat common in the SoCal nursery trade, C. leptophylla, not so much. If interested in either of these and they aren't readily available at your favorite garden center, most likely, they will be able to order them for you.

 

There are a number of cassia species available at nurseries, coming in the shape of medium-sized shrubs to trees. All are easily identifiable as members of the cassia, or senna family. Some are extremely drought tolerant, whereas others like their water. Shrub species can take lots of pruning and abuse. One must be careful to not clip or prune C. bicapsularis too late in the season, or else you'll be sacrificing the beautiful winter blooms it's known for.

One species of cassia I know of that is considered a noxious weed in SoCal, and therefor shouldn't be planted unless one is willing to take the extra precautionary time to deadhead spent blooms before they set seed, is Cassia didymobotria, commonly known here as Popcorn Senna (cassia and senna are interchangeable names). It's especially important for those living next to or near greenbelt and open areas to not plant C. didymobotria.

-Google

Cassia didymobotria, Popcorn Senna

For more info on cassias, sulfurs, and parasitic insects, please refer to the Labels and Categories list to the right of this post.

"Half the interest of a garden is the constant exercise of the imagination."
~Mrs. C.W. Earle

"Victory for Monarchs in California!" the heading reads.

YAY!

Locally, it would be nice to see the Monarch overwintering site that used to occupy Smithcliffs in Laguna Beach restored, or at least mitigate its loss somewhere else on City parks property that would attract and maintain a viable population of these magnificent butterflies as in years past. It could be done, but that would need the Imprimatur from those that run the town.

Would Crescent Bay Park sustain an overwintering site, or possibly Heisler Park? Haven't a clue, but it would be wonderful if that could be achieved. As Jean-Luc Picard, captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise in the 90's sci-fi TV series, Star Trek: The Next Generation would say: "Make it so."

-Google

 Patrick Stewart as Jean-Luc Picard

-Candace Fallon, The Xerces Society

Head on over to read the complete article at:

 

Victory for Monarchs in California!

"Unemployment is capitalism's way of getting you to plant a garden."
~Orson Scott Card

Art Shapiro on butterflies via Annie's: https://vimeo.com/134664426. For those of you who already have a butterfly garden or are interested in possibly creating one, Art's presentation hosted at Annie's Annuals & Perennials is a must-see.

All of the info in the video will pertain to our SoCal region too, as Annie's is located near Oakland, California. "Close enough for government work." as we used to say at the City.

Monarch Butterfly Rest Areas Coming to Texas Highways is an article highlighting what the Texas Department of Transportation along with The Native Plant Society of Texas has up their sleeves to help with Monarch butterfly migration through their state. What a great idea! Would love to see more of this type of cooperation between government and the populace along our own transportation corridors, instead of using so much non-native species. Another added benefit besides supporting native animal populations? California natives by nature are water misers!

  Monarch Butterfly Rest Areas Coming to Texas Highways

Update: As previously mentioned in the August 15th newsletter, the passion fruits on my passion vine have been ripening: they are drop dead dee-lishous! I cut them in half, scoop out the seeds and pulp, and then eat all, except for the skin. Tastes like guava on steroids.

-Andrew Kliss

Passiflora edulis. Passion Vine, "Purple Possum"

-Andrew Kliss

  

These passion vine leaves are beginning to point towards fall around here, as they start to fade, turn yellow, and then fall.

-Google

The primary reason I chose to plant passion vine, is that it's the host plant for the Gulf Fritillary butterfly. "Purple Possum" was selected for the rich quality of fruit it bears. Nature provides us with many species of passion vines, and with these, we create a myriad of hybrids and varieties. Some (I believe all) produce stunning flowers, while their fruits are "Myeh." or "Blphf!". If choosing one for your own yard, a little googling will go a long way in helping you to choose what variety is good for your wants.

Beware of red-flowered species and hybrids, as they are reported to be toxic to Gulf Frit cats.

"To this day I cannot see a bright daffodil, a proud gladiola, or a smooth eggplant without thinking of Papa. Like his plants and trees, I grew up as a part of his garden."

~Leo Buscaglia

It seems like all of the Monarchs around here have vanished, although there are some smallish-sized Monarch cats on the milkweed plants here at the Container Butterfly Garden. The great Monarch butterfly migration has begun in the Midwest, on their way down to Mexico to overwinter. Midwest population counts have been up this year, which is a good sign. With habitat restoration projects now in place and more planned in the wings, plus more gardeners now planting milkweed in their gardens, counts should continue to climb barring any environmental or man made setbacks.

We'll wrap up nectar plants with some miscellaneous offerings. There are many, many more flowers that butterflies find beguiling than those published in this blog. The list below contains plants that are generally known to attract. I either don't have experience with them, or they don't work well in the Container Butterfly Garden. Bear in mind that some flower preferences are regional: what works in one area may not attract in another.

Plants in the compositae family are usually good bets. These include sunflowers, daisies, asters, plus a host of others. All sport daisy-like flowers consisting of a middle disc tightly composed of tiny florets surrounded by larger rays of petals.

