If You Build It, They Will Come (Hopefully)

I've been out in my new butterfly garden nearly every day - at the very least, to fill the birdbath (Coolest birdbath ever, btw - got it at a home store and put a solar fountain in it. Moving water attracts butterflies and hummingbirds - and other visitors, as you'll see). Being in the garden is therapeutic, and also a nice breather to turn to as another creative outlet when I'm not writing. Most of the seeds I sowed early in the spring seem to have survived. Some have begun to flourish. Others, not so much, which may be due in part to the insane rainstorms we have been getting. So, I bit the bullet and bought some live plants.


I admit to going a little nuts ... and I am still not done tinkering. :)

The terra-cotta saucer you see in the background is filled with wet sand. Several species of butterflies will engage in a behavior called "puddling," where they will land on wet sand and sip at nutrients in it, especially salts, which they can't get from nectar. Interestingly enough, this is exclusively a male butterfly thing. You can do something similar in your own yard by burying a dish, pan, or bucket to its rim, filling it with sand and enough water to dampen it, then sprinkling a pinch of non-iodized salt over it. Just be sure to keep it moist.

Besides salts, butterflies also like a lot of things that might gross you out: rotten fruit, carrion, and manure. Boy, that sounds just ... well, it's icky, is what it is, but hey, I'm not a butterfly. I opted out of adding those to my garden anyway. LOL

So far, I have seen one cabbage white butterfly flitting across my lawn (though I think he was more interested in the clover than the butterfly garden). The birds are visiting my birdbath daily, in particular some house sparrows who nest in a birdhouse next door. I have more varieties of insect and spider than I know what to do with, including this potter wasp who surprised me while he was having a sip of water from the wet stone at the edge of my birdbath:


I also noticed a spider carring her egg sac across the ground, presumably to bring it somewhere safe. That was pretty cool - I had never seen a spider "move house" before. So far, no butterflies visiting the garden itself, that I have noticed yet, but I have high hopes. I have provided some caterpillar host plants, and lots of nectar plants for the adults. I hope it's a veritable buffet by summer.

Meanwhile, I'll be the one doing the enjoying.

Guest Blogging Today at LASR!

Just a short note today to let you all know that I'm guest blogging today at Long and Short Reviews - stop by and visit!

http://lasrguest.blogspot.com/2011/06/guest-blog-nicki-greenwood.html

Happy Memorial Day!

I'm just writing this evening to wish all of you real-life heroes - our soldiers and veterans - a Happy Memorial Day, and to thank you for your service in the armed forces. I'd also like to remember those who have lost their lives in service to our country, and to extend my respect and gratitude to them and their families. Happy Memorial Day!

Got My ISBN# for WATER!

I have received my ISBN# and my galley for WATER, which means it won't be long before Book Two of the Elemental Series sees publication. When its pub date is announced, I will unveil the book trailer and excerpt. I will also begin putting together some exciting contests and book signings. Keep an eye on the blog for announcements. It's going to be a great summer!

All That ... And Green Too

I am totally and unabashedly posting today because of last night's "Vampire Diaries" Season 2 finale. Which, if you love the Brothers Salvatore (and all things Damon, in particular), should have made you giddy.

But know this, Ian Somerhalder fans: our favorite blue-eyed baddie is not just another pretty face. Ian is using his resources to ... well, preserve our resources. He started the Ian Somerhalder Foundation to help protect our planet. In the words of his website, the Ian Somerhalder Foundation 'aims to empower, educate and collaborate with people and projects to positively impact the planet and its creatures.' Who doesn't love a handsome guy who loves critters?



It's wonderful to see celebrities use their monetary muscle to back a good cause (Leonardo DiCaprio is another noteworthy celeb who's very involved with pro-environment causes). Lots of folks talk the talk, but starting an organization whose focus is to protect the earth is definitely a case of walking the walk. And Ian, for the record, you can saunter past me anytime.

To learn more about what Ian and the ISF do to protect the planet's resources, energy, and living creatures (including you and me), check out the Ian Somerhalder Foundation.

On The Bright Side

It always seems to pour when I want to garden. And, silly me, I find myself doing the gardening anyway.

Last year, it was two days of pouring rain while I did our front foundation landscaping. REALLY pouring. As in, Take Three Showers That Day, Look Like The Loser In A Mud Wrestling Match, pouring. And yet, I have a lovely garden in front, just beginning to wake up to spring. The lamium is already beginning to flower, which makes those early bumblebees happy. One of my "Autumn Joy" sedums did not survive the winter, and will probably be replaced by some spring or fall bloomer. The boxwood is sprouting new growth, and even my astilbe (the blooms of which I have not yet seen because I bought it at the end of the season on clearance last year) have burst from the ground in what seems one day.

This year, I am battling the rain to get my butterfly garden in. I started over the weekend in what was, by divine Providence, the Perfect Weekend to do this. I wasn't finished by the time the sun went down, but I decided to save the rest for today.

Naturally, it rained. But, on the heels of last year's rain battle, I forged ahead anyway and got the last of my plants in, as well as the edging. (Much easier than the edging I used for the front, since this just connects to itself and then stakes into the ground. Not perfect, and not breathtaking, but I hope to have so many flowers in there ya just can't see the darn stuff for long. Hope springing eternal, and all that.) And when I was done, and decided to photograph my efforts, I was rewarded with two very lovely portraits of two of my new charges. The first is the aquilegia, or columbine, you see at the top of this entry.

The second is this beautiful little shot, totally unplanned and somehow perfectly sprinkled with rain. This is dianthus "Neon Star," also called pinks because of the zigzag border of its flower petals. This is a cousin to your familiar carnations, and smells like cloves! Mmmmmm. Reminds me of my mother's Easter baking.

The flowers I am putting in this butterfly garden are purported to be magnets for butterflies and hummingbirds. All of which will, I hope, afford me lots and lots of great new pictures to share with you. Cheers!