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Spring Confetti & Caterpillars: Our 2025 Butterfly Garden Journey
Each Spring brings a new vibe—cleaning and clearing out things, planning vacations, golf, cold beer, and BBQ’s. You know, the usual. But this year??? Spring has taken on a whole new meaning. This new Spring feeling is different—it’s like something I didn’t realize I was missing finally arrived. It started with those first green sprouts…
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A Monarch’s Journey: A Tale of one Destiny
On July 28, 2024 A beautiful female Monarch flew around Our Charming Backyard Butterfly Garden and left us a little surprise—eggs! And guess where? On the very plant my daughter Christa had proudly planted in her patch of the garden. We were both curious to see if these native plants would thrive in our yard,…
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An intricate journey of a blueberry!
Growing blueberries for the first time in Our Charming Backyard Butterfly Garden unveiled the harmony and beauty in nature’s craftsmanship. We were unaware of the complex process behind fruit production. Did you know the plants journey through 21 growth phases? Join us as we share our journey through 19 growth phases, leading to the production…
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Beneficial Creepy Crawlies
When we decided to let the caterpillars stay on their birth plants in the ground, we kept a close watch for any potential predators. To our amazement, we discovered harmonious relationships among most of the creatures living alongside the butterflies and caterpillars. Check out a few new creatures who also live in Our Charming Backyard…
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Our newly found Passion for flowers
This lovely new flower blossomed on our Purple Passion Vine, the very plant that inspired us to take a leap of faith and plant it in the soil of Our Charming Backyard Butterfly Garden last year. As beginner gardeners, we didn’t know if it would survive through winter. I couldn’t help but feel a little…
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“Caterpillars are Chameleons?”
Absolutely! It’s fascinating to watch them constantly change colors. Science tells us they do this to blend into their surroundings and evade predators. Apart from the scientific aspect, a couple of things have piqued my interest. Keep in mind, I’ve left these little fellows in their natural outdoor environment to observe how they adapt to…
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A Cyna Blue Butterfly
Take a look at our stunning new visitor, adorned in vibrant blue and purple hues, as it explores our Fall Aster, just on the verge of blooming any day now. Exciting News: Our first Cyna Blue Butterfly has graced us with its presence! I’m left pondering whether it’s a visitor or a potential resident in…
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A Stunning Metamorphosis
We’ve been keeping a close eye on this tiny caterpillar, watching over it through the amazing rainstorms outside. Despite the storms outside, this resilient caterpillar is thriving through its first and second instars. Check out this cool snapshot! It captures the caterpillar after it sheds its old caterpillar skin and steps into its fresh, new…
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It’s a Grey Hairstreak!
Ever notice how some of us sport a little grey streak in our hair? But get this—ever wonder why these butterflies are called Grey Hairstreaks? Maybe it’s because they’re actually grey and sport antennae on their wings that look just like strands of hair. Pretty neat, right? Today we were excited to see our first…
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Our Charming Leo the Lizard
Guess who I spotted lounging in our fennel blooms today? None other than our old friend, Leo the Lizard! Last year he used to roam all over Our Charming Backyard Butterfly Garden. We’ve enjoyed him so much we named him Leo. Today, he seemed pretty pleased to see me—I could tell by the way he…