Butterfly Bucket List: Texan Crescent

Posted on August 23, 2015 by Tina

In joining with Anna of The Transmutational Garden and her fun and informative Butterfly Bucket List monthly meme, let’s have a look at this pretty garden visitor:

Texan Crescent, Anthanassa texana, is a common butterfly species in my garden and throughout a wide range of the tropics and a large part of the western to southern United States. This is a small pollinator, only about 1 to 1.5 inches across with wings spread wide. A rapid flyer, fortunately these gregarious butterflies rest frequently and I spot them sunning on all sorts of foliage in my garden. They’re very good about posing for photos.

While not an eye-poppingly beautiful member of the Lepidoptera bunch, the muted coloration provides good camouflage, especially in shady gardens and I think this little butterfly is quite pretty. Brown, rust and cream comprise the primary color scheme, but in such a fetching pattern of those colors. Look at the sheen of blue in the eyes,

…and along the thorax as this guy or gal, moves around the oregano bloom, modeling all sides of its fashionable summer wear.

Texan Crescents hang out in open, dry areas and are common in urban settings. Adults nectar on a many different flowers. I routinely see them nectaring on the florets of oregano,

…Zexmenia, Wedelia acapulcensis var. hispida

…and sunflowers.

Texan Crescents have always been part of the insect mix of my garden, but this summer, I’ve noticed more than usual. There was quite a bit of rain in late spring/early summer, but if that was the reason for a population boom, surely I’d see more of other butterflies too and that hasn’t necessarily been the case. The host plants for this butterfly are plants of the Acanthaceae family. I grow several perennials from this moderate-sized group: Flame Acanthus, Anisacanthus wrightii quadrifidus, as well as several Ruellia species–a true native and a couple of cultivars. Additionally, a new plant has made itself quite at home in my garden–the native Branched Foldwing, Dicliptera brachiata,

…also a member of the Acanthus family and one that I recently identified; you can read about that here. The Branched Foldwing is the only new plant in my garden that might host the Texan Crescent and I think it’s this garden surprise that is helping to gift more of these cuties to my garden and the surrounding areas. I have found eaten and damaged leaves on the three Branched Foldwings that I’ve located,

…and more damage on the Foldwings than on any other of the Acanthaceae plants. Though I haven’t yet spotted eggs or larvae on the plants, my suspicion is that the Branched Foldwing are to thank for the larger numbers of Texan Crescents.

Regardless of where their botanical nursery is located, I’m glad to host these little butterflies in my garden–may Texan Crescents always flutter!

Check out the The Transmutational Garden to learn more about butterflies and their importance in a healthy and diverse garden.

Cool White

Posted on August 17, 2015 by Tina

Austin in August is not cool. Austin itself is cool (as we’re constantly reminded), but it is toasty here during our summer months and August is the sweaty king of this heat-challenged time of the year. I think (hope!!) that the peak of the hot Austin summer has passed and we gardeners can look forward to the “second spring” flush of blooms which grace our gardens in September, October and November. Until those glorious fall months, there is some cool in my garden in the form of the night-blooming Datura, Datura wrightii.

Also known by a variety of poetic names like Sacred Thorn-apple, Jimsonweed, and Angel Trumpet, this dramatically blooming perennial shrub is a widespread North American native. The stunning flowers open at sundown,

…and are available for viewing by gardeners and nectaring by moths throughout the night,

….into the early morning hours.

I wasn’t quick enough document with the camera, but two small native bees busily worked in the center as the flower was closing early morning. Wild bee breakfast!

The foliage is described as “coarse”, but I’ve always liked the muted grey-green color and the open form of this shrub.

The foliage on my Datura has been a food source for something this summer and I’m guessing that the larvae of some variety of Sphinx Moth have enjoyed the greenery. I haven’t seen any caterpillars, only the many holes they’ve decorated the Datura leaves with.

I have seen Sphinx Moths in the garden this summer.

All parts of this plant are toxic and it’s well-known for its narcotic qualities; Datura was used in religious ceremonies of some Native Americans.

Viewing these blooms is a sublime experience for me.

In Praise of Bees

Posted on August 14, 2015 by Tina

If you live in or near Austin, The Tour de Hives will be held this coming Saturday, August 15. The tour of local bee yards is in celebration of National Honey Bee Day and also a fundraiser for the Travis County Beekeepers Association, a nonprofit organization committed to promotion of and education about honeybees. Check out the links for more information. If you live elsewhere, there are activities planned nation-wide–check out your local gardening calendars and/or beekeeping societies for activities and tours.

Honeybees and all other pollinators need us and we need them–our survival depends on their survival. There are simple things that gardeners/homeowners can do to help declining pollinators, birds, and other wildlife:

–Remove sterile monoculture turf and replace with native perennials, shrubs and trees. You’ll find the gardening work easier, less expensive, more interesting and beautiful.

–Plant with intention, for wildlife and/or pollinators–after all, that’s who plants were invented for.

–If native plants aren’t readily available in local nurseries, choose pollinator plants that are not invasive to wild areas. Additionally, growing plants from seeds is often easy and rewarding.

–Don’t use pesticides or herbicides–those products are unnecessary and disrupt the balance that exists in the natural world. Using native plants and wildlife gardening methods decreases harmful insect and plant disease infestations.

–Do your part to heal the world, one wildlife habitat at a time.

Honeybees!!

While honeybees are grand (aren’t my girls just lovely?), a more important group of pollinators are the unappreciated but vital-to-the-survival-of-everything, native bees. There are 20,000 identified native bee species worldwide, 4,000 of which live in North America, and over 300 known species in Texas. Here are a few of the many which visit my gardens: