tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3859291696897577217.post8182830331093261722..comments2024-01-28T20:40:57.124-06:00Comments on austin agrodolce: What you see in your own garden might not be what you want...TexasDebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11214888876514137890noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3859291696897577217.post-77055765571830295932014-08-09T10:58:01.635-05:002014-08-09T10:58:01.635-05:00Rebecca: Thanks for dropping in! I rarely get que...Rebecca: Thanks for dropping in! I rarely get queens - have seen but one monarch here. I have trouble getting milkweed going though I hope to address that this coming fall. My point of course - we get what we get and ought to learn to work with the advantages our microclimates offer.<br /><br />I love butterflies preferentially but am always happy to have bees buzzing - they seem a lot less picky about which flowers they'll visit. And, bees, you know? In trouble, absolutely necessary to agriculture on any scale large or small and anything I can do to help them out is my obligation and my pleasure.TexasDebhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11214888876514137890noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3859291696897577217.post-79906437736697087832014-08-09T10:42:56.004-05:002014-08-09T10:42:56.004-05:00I know what you mean. I get inspiration from othe...I know what you mean. I get inspiration from other gardeners' blogs, but I also get envious. I constantly never have enough time to do everything I want in the garden - to plant the plants I want, to take care of everything just so and to manicure it to perfection. Oh well, my garden still brings me a lot of joy, as I'm sure yours does. You may not have the swallowtail caterpillars - but you certainly have the butterflies! Butterflies have been scarce in my garden this year. Only a few queen butterflies have been hovering around my garden.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01215678221173950533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3859291696897577217.post-6266177658628090752014-08-06T11:13:51.147-05:002014-08-06T11:13:51.147-05:00Debra: Thank you!
I was leery of leaving the ap...Debra: Thank you! <br /><br />I was leery of leaving the aphids to their own devices but I've done it without meaning to so many times I've gotten a bit careless about them. My fennel is looking pretty shoddy at the moment but is the plant's stress what drew the insects to it or did the insects create the stress? I'm going to plant more fennel in a sunnier spot next year and I'll leave this patch in its shadier place as a control. Science never rests! TexasDebhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11214888876514137890noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3859291696897577217.post-413832361988886322014-08-06T10:55:35.029-05:002014-08-06T10:55:35.029-05:00As Tina says ... great shots. =)
The first time I...As Tina says ... great shots. =) <br />The first time I purposefully left aphids on a plant (with the hope of attracting lady bugs) I was pretty nervous. I worried that they would multiply to the point that they would spread to other plants. But it doesn't seem to happen that way at all. The lady bugs really did find them and ate them up. That fascinates me. And some plants reliably do attract aphids. Milkweed for one. I kind of think those plants must need aphids. I have thought that maybe the sucking causes the plant to produce stronger toxins. I would love to test that theory out someday.Debrahttp://mylandrestorationproject.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3859291696897577217.post-21217747599216028362014-08-06T08:23:04.815-05:002014-08-06T08:23:04.815-05:00Tina: You too could have a CandyLand - grocery sto...Tina: You too could have a CandyLand - grocery store bromeliads thrive in the shade as long as their little water cup middles are attended to. There's one by the front door I dump my overnight water glass into every AM. I think of us as symbiotic...<br /><br />Fennel is becoming one of my favorite plants. None of the humans here want to eat it but everything outside wants to set up shop there. I have plans to put in more! TexasDebhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11214888876514137890noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3859291696897577217.post-72720486083972683952014-08-06T08:10:20.478-05:002014-08-06T08:10:20.478-05:00Look at you and your caterpillars! It's so fu...Look at you and your caterpillars! It's so funny that you start with the envy-of-what-other-gardeners have thing. I was just looking at your last post, last night and drooling over the CandyLand garden you have and thinking, "Oh, that's so pretty." Ha! We all have that, I guess. Back to wildlife. The fennel has been so interesting to me this year, with the caterpillars, aphids, ladybugs, etc. I've left mine just to observe and it's been quite a show. Your photographs are great, as usual--that last shot of the giant swallowtail (/)--just perfect. Thanks for participating and keep an eye on that fennel--it hosts some cool stuff.Tinahttp://www.mygardenersays.comnoreply@blogger.com