-Google

-Google

These are all members of the daisy family, compositae.

Notable candidates are Tithonia rotundifolia, asters, cosmos, rudbeckias, the coneflowers, zinnias, marigolds... to name a few.

One thing to watch for when mulling over which daisy-type plants you whish to add to your garden, is single vs. compound flowering plants. Singles are the typical sunflower-rayed blossoms with a ring of petals surrounding the inner florets. Compound varieties sport flowers where there are multiple rows of petals, many times hindering or obstructing butterflies from getting to the nectar in the tiny florets.

The single varieties of marigolds are wonderful additions to a garden, as they also contain properties that are said to help ward off insects such as aphids. A few planted around the base of susceptible plants such as the milkweeds may have a beneficial effect.

"The greatest gift of the garden is the restoration of the five senses."

~Hanna Rion

(Silly)

Plumbago auriculata, previously known as P. capensis, is more suited for larger areas, or trellised on a wall or side of a building where it can grow and not suffer the outrage of continual clipping. The most common flower color is a periwinkle blue. Other colors are a darker shade of periwinkle, and white.

I highly recommend incorporating Plumbago into a landscape scheme for its ability to attract a variety of butterflies, especially hairstreaks, swallowtails, and one of the smallest butterflies in the world, and being the smallest butterfly in North America, our own Western Pygmy Blue.

-Google

Plumbago auriculata, Plumbago

  

This plant is very drought tolerant once established, but will adapt to moist conditions too. Plumbago is a big, mounding plant. A great candidate for slopes, it will form a large ball of a blooming plant that is a beacon to any self-respecting, nectar sipping butterfly.

Alta Laguna Park in Laguna Beach, California features several throughout its grounds. I have many fond summer memories as Parks Gardener there of watching hairstreaks, swallowtails, and the diminutive Western Pygmy Blue dance and flit about the tops of the plumbagos, floating from flower to flower. 

Plumbago care

Likes full sun. Will bloom --albeit sparsely-- in shadier areas.

Nothing bothers this plant. Plant it, water it, establish it, and then let it go; it will grow. Average watering the first season. After that, whenever the spirit moves you. Will flower more profusely when kept a bit on the dry side.

Fertilize regularly throughout the growing season until it reaches the size you want. After that, a feeding once or twice per year will keep it looking vibrant and perky.

As for trimming, it's best to leave it to its own devices. Let go and let it grow. Slopes and large areas are perfect for Plumbago. If planted against a wall, fence, or smaller area, refrain from routinely clipping it back. Flowers are formed on the ends of branches. If they are continually cut back during the growing season, all you'll get is a green shrub. If that's the case, then save yourself the hassle and plant a more compact grower that will give you all the green you want in a tidy package.

I cut Plumbago back hard in the late spring in areas it needs to be contained; I mean real hard. It grows back fast and fills with blooms by early summer. I would give them about three hard cuttings per year, depending on how fast they grow. Yeah, no flowers then, but Plumbago recovers fast. Really, the best place for it is where it has room to breathe, or it's not a hassle and is worth the little bit of sweat equity to prune it back on occasion.

To wrap it up, don't overlook its stellar qualities for inclusion into areas that may have plenty of room for it. And if you like to putz around the garden, feel free to grow Plumbago where you wouldn't mind clipping it back hard a few times per year. Try it: you'll like it!

"Take thy plastic spade,
It is thy pencil; take thy seeds, thy plants,
They are thy colours."
~William Mason, The English Garden, 1782

It has been over a month since the last newsletter.  Butterflies have been slow to show around the Container Butterfly Garden besides Monarchs, plus, I've been out of town for two weeks doggie and house sitting for two dear friends of mine. My son, his wife, and my grand daughter have also been living with me off and on for the past month, getting ready for their move out to Pennsylvania where he will be going to school for a teaching degree.

The concept of a container garden is a sound one, but has eventually proven the location this garden is in is not very conducive to attracting and maintaining a variety of butterfly species. Most mobile home parks situated in SoCal are generally devoid of vegetation it seems, whose landscapes are mostly made up of lots of gravel, maybe a few rocks, and inhabited by mostly grufty-looking  shrubs that offer little, if any, forage for nectar sippers. 

Quite a few butterfly species come through here (albeit in small numbers), visit for brief, fleeting moments, only to move on to other pastures. I was unknowingly quite spoiled by the order of magnitude the Alta Laguna Park Butterfly Garden in Laguna Beach, California attracted and sustained. My thoughts when thinking out and creating the container garden were, as in the iconic movie "Field of Dreams" starring Kevin Kostner, "If you build it, he will come." premise, then surely if I offer a varied and bountiful plate of nectar offerings, logic assumes that there will be an abundance of devoted, lingering butterfly guests.

Nope.

Didn't work out that way. Having a bit of time away from the day to day routines of the garden recently, allowed me to reassess it with several points in mind. One large point was the sustained drought we've been experiencing and the need to conserve water. Why water plants that don't have a "point"? Climatic prognosticators are now saying that a strong El Niño is virtually assured for this coming winter, but that won't help much regarding the dearth of visiting butterflies here, which is another point.

