My back hill with Green and Gold (Chrysogonum virginianum) gleeming with its yellow blooms wants the sprinkler turned on. They’ll be happier that way. It’s mighty dry here in the Blue Ridge Mountains of central Virginia. I think that will be at the top of my to do list for tomorrow.
A cute little creature that I see climbing on the cinder block foundation of my cabin on occasion. An Eastern Fence Lizard (Sceloporus undulatus). With golden eyes that stare back at me wondering what I am.
Fence Lizards grow to be between four, and seven and a quarter inches long. Usually females are gradations of gray and males are various shades of brown, both with keeled scales. Their native range is from New York to northern Florida west to Ohio and Arkansas.
Predators of Eastern Fence lizards include snakes, birds, cats, and other reptiles. When confronted they will seek a tree, running to the opposite side circling to stay out of sight.
Eastern Fence Lizards dine on invertebrates including beetles, ants, moths, grasshoppers, spiders, and stink bugs. Oh little lizard friends, please eat lots of those Brown Marmorated Stink Bugs!
Is there anything else so beautiful? Yellow Lady’s Slipper (Cypripedium parviflorum). A trek in Shenandoah National Park is pure joy no matter what, but add a sighting of this native orchid and I’m more than elated. But it’s not just in Virginia.
This species of Yellow Lady’s slipper can be found in much of North America from Newfoundland to British Columbia, and Washington, all the way south to Georgia, and Arizona. Even in New Mexico it can occasionally be found in moist conifer forests, at elevations between 5,750 and 11,000 ft. And in the garden? Bad news. A favorite of deer.
The larval host of Zebra Swallowtail (Protographium marcellus) is any of the eight species of the genus PawPaw (Asimina). I’m in the process of replacing three PawPaw trees that I recently lost. An important quest for me.
Exquisite Zebra Swallowtails depend entirely on PawPaw trees for their very existence. No PawPaw trees, no Zebra Swallowtails.
They’re native to eastern United States and southeast Canada, the state butterfly of Tennessee.
As adults these butterflies feed on the nectar of flowers such as blueberry and blackberry blossoms, lilac, milkweed, redbud, verbena, and dogbane. They also get minerals from moist sand and soil. But they need those PawPaw trees to get started. I’ve got them ordered. Soon to be put in the ground here at the cabin, and OH! Those blooms. I love ’em!
A favorite of mine, late May trailside. Golden Alexanders (Zizia aurea). The color might be the catch for me. Or perhaps it’s the tiny flowers arranged in flat-topped umbels.
A short-lived herbaceous perennial that enjoys moist soil, and full sun to part shade. I tried once, long ago to add it to one of my gardens with no luck. I think it’s time to try again.
In late spring nearly every year I’m treated to a remarkable visit. A Luna Moth (Actias luna) magically crosses my path.
Luna Moths are native to Eastern North America, clear to Texas, and including a great part of Southeastern Canada.
The Luna Moth has a wingspan of about four to four and a half inches. That measurement making it one of the largest moths in North America.
The adult stage of the Luna Moth’s life seems to have but one purpose, to reproduce. Both male and female moths have no way of eating, no mouth, no digestive system. Only living for a week to ten days. Such a brief existence as a truly exquisite adult.
I had no idea such a thing existed. A raspberry bush with such pretty flowers. Raspberry blossoms of a bright magenta rather than white. Being up on Skyline Drive at just the right time, during bloom time revealed this unusual plant to me. Purple-flowered Raspberry (Rubus odoratus).
Since it was growing in Shenandoah National Park, I knew it was native to this area. Sure enough it is a native deciduous perennial of Eastern North America. That was a signal to me. Get that plant for at least one of your gardens!
Now I have small bushes, still growing, getting bigger. They could possibly grow to be six feet tall and twelve feet across.
Autumn turns the leaves that resemble maple leaves into a golden hue. And surely you are wondering about the raspberries themselves. That is the downside of this bush. At least for humans. Everywhere I find the raspberries described as “insipid” or “somewhat dry, crumbly and unappetizing” but that is offset by the fact that the bushes are helpful to many birds, both game birds and songbirds. It’s also beneficial to butterflies and bees, and mammals both large and small. A good one to have.
I’ve only ever seen the caterpillar of the Baltimore Checkerspot (Euphydryas phaeton). Never the adult. That one sighting was an hour from my cabin at Buck Hollow in Shenandoah National Park. Since that brief observation I’ve learned that the main larval host plant of the beautiful Baltimore Checkerspot is White Turtlehead (Chelone glabra).
I’ve learned that the Baltimore Checkerspot is the state insect of Maryland. A state that means a great deal to me. So I’ve planted White Turtlehead in one of my gardens. Hoping it might bring me luck. And with that luck a Baltimore Checkerspot to my garden.
One of the Turtlehead’s pollinators is the bumblebee who uses brute force to reach the flower’s precious nectar.
My flowers are white while others of this same species sometimes have a slight hint of pink or lavender.
White Turtlehead is a herbaceous perennial, native to most of the eastern half of the United States. It prefers damp conditions such as stream banks where it grows two or three feet tall. Full sun to partial shade will keep it happy. Blooms arrive mid summer into early fall. And in the meantime I’m patiently waiting and hoping.
Hackberry Emperor (Asterocampa celtis). A butterfly that lives in a broad swath of North America. Most of the eastern United States, central Plains states, and the southwest mountains; northern Mexico.
Its larvae survives exclusively on the many species of Hackberry trees, trees in the genus Celtis.
Hackberry Emperors over winter as larvae curled up in a Hackberry leaf, which falls to the ground in autumn becoming leaf litter. A good reason not to rake up that leaf litter!
As an adult the Hackberry Emperor Butterfly eats fermenting fruit (or corn as in this picture), dung, carrion, and sips tree sap. They also wouldn’t hesitate to sip sweat from your arm to consume the salt.
One of my dear little friends sitting by the pond. Sitting perfectly still hoping that I continue on my way. Hoping that I don’t give away its position at the edge of the water. Silently telling me to go away. Green Frog (Lithobates clamitans). Living in the pond along with many other creatures. I haven’t checked lately to see what the status is, but there had been green frog eggs, wood frog eggs and the eggs of eastern red-spotted newts. I know that some have turned into tadpoles. Even the red-spotted newts will turn into tadpoles continuing as water dwellers before developing to their next life stage as a terrestrial (juvenile) eft, and then back to the pond growing into an aquatic adult. The pond also has a few aquatic adult red-spotted newts. That’s all that I know about right now. Quite a busy place for such a little pond. Insects — look out!
