Early September Photos

Although the heat will continue, the subtle changes in the natural world around us let us know that a new season is upon us. The wildflowers in the meadow have given way to the grasses, the beautyberries are almost all purple and the oakleaf hydrangeas are just starting to show a tinge of fall.

An elevated view really shows how the grasses hold the meadow together.

An overview shows the bare spots left by early summer's blanketflower

Some dotted horsemint begins to bloom behind some Elliott's lovegrass.

It's been a few days since we've had any rain so the tropical sage isn't covered with flowers, but a few bright buds still remain. Rosinweed pops up in the background.

A closeup of some tropical sage still flowering nicely.

A closeup of two nice flowers on the top of one Rosinweed.

Rosinweed flowers reach an impressive size. That, combined with their relative height, makes them stand out in the garden.

I think there are several insects that use saliva to stick random plant parts to their back to camouflage themselves. These brown pieces were plucked off a dotted horsemint. This looks like an inchworm but I've seen another type exhibit this same behavior.

Dotted horsemint competes with red-tipped cocoplum for a spot in the front bed. I don't mind crowding these plants because the horsemint will die off for the rest of the year and the cocoplum will then occupy the space.

Creeping through the meadow reveals a flowring ironweed (purple) among the red tropical sage.

The beautyberries are almost completely purple now.

A quick view of the backyard with the recently completed paver patio in the back corner.

The little bog area stays green year round.

The marlberries are doing pretty well. Although this one hasn't filled out too much it certainly has gained some height.

A closeup of the ironweed.

A rosinweed bud thinks about flowering.

I didn't even see the spider in this photo until I looked at it on the computer.

These giant bumble bees are among the many pollinators paying the horsemint a visit.

Another ladybug explores the horsemint.

The purple horsemint stands out against the blue sky.

I'm still not exactly sure what kind of bees/wasps these are, but they LOVE the muhly grass. You can see the beginnings of a purple flower forming here.

A red dragonfly matches the red tropical sage nicely. Muhly grass and horsemint add some interest to the background.

We may not have amazing fall foliage, but if you pay attention, nature will let you know changes are happening. I'll be keeping an eye out for the horsemint and grasses exploding with flowers in the next few months. Unfortunately, the beautyberry leaves will fall eventually, but the brilliant berries will stay through most of the winter.

Late Summer

Haven't had much time to shoot photos lately, but I found a few minutes to browse the yard the other day. I figured I would see a butterfly or two hanging out on the milkweeds and a bee or wasp visiting the horsemint that just recently started flowering. But as I poked around I realized there was a lot going on out there. Although we don't have the fall foliage and other obvious signs of season change, Florida will reveal distinct transitions between the seasons if you are willing to slow down and pay attention.

This Gulf Fritillary was visiting one of the few remaining blanketflowers

A dragonfly rests on a budding tropical sage.

This is one of the most beautiful flowers in the yard. The dotted horsemint is just starting to flower which is always a welcome event.

A handful of rosinweeds have been carrying the meadow now that the blanketflower is mostly spent. Some of them have flowers 4 inches across. The back of the flower is just as interesting as the front in my opinion.

A backlit rosinweed makes a pretty photo.

I love how this photo shows off the superb design of the horsemint flower. This insect (still not good at identifying pollinators) gets its back and wings dusted with pollen while feeding on the fragrant nectar.

The horsemint in the backyard was in the shade and the light was a little more pleasing for a wider shot.

Another species pays a visit.

Not a great photo, but it shows two different insects stopping by.

Another photo with two insects on different flowers.

And yet another species.

In the backyard, the first signs of fall are beginning to appear. In addition to the first horsemint blossoms, late summer means the beautyberry begins the transition to purple.

A closeup of the beautyberries.

Another visitor to the horsemint.

A ladybug traverses a horsemint leaf. That's six different species using one plant just in the photos shown here (only one horsemint blooming in the front yard). And that one plant only has half a dozen flowers on it so far. You should see these things when they are in full bloom. It's like an insect superhighway.

This is a pretty crappy picture, but it's the only one I got of this white-tipped black moth (I think that's the actual common name, not just my generic description) as it landed on a cocoplum.

I decided to investigate the muhly grass since I can always count on them for harboring a few insects. I think I've ID'd this type of spider before, but I'm having trouble remembering. Very cool though.

