There are more ways to add color to the fall garden other than planting a new crop of mums. Each fall, we enjoy the colors provided when the Red-spotted Purple butterflies, Limenitis arthemis, stop by to feed on the sweet nectar secreted by the white-topped pitcher plant, Sarracenia leucophylla. Depending on the angle of the
Sipping from a Dangerous Pitcher Read More »
North Carolina’s official state butterfly, the Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly has been photographed nectaring non-native plants (otherwise known as exotic-plants). It’s not clear if there will be an uprising to renege its status as NC’s state butterfly, replacing it with another species of butterfly which only visits native plants. Gardeners on the other hand can
NC’s State Butterfly Nectaring Exotic Plants; Photos Show! Read More »
One of our most spectacular winter-flowering trees is the Chinese sassafras. Sassafras tzumu (pronounced Zoomo). It can eventually reach 100′ tall in the wild, but we rarely see this exceed 35′ in cultivation. The clusters of bright yellow flowers adorn the plant, starting for us in mid-February, providing a welcome feast for honeybees when the
