Monarch Firsts (for Me)

Our property has hosted monarchs before.  I recall my first two larvae after putting in butterflyweed (Asclepias tuberosa) probably ten years ago.  After a few years of seeing them, they seemingly disappeared from our yard for about three years (while their populations had really plummeted).  After a bit of a rebound, I have seen them in the yard again.

However, this is the first year that I not only got some photos of them in flight, I also witnessed a female laying an egg--twice (on two separate days).  :)  I found it very satisfying.

In addition, the adults used to seem like rare visitors, but this year, over the past two or three weeks, I seem to see one in our yard each day I go out!  Cupplant has proven itself a great favorite with not only the monarchs, but other butterflies and smaller pollinators. 

The milkweed that I winter sowed (and, later, posted about planting out in the meadow) are pictured here, in pots with the monarch making good use of them.

Comparison

After posting about potting up my seedlings, I decided to do a comparison of those I put in the ground and those I had left overcrowded (and recently potted up from the original container).

I am hoping this is swamp milkweed, but I will be happy if it is common milkweed--I want both (but I don't have swamp milkweed in the yard yet--I really have to do a better job of labeling).

Getting them in the ground sooner, or direct sowing should be my goal--but having robust potted plants to add as needed is great, too.  I am hoping potting them up will give me good results.  I need to prepare more ground for planting

Results of Winter Sowing

This blog is the closest thing I have to a gardening journal.   Way back in February, as I have done for years now, I sowed most of the seeds I had collected.  I never got around to posting.

 In April, they began to germinate.  I never posted.

Most years, I end up planting a few of the plugs out into the yard...then other chores started to take precedence...then the heat of summer sets in--not ideal for planting.  Normally, in the fall, I end up planting the stunted plugs.

This year, I had hoped to get them planted out in the yard when there is plenty of rain predicted.  This week's forecast was supposed to be three days of rain...but then that changed.  Rain is still coming, but not as originally predicted--and my schedule didn't allow for getting things planted in the meadow--BUT, today, I did take the time to do something I have not done in years past.  I potted them up to larger sized pots.  This is what nurseries do.  I am hopeful that, even if I do wait until fall, the plants should be much more robust.

I condensed them...but, I am still hoping to divide each pot into four or five plants when I do put them in the ground.

It's an improvement.

That Time of Year Again

Yesterday, the first of February, I went out to buy potting soil and more plastic containers hoping to plant at least some of the seeds I collected last year.  Unfortunately, other things kept me from doing more than unloading my supplies.  (Looking back on this post, I hope to be reading it while sitting at the desk for two that Jeff and I designed to fit our needs--the project that took precedence over my seed planting.)

Today, I underestimated how long it would take to even prepare everything for the seeds.  After drilling holes in the 12 new containers I'd purchased, I went out to fill them.  The compressed potting soil was much more difficult to dispense than I remembered.  I guess it did take me a long time to get it all loosened up last year too.  Before I'd finished filling the third container, Jeff was already calling me in for dinner!  Oh well, apparently I'm ahead of last year...I went back to check, and see that, in the past, I've not potting things up until mid-to-late February.  I still have time.

I only got three filled, went in for dinner, and never went back out.

Actually, I was really early in sowing seeds this year--back in October, right after planting some of the seedlings I grew from last year's winter-sown seeds, I immediately refilled the containers with (loose) potting mix, wet them, sprinkled seeds over the soil, and covered them with a little more soil and a screen.  But, I really shouldn't brag, because last year was the first year I didn't get all of the seedlings in the ground before it froze.

At least eight containers of seedlings that were not planted yet.

They don't look like much, but I think they will be fine.  

These have been waiting for spring since October.

After weeks of unusually cold temperatures, the polar vortex, and the return of the polar vortex, we finally had a warm up--the low 40s...and it felt great!  It really did get me started thinking about spring...and it even looked a bit like spring too with the melting snow.  Who knew that my Greek valerian, Polemonium reptans, (a native plant despite its name) was evergreen.  I really should pay closer attention to these things.

I guess it is Groundhog Day; I should be thinking spring.  I have no idea what Phil "predicted", but spring is on its way...and each day we get a little closer and will see more signs.

Finally in the Ground

The other day I got some plants together to share with a friend from work (yup, that is you, Stacie).  Aside from sharing some of the dwarf chinkapin oaks that I got earlier this year, I gave her a few asters--mostly from what I grew from seed.  I was surprised that some of the asters bloomed the first year.  Sharing some of the seedlings was the incentive I needed to get my wildflowers into the ground.  I always seem to do that so late in the season!

I chose to plant them in the plot near the road that I smothered
last year with wood chips.

Kind of crowded.

Well established roots--but not pot-bound.

Very crowded, but at least they are in the ground...in the spring,
I may choose to separate them some more.

I did break some off, separating them from the crowd, and filling
in other areas.

After planting the wildflower seedlings, I
decided to transplant some other wildflowers
from a thick patch that has spread in the past
three years or so.

The section that can become a before picture
once it grows in next year, I'll be able to see
where it all started.

Now We're Getting Somewhere!

