Plant flowers, attract beneficial insects Some new gardeners don’t realize the role beneficial insects play in the garden, nor, the necessity of planting flowers to attract them for a vegetable garden. I was just out on my back deck observing numerous bees attracted to our tree, which is in bloom. And while they were in […]
Magnificent Monarchs, Migration & Metamorphosis is my Christmas special 80th episode of Late Bloomer. Photographed over the course of four years, but mainly from 2012, I have passionately nurtured the Monarch butterfly in the Late Bloomer garden. I hope you will watch and share with friends, teachers and schools, and community groups. Spreading awareness is key […]
Lament for a Garden Hat and a Teacup – What is it about the familiarity of certain objects that makes you feel so cozy? (A friend uses the word “cozy” often, and every time she says it, I feel cozy.) After a number of ill-fitting misses in my first two years of gardening, I found a […]
Mexican Sunflower Seeds “Torch” Annual. A genuine heat lover, Mexican sunflower sets the dog days of summer ablaze with sizzling orange flowers. A large and imposing plant for the back of the border. Tolerates infertile soil, drought and neglect. Lovely mixed with purple grass, and absolutely stunning next to Grandpa Otts purple morning glory. Attracts […]
February Blooms! ~Order Butterfly Flower Seeds I compiled photos of all the flowers that bloomed in the Late Bloomer Garden in February and put it into a slideshow with a new tune by my composer Jon Pileggi. This latest episode contains a new feature for Late Bloomer, the Garden Postcard! Cross-pollination is the name of the […]
Grow Mexican Sunflowers and attract Monarchs to your garden. Monarch Butterflies are so friendly once they know your garden is a welcome waystation for them. This male landed on the flower I was holding while taking a picture. I let it go just before I snapped this. Watch the Late Bloomer episode “Growing Mexican Sunflower” (click through to […]
Morning impressions with monarchs began my day. I spotted a pineapple guava yesterday and thought this morning it would look nice when the first rays of sun kissed it. As I was photographing it, just after the sun rose past my neighbor’s tree, I remarked (to myself) that I hadn’t seen many Monarch caterpillars, considering that […]
October blooms both ethereal and lusty grace my garden this first week of October, and feed Monarchs, other butterflies, hummingbirds and bees. I thought I’d take a close look around, now that the summer garden is mostly finished, and see what’s blooming and providing pollen for the pollinators. After the huge squash blooms of summer […]
Summer Garden Update, the latest episode of “Late Bloomer” reveals a front yard that’s loaded with food plants. The parkway exploded from “Planting a Parkway Food Forest.” From corn and quinoa, to tomatoes, Kabocha squash, tomatillo and beans, there’s lots going on in early July. Don’t have room for a back yard food garden? Use your […]
“Grow a Native Meadow in Your Yard” is the latest and 50th episode of “Late Bloomer!” Kaye shows the growth of her parkway native mini-meadow over the course of a year. Soil health, biodiversity (providing food for wildlife) and water conservation are three reasons to create a meadow in your urban garden. And the best reason, if you […]
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