The Weeding Stops Here

We have been working our way along the bed in front of the house, weeding and moving plants to other locations or to compost. Work was going fine. The curved wall was in sight. BANG! All work in this area came to a screeching halt.



This little guy and his brothers and sisters are to blame. Here, just like Sierra club member sitting in front of a bulldozer, black swallowtail butterfly caterpillars cause a work stoppage. Dill is one of the plants that is given lots of space here. I dry some for winter and use some fresh, but it's because I know dill draws those beautiful butterflies that I have so much trouble pulling it out. Flowers that attract butterflies are great, but the favorite caterpillar food dramatically increases our number of butterflies. Note to myself: Don't procrastinate, get that dill where you want it before the middle of June.

Swallowtail on Fennel

This black swallowtail caterpillar is on the fennel. I know the photo is more caterpillar than fennel, but I'm always so pleased when I get a moving target in focus. Both my bronze fennel and regular fennel seeded down next to the kitchen porch. It makes it easy to keep track of the caterpillar's progress. So far I have counted three there.

The light green plant is the kind of fennel with a bulb at the base that is sold in the store as anise. Fennel's flavor is similar to anise, but unique. The darker color plant is bronze fennel. I like its color and feathery foliage. It often comes back from the base and looks great anywhere in the garden.

Like the caterpillar, I think fennel is tasty. The flowers are a surprising burst of flavor in a salad. I use fennel bulbs in soup and in a salad with red and green basil. I think fennel is a must for any herb or butterfly garden. I know this caterpillar would agree!

It been beautiful day in the garden so far today. The onions were brought in to dry for braiding. The mildewed lavender bee balm was cut to the ground. The sun on the soil, and air circulation will do wonders there. Ed using his pry bar, leverage and a few strong words dug out two humongous clumps of Stella D'Oro day lilies. The cavernous hole left by them will be filled in, and the lavender bee balm will be divided and planted there. This afternoon, I plan to cut some black stem peppermint for drying. Fun! Fun! Fun!

Crazy About Pickles?

Why in the world would anyone grow so much dill? I do like pickles and a dill sauce is nice, but that is only a small part of it.

Here you have the little devil who made me do it. This is the black swallowtail butterfly that uses dill as caterpillar food. When I saw those green , black and yellow caterpillars, I just had to leave the dill plants growing even though they are crowding the lavender plants. These butterflies are gorgeous. This newly hatched one was very hard to catch with the camera. Actually he's still moving!

There is a window when no caterpillars are on the dill. If I pull the dill now what will the next generation eat? Looks like the lavender will stay crowded. These butterflies are the most wanted.