I called in an order for flowering dogwood and Canadian hemlock...both of which I already have planted on our two acres. In addition to those, I ordered two natives that I've never grown before...and, to my knowledge, have never seen in nature (although, it is possible I've seen them and did not know what they were): dwarf chinkapin oak (Quercus prinoides), and American sweet crabapple (Malus coronaria).

I've been looking for this particular oak--which is supposed to produce acorns even when they are young--as early as 3-5 years old...and they produce them consistently every year. They are supposed to be a wildlife favorite.

I've never been too interested in crabapple trees--I've always pictured the exotic species that are sometimes used in landscaping. After reading about this native species, I thought I'd like to grow them. Aside from the flowers and fruits, they should make good nesting sites for birds.

I found a fairly local source (a couple of hours away)...the prices are very reasonable for bare root seedlings. They are sold in units of 25 seedlings per unit...so, I will have quite a lot to plant come April!

Oh, and happy first day of spring. Today is the Vernal Equinox. It feels more like summer than spring though...with temperatures in the 70s this week.

Second Batch are in Now Too

Look how root-bound they are.

I did get the second batch of first-year seedlings planted on Friday, but I didn't get a chance to post about it until today. Mostly I planted the wildflowers near the boulder again, but I did add a few near the sun porch and some near the front landscaping.

I decided to sprinkle a lot of the seeds from the daisy fleabane (Erigeron sp.) throughout the bare soil between the new plants. Hopefully they will help out compete any weed seeds and bring some additional beauty (and nectar) to the area. I also raked a light layer of mower-mulched leaves and grass clippings on top of them.

One Down, One to Go

I guess I only needed the right combination of time off, a sunny day, and some motivation to finally get the wildflowers I grew from seed into the ground. Who would've ever guessed it would be on Thanksgiving Day. :)

I found it easier to plant most of them near my pride and joy, the huge boulder. I'd been removing soil on the one side to expose more of the rock face, so digging down a bit more gave me a fairly blank canvas...except for some roots I didn't take the time to remove...and who knows how many weed seeds I probably exposed. At least the wildflowers have a head start and I'll have something to weed around if things do compete with them. Mostly, I planted the Penstemon digitalis near the rock; I tried to pull out the *tiny* meadow rue and planted them in a couple more appropriate places, but some of them were entangled with the Penstemon, so I let them go...along with the New England aster which, I'll try to transplant to a more appropriate spot next spring. Maybe this will teach me to plant each species of seed together instead of throwing them all in together--guess I'll have to wait until *next* year when I collect, as I've already mixed them all again this year.

Luckily it is in the high 50s today and it is supposed to be 60 tomorrow. I'm also lucky we are in the area this year and didn't have to cook either. I only wish I had thought to put on a pair of old jeans before I found myself kneeling in the dirt. I never know when the mood will hit and don't always think about what I'm wearing.

I'm not a good example, and I don't recommend to anyone to put off planting their seedlings like I did this year, but I do think as long as the ground is not frozen, the plants do continue to make roots, so hopefully they'll set even a little bit of roots into their new location. If not, they should still be fine. :)

Oh well, I'm thrilled to have half of them planted with plans to do the other half tomorrow. Dinner is at 3:00 today, so I'm going to have to stop now. We have another dinner with friends tomorrow at 3:00, so I'd better get up early and do some more--gotta remember to put on some work clothes next time.

Happy Thanksgiving. :)

tall meadow rue, Thalictrum dioicum, (I think)

Seeds...and Those Seedlings

For the past week or so, I've gone out to walk the yard and have begun to collect seeds. Today, I went out to collect more...but each time I do, I have to remind myself that I've yet to plant those seedlings that I grew from seed this spring. Maybe this post will get me motivated. :)

By letting the natives seed themselves (and helping them along by winter sowing them) I'm bending the competition in their favor. At the same time, I have tried to prevent the invasives from going to seed...and for the most part I keep after them. This year, however, I've let the chicory go to seed among some others. I'm hoping they've yet to disperse their seeds, so that I can prevent an influx of new plants to join the two or three I've spotted so far.

Then there are the goldenrods that don't seem to need any help from me. They are a great late season source of nectar (and beauty), but they are aggressive enough to seed themselves...and they have. By adding New England aster, other asters, native grasses, and other fall-blooming wildflowers among the goldenrod, I should be able to come up with a thing of beauty and substance.

I did, however,, collect seeds of lance leaf goldenrod (Solidago graminifolia) which is not as aggressive as some of the more common goldenrods. Lance leaf goldenrod was never a favorite of mine, but it has really grown on me over the past two years. There are several species of Solidago that have not yet appeared on their own that I'd like to add to the yard...however, I've yet to look for a source. One that I know I'd like to add is the zigzag goldenrod Solidago flexicaulis that seems to do well in the dappled shade of woodlands.

I've begun to get more and more into growing wildflowers from seed. I just have to get back into planting what I've grown! I've been wanting to add a mini-meadow nearer the house so I can see it (and what it attracts) from the window. Deciding on and preparing a site has been the main hold up...and perhaps a bit of laziness on my part.

I was surprised to see that a few of the first year seedlings actually bloomed--I have to wonder if I'd got them planted in the ground if they'd have done even better. Being perennials, I should have a much better show next year.