Jacob's Ladder flowers

Once nominated for inclusion to the federal endangered species list*, Western Jacob's Ladder can be found growing in wetlands and damp forests beside orchids and tamarack. They're particularly easy to identify given their fern-like leaves, and slender stalks crowned with blue-to-purple blooms, and prominent stamens. Despite the fact that they're a native to this state, little is known of them, including why they are relatively rare given the amount of viable acreage. Couldn't find any real data on any interactions with wildlife, though I have seen bees tending them.

I found Jacob's Ladder particularly easy to grow though it really did not produce any blooms until the second year. They like regular water, but will not do well in standing water, and I've found that bordering it with taller plants (I've got Wild Bergamot and Showy Goldenrod) encourage its growth.

Tree Frogs are now at full chorus, with highs in the 70's and overnight temps in the mid-50's.

A bit of a divergence from native gardening to organic vegetable gardening, but with the rising cost of groceries and living in general, I've decided to throw some vegetables (largely perrenials) into what was formerly a patch of creeping charlie and see what I can do. The pair of tomato plants in my garden got some new neighbors;

• 2XDill
• 1XHorehound
• 3 varieties of pepper (6Xeach)
• Carribean Red
• Tabasco
• Thai
• 1XRasberry
• 4XStrawberry
• 2XWatermelon

Mixed around three shovel's-worth of peat moss, sand and compost into the soil, and mulched with straw and some of last year's partially decomposed leaves, and laid down some edgers to hopefully keep the creeping charlie from the wooded lot behind us at bay.

This is a rather brave endeavor in a 50 sf garden as I haven't grown vegetables since about the seventh grade. The watermelons, strawberries, and raspberries are great for snacking and juicing, and the horehound makes for good tea and candy, and the peppers for good salsa or a bit of zest in pasta sauce. Tomatos are ubiquitous to a largely vegetarian family; good in sauces, juices, and salads alike. The dill can be ground up and used in pasta salad or given to my aunt for pickling.

Mohican Viburnum leaves and flower buds

Mohican Viburnum is a hardy native shrub that provides a welcome burst of color in the mid-spring and leathery, dark-green foliage that remain on the shrub's compact boughs well into summer. Some of the sources I've read say this foliage turns in autumn, but I have not seen this on the two I have. They are easy to grow, though they do like a bit of mulch to keep the moisture in, and are supposed to reach about 6' in ideal conditions. There are native gardeners out there who use them as hedges.

Mohican Viburnum provide flat-topped clusters of white flowers in mid-spring and red-orange berries in summer. I've seen bees and other pollinators tend the blossoms, but have never seen anything take the berries, so am not entirely sure of its wildlife value (couldn't find anything on Google or any of my field guides either).

Mohican Virburnum shrub

Tree frogs joined the chorus in the ponds and swamps yesterday; their occasional chatter-like chirp joining the piping of the Spring Peeper, the trill of the American Toad, and the strumming of the Chorus Frog.

One of the Orioles building its nest in my spruce tree

Swamp Milkweed has to be one of the most popular native plants in our garden.

• Its flowers are not only a very colorful addition to any garden, but a favorite of bees and butterflies.
• Its milky sap is the food source of the Monarch caterpillar (and provides the insect its natural defense by way of an alkaline poison). Milkweed are vital to Monarchs, as it's the only species of host plant their larva can survive on.
• Its leaves make the perfect perches and cover for tiny tree frogs.
• Birds will clutch the stems while hunting for insects, or to drink from lakes and streams.
  

And finally, I just learned this morning that:

• Its dried stalks provide downy nesting material for birds, including the Baltimore Oriole currently making house in my spruce tree.

I actually had a few minutes to sit down and enjoy the garden yesterday afternoon, and as Robins, Orioles, Sparrows, and Hummingbirds went about their business, I realized that the amount of wildlife you can see in under an acre of land is just amazing. It's not like we were experts or even had a solid plan when we set out to build this garden. Neither of us have degrees in naturalism or botany, and it's not like we had the money to hire professionals. We'd just done a little research, talked to Wayne, and observed what plants grew well in local parks.

