I have more caterpillars than blooms, caught my 2nd tomato hornworm today, and another 5 or 6 cut worms of different flavors. Fennel, parsley trying to bolt. Still have pansies in bloom! Gold lantana has blooms beginning. Basils are blooming- all 3 types I grow. I can't figure out what pix I posted already, drat. Getting rain, yippee. Again. Was needed badly, but shortens my trips outdoors with a camera.

Probably the last photo of bluebonnets, but the Indian Blankets are going strong.







Every salvia is being visited by butterflies. Probably my favorite plant family: prolific bloomers and the deer don't eat them!



The Greg's Mist is always popular too.

Thank you for your offer, Esperanza. I will treemail you.

@kittriana, vegetables are hard!! I often wonder what on earth the settlers ate. I've decided on lots of game and eggs. I wonder what they drank too. Lots of old homesteads with no water near.

for your veggies. I've all but given up on them.

Excellent photography @grammachar and so pretty!

That last butterfly looks like it stopped to pose!

I tried a few different Salvias years back but they ate the blooms! Even after a year or two. Greggi and Indigo Spires comes to mind. I might try again sometime. Their tastes change from occasionally. I won't give up, though.

My sunrise greeting, this a.m., as I opened the blinds.


I wonder if she gave birth in our yard. The babies were still stumbling and staggering around.

Those definitely look like newborns!

Ilovetobake- you should research The Amana Colonies of maybe the 1855 in Iowa, I read somewhere that their gardens provided 6# of greens for each man, but if you can avoid the tourism ads, it is extremely interesting as an historic record.

Iluvtobake said:

My sunrise greeting, this a.m., as I opened the blinds.


I wonder if she gave birth in our yard. The babies were still stumbling and staggering around.

Awwww... that is too sweet!

I thought it was sweet, too. I wish I could have gotten a better shot showing their spots. I had to rush and get the phone and stuck it through the blinds. I didn't want to open the door and scare the new mom.

I know people hate them and they have negative aspects. But they were here first and we humans screwed up the balance. They are nature's creatures just like us. I enjoy seeing them even though I'm supposed to hate them. I just don't. It makes me sad to see them hungry in the bad years. I wish our town could come up with something to help them and us.

Happy Birthday little Bambis!

@kittriana - whatcha got there on what I'm guessing is dill or maybe fennel?

fennel surrounded by dill- black swallowtail- why I am having fits with the other bad caterpillars, chuckl

I thought that must be a black swallowtail cat because I know that they like both fennel and dill. Doe they like Rue? Someone does but I forget who.

fennel, dill, parsley and rue. Swallowtails, black, eastern, tiger.

So, I haven't talked about these two yet because I bought and planted them in early March. They have been blooming long enough now(non stop since I bought them) that I think they are out of nursery juice and operating on their own steam.

I'm showing them today so you can see how they look after hours of really hard rain. Still pretty good.

Note, most everything I've talked about is behind the fence away from deer. I don't want anyone thinking they are leaving all that alone.

Of course, now that I see how these are doing, Ace doesn't have any more.







Coreopsis 'Baluptowed' PPAF
Uptick Yellow and Red

5 Easter Lilies bloomed at once yesterday. I meant to take a picture of them but never got around to it. The rain, hail and wind knocked the heck out of them They are non existent today.

😢

I finally got a little better picture of Augusta Duelberg. Does anyone know if I should be cutting it back? And if I should cut it back, how far back (or down)?

My Magnolia grandiflora in stages.

First I saw that I was going to be getting some flowers soon. Or at least some buds. The tree is covered with the beginning of buds, Might be hard to see.



Next I saw a few buds here and there.



And this afternoon I picked a bloom to bring inside. Makes the whole house smell wonderful.