As such, I've been in the process of reducing many of the nectar plants that were introduced with a mind of attracting and maintaining a wide gamut of butterfly species. I will keep the tried and true nectar plants such as Verbena bonariensis, Buddleia davidii, Lantana camara, and a few of the nectar plants that don't seem to attract very much locally, but are nice to look at and have great potential to feed nectar hunting visitors, from previous experiences I've had with them at Alta Laguna Park and info gleaned researching plants. I'm also keeping the Passion Fruit vine growing on a trellis out front 'cuz it's loaded with delicious, ripening passion fruits. YUMMY! (photos coming when they ripen)

Instead, the focus will be on Monarch butterflies and milkweed plants. Right now, the container garden is home to five species of milkweed, two of which are native to California and our U.S. western region. There is a consistent Monarch butterfly population here that regularly lay eggs. I have caterpillars in almost all stages of growth, and watching Monarchs lazily flit about the garden is so restful and serene.

Speaking of Monarch butterflies and milkweed, here is a beautiful video about Monarchs, milkweed, and their kinship to the Yosemite Valley:

"What a man needs in gardening is a cast-iron back, with a hinge in it."

~Charles Dudley Warner



Haven't seen many Monarchs lately in the container garden, or other species of butterflies for that matter. One or two Monarch butterflies, one Gulf Fritillary flitting about the passion fruit vine, and just yesterday, a Western Swallowtail came to visit one of the Verbena bonariensis currently blooming. The good news is, the garden is home to various growth stages of Monarch caterpillars. Strolling through the garden yesterday revealed at least three wee small Monarch cats in and amongst several of the milkweed plants, along with a couple of others of different sizes.

As related to one of the blog followers who emailed she hasn't seen many butterflies either in Laguna Beach, hopefully, this is the calm before the storm; but again, if there's nothing to attract them and entice butterflies to stay, they'll pass on to greener pastures, so to speak. This current drought situation is taking its toll on our lawns and gardens, which ultimately takes its toll on the denizens who rely on them for sustenance and survival. Speaking of drought, here is a prime candidate for today's water wise gardens, statice:

Statice, also known as Sea Lavender, is a great perennial nectar flower candidate for mild climate area butterfly gardens. It's easy to grow, drought tolerant, has showy bluish flowers, and offers its butterfly sweetness during the winter and very early spring when nothing much else is available in our sleepy gardens.

-Google

 Limonium perezii. Statice, or Sea Lavender

There are butterflies that overwinter here in Southern California, while others are passing through. You'll see them in the dead of winter searching for precious nectar within the florets of statice. During the active butterfly season, one will see just about every type of local butterfly visit its flowers at one time or another. The crepe paper textured inflorescence makes for long lasting dry flower arrangements for inside the house, or on a patio table outdoors.

 Limonium sinuatum is another garden species that is fairly common in nurseries. Differences between L. sinuatum and L. perezii are that L. sinuatum is an annual, comes in several attractive colors, and requires a bit more water than its cousin in order to look good. L. perezii is perennial, comes in pretty much one color, and is tough as nails drought tolerant. I have no idea at how attractive L. sinuatum is to butterflies, having no experience with it.

-Google

 Limonium sinuatum, Sea Lavender

Care of Statice

If shopping for statice in the nursery, no need to buy one gallon plants; buy the smaller quart, or 4 inch containers instead. Sea Lavender is a fast grower, and planting them the smaller they are, the better they root. I've seen them offered in color paks, six to a pak, too.

Transplanting statice is easily done if you already have some volunteers coming up, or a gardening friend offers you some. The trick is, dig them up for transplanting when they are fairly small, as statice seedlings tend to put down a deep taproot looking for water. The smaller the plant, the shallower the root system, hence easier to dig up, and consequently, better survival rates.

Nothing much bothers this plant, with no known diseases or pests that threaten them. I've seen thrips attack them at times, but incidences are very rare and of short duration. Too much water is the usual culprit, as it makes the leaves very soft and juicy; just what thrips love.

Likes sun, but will do admirably in shade with bright light. You can pretty much forget about statice once established, as it will fend for itself just fine without our intervention, especially along the coast. For those that are very water conscious, a good once per month soaking would suit these plants just fine.

A little bit of fertilizer two or three times per year is all it really requires to look and bloom its best. Statice makes for an excellent container plant, and fits right into xeric landscapes.


If you wish to expand your statice plant population or create a collection of them, let the flowers completely dry and fade, allowing them to fall around their mother plant. One can also easily pull off these seed laden spent blooms, sprinkle them around an area one wishes to introduce them, and then watch as little seedlings eventually pop up.

To encourage germination and to keep the seeds from blowing out of a designated area, first scratch up the soil a little bit, sprinkle the little flowers around, scuff them into the loosened soil, and then water in. A light blanket of mulch on top will help hold everything in place, conserves moisture, and acts as a seed marker too.

With today's dire drought condition here on the West coast, L. perezii is one candidate that should be examined more closely for incorporation into a water wise garden.