Passiflora 'Incense'

Hello butterfly gardening friends! I know some time has passed since you last heard from me. My family moved into a new home and this was a much bigger task than I anticipated. There are still plenty of boxes to unpack but we are adjusting well to our new surroundings.

Did I mention we got a new puppy too??

Bailey, our Labradoodle

Well, a new house means a clean slate in the garden. I took what I could from my old garden - some milkweed of course, a stem from my white Angel Trumpet, some herbs... but most of this new garden will be new. I have lots of ideas swirling around in my head but unpacking all of those boxes has taken priority.

I did go by the local nursery a couple of weeks ago and couldn't resist buying this:

This is Passiflora 'Incense.' Now I try to grow native as much as possible but when I saw this striking purple color and smelled the beautiful flower, I had to have it! It has such a wonderful fragrance.  This passionflower is a hybrid of Passiflora incarnata (which is Native) and Passiflora cinnicata. Some of you may recognize Passiflora incarnata as Maypop.  P. 'Incense' is a fast growing vine that tolerates sun or shade and flowers from spring through summer. Sometimes people are hesitant to plant passionflower when I suggest it for their butterfly gardens because it grows so vigorously. I planted mine in a pot and it is doing great. There are lots of flowers and it has successfully attracted Gulf Fritillaries. We found 3 caterpillars munching on its leaves this week! 

In case you are wondering, I bought this passionflower (and pot) at Luka's and the trellis at Restore.

My Favorite Plant Sale

My favorite plant sale of the year is this weekend at Leu Gardens. Vendors from all over the state bring their plants and garden accessories. There is so much to choose from: herbs, flowers, orchids, succulents, citrus trees, Florida natives, etc. Admission to the gardens is free both days. The sale is March 17th and 18th from 9am-5pm.

This is a popular event so I have some tips for you:

1) Bring a cart or wagon for your purchases!

2) If you have been thinking about becoming a Leu Gardens member, now is the time. Members  shop first from 8am-9am on Saturday, the 17th.

3) Parking is tight so come early or later in the day. I usually park on one of the neighborhood side streets.

This is also an excellent opportunity to visit Leu Gardens' Butterfly Garden - one of my favorites!

Leu Gardens by Ricymar Fine Art Photography via Flickr

The BEST Gardening Gloves

It's time to start your spring gardening and I'd like to share my favorite gardening tool with you. Well, they are not so much a tool like a shovel or clippers but they certainly make gardening an even more pleasant experience...  they are the Atlas Gardening Gloves.

As much as I enjoy working with soil in the garden, I do NOT like the way it looks or feels under my fingernails.  I came across these gloves at a local gardening shop, Apenberry's. At first, I was just drawn to the bright colors they come in: green, pink, purple, and blue (black too).  So I purchased a pair in my favorite shade of Robin's Egg blue and set to work in the garden with them. WOW! They fit really well and stretch easily so that I can accomplish all of my gardening tasks. And you can just throw them in the washing machine when they need a good cleaning. They are quite durable - I have had my current pair for a couple of years now. Did I mention they are inexpensive too? A 4-pack on Amazon is $12.50. I think I paid about $5 for my pair at Apenberry's.

Enjoy!

A Chrysalis Movie

Remember the caterpillar that was hanging upside down in my last posting? The next day I caught him in action...

Chrysalis Patch

Well, I guess I did a good job of protecting those caterpillars during the cold snap a few weeks ago. We found SEVEN chrysalises in and around our milkweed patch last weekend!

And this little guy was getting ready to spin his chrysalis...

Valentine's Day at the Florida Museum of Natural History

I think this might be my version of a perfect Valentine's Day with my husband- an Italian dinner accompanied by live music followed by a moonlit stroll through the Butterfly Rainforest at the Florida Museum of Natural History! This is one of my all time favorite butterfly gardens. They are hosting a special Valentine's Day event that sounds like so much fun. You can make your reservation here. Here's a glimpse of what you will see...

Photo by fuzzcat on Flickr

Photo by greaterrumbrage on Flickr

Photo by spakattacks on Flickr

Overlook Milkweed

We went to Disney last weekend - my husband ran the Disney Marathon and had an awesome run! As we took a walk around the Wilderness Lodge one evening, we came upon this scenic overlook.

As I looked out over the hotel grounds, I noticed some orange flowers right in front of me: milkweed! What a nice surprise!

That's my son enjoying the view too! Have you ever come across milkweed in any unexpected places?