Storms rumbled through yesterday (1" of rain in the gauge), putting the air down into the 60's. Air was so cold overnight (most of this week have highs in the mid-60's) that the water actually steamed as it churned down the waterfall. Looked amazing in the beams of the new solar spotlights we installed. Will try to get some video of it tonight.

Emerging Native Plants:

• Brown-eyed Susan
• False Dragonhead
• False Indigo
• Fiddlehead Fern
• Harebell
• Meadowrue
• Marsh Marigold
• Prairie Smoke
• Purple Coneflower
• Showy Goldenrod
• St. Solomon's Seal
• Starflower
• Tall Boneset
• Virgin's Bower
• Wild Bergamot
• Wild Grape
• Woodland Goldenrod
• Woodland Sunflower

Wildflowers in Bloom:

• Aborted Buttercup
• Bloodroot
• Canadian Anemone
• Jacob's Ladder
• Rue Anemone
• Purple Pasque Flower
• Wild Geraniuim

Wildlife Spotted:

• American Toad
• Baltimore Oriole
• Black-capped Chickadee
• Blue Jay
• Chorus Frog
• Crow, Common
• Eastern Bluebird
• Goldfinch
• Grackle, Common
• Grey Squirrel
• Loon
• Mallard Duck
• Mourning Dove
• Northern Cardinal
• Nuthatch
• Pileated Woodpecker
• Purple Finch
• Red-bellied Woodpecker
• Red-shouldered Hawk
• Red-winged Blackbird
• Robin, American
• Ruby-throated Hummingbird
• Sandhill Crane
• Spring Peeper
• Tree Swallow
• Turkey Vulture
• Virginia Opossum
• Wild Turkey
• Wood Duck
• Wood Frog
• Yellow-rumped Warbler

First Hummingbird of the season spotted!

A budding Columbine flower

Columbine are dropping their buds. These widespread, bell-shaped perrenials, native and a favorite of hummingbirds and bees, are notable for their five "spurs" which begat both its latin (comparison to an eagle's talons) or common (comparison to a flock of doves) name. These spurs spread in the summer, exposing the flower's petticoat-like petals and long stamen in a very colorful display. They're an excellent, native plant for any garden, and will give you blooms from mid spring through early fall.

Columbine are extraordinarilly easy to cultivate given even the slightest bit of pre-planning. Though, being woodland flowers, they prefer damp, cool soil and a good deal of shade, with a good deal of mulch they'll thrive in anything short of full sun. Throw in a little peat moss and weekly watering during the hot season and they'll pay you back with interest, spreading across open soil in thick, verdant clumps of dark green leaves and red flowers.

Began work on the first of the "rocks" I will be using to cover up the pond filter, the remainder of my exposed pond tarp, and possibly the underwater pumps and plumbing. I created the first rock by layering hypertufa over a frame mesh. The 2 parts peat moss gave it a very porous texture, much more realistic to rock than standard cement would have been. Also cut a small 5X8 portion of land out of a chunk of my back lawn that had mostly been overrun by creeping charlie. Mixed a bag of organic garden soil and a shovel load of peat moss into the soil and am in the act of bordering it with some inexpensive edgers. Am hoping I'll have peppers, tomatoes, and watermelons by fall. Would love to be able to cultivate my own seeds.

Been seeing a lot of the Bluebird couple lately, and the Orioles have been draining my grape jelly feeder twice a day.

Bluebird Eggs

Prairie Smoke

Counted five Eastern Bluebird eggs in the house this afternoon; that's three more than Wednesday's count. Plants are coming up in droves in the native garden; Prairie Smoke are about to pop, and Peepers can be heard sporadically throughout the day.

Mostly sunny today with a few bursts of rain and high wind in the late afternoon. Temps in the low 70's dipping down into the low 60's in the early evening.