Not sure if it's because the stalks are so firm, cylindrical or both, but insects seem to enjoy resting on them.

This bee didn't seem to be doing very well, but he was alive.

A tiny dragonfly lands on a stalk.

The firesbush in the front yard was getting out of control, so I whacked it back real hard. It took just a couple weeks to jump back with new vigorous growth.

Coontie, Wood Fern and Red Bay

It's been more than a year since I planted most of the stuff in the backyard. For the most part, everything's been surviving, but nothing's been thriving. As the summer rains start arriving, some of the plants are beginning to respond. Hopefully they've spent the last year putting down good root systems and now they are ready to take off. One prime example of this is the coontie (Zamia pumila). I'll spare you the discussion about whether or not floridana is a more accurate species classification. These are special plants that deserve a spot in every landscape in Florida. The coontie's attributes are many: attractive shape, ability to survive almost any light and moisture conditions, good potted plant, habitat and larval food plant for the endangered Atala butterfly, not to mention it is a true living fossil leftover from the dinosaur age. I'll back off the species account for now; if you want to learn more just take "the google" for a spin.

Here is one of several coonties planted in the backyard which is designed as a woodland/oak hammock habitat. The coontie is very versatile and works well in almost any setting, but I prefer its appearance among the ferns and coffees that make up the understory in the forested backyard. After a year of wondering whether or my coonties were alive, they all shot up lots of new bright green growth as the summer arrived.

OK, enough coontie love for one day! I also threw in a bunch of wood ferns aka southern shield ferns (thelypteris kunthii) below the oak trees. These look like they belong in the Pacific Northwest and you would think they require tons of water. Actually, they are quite drought tolerant. They may not look great when its dry, but they'll hang in there, just waiting to throw out some bright green fronds as soon as the water is available. These are very graceful and more airy than the slightly tougher boston fern. After several weeks of good rains, these plants glow bright green against the dark leaf litter.

Another specimen that has been doing well is this red bay tree (Persea borbonia). I splurged and threw down 5 trees (3 dahoon holiles and 2 red bays) in the back to help develop a mid-story between the ground and the high oak canopy. Wild coffees, velvet-leaf coffees and one huge beautyberry are grouped around the base. These bay trees look pretty and they provide food and cover for several wildlife species. Red bays across the southeast are dying off from laurel wilt infections caused by the introduced ambrosia beetle so they need all the help they can get. These leaves share the same desirable characteristics as the bay leaves you buy in the store and can be used similarly.

I've been unable to ID that spider from the previous post. It must be some type of orb weaver, but none of the ID books show a picture that looks like it. It's probably a certain phase or sex, etc. that doesn't always show the green spot. I think it's a pretty identifiable characteristic. Anyway, if you know what it is, let me know in the comments!

Red/orange spider

I noticed a cool spider out in the meadow today taking care of a bee that had been caught in the web. I haven't been able to ID it yet; hopefully I'll figure it out tomorrow. If anyone has any ideas, let me know in the comments. The photos are a little rough because the sun had already gone down and I was shooting at ISO 1600, but they do the job.

Tampa Blog on Native Plants

I happened across a Tampa blog today that recently posted a blurb about native plants. It's pretty basic but good info. Direct link here.

Morning Meadow

I always think the meadow looks best first thing in the morning as I walk and drive past it on the way to work. I stopped the other day and made a few quick images before leaving.

I really need to yank that pygmy date palm out. It's the only non-native plant and it just doesn't fit in. Otherwise, things look pretty good. I think a few of the goldenrod missed their spring flowering period and will continue to grow upwards all summer if not whacked back. This plant (seaside goldenrod) is accustomed to dry sand and full sun at the beach so it usually finds home garden conditions a little too friendly.

Here's an overall shot of the new (to me) tickseed Coreopsis basalis, known by the common names goldmane, golden wave and calliposis. I like the bushy plant appearance compared to the similar but skinnier Coreopsis trinctoria.

A vertical shot shows the length of the meadow. One of the reasons I like the morning is that the red/tropical sage has new and very bright red flowers that have usually dried out or fallen off by the time I get home.

A closer look at some red sage seedlings. This is a good reliable reseeder.

I think I only bought one or maybe two pink phenotypes when I planted the meadow, but they seem to be propogating themselves nicely.

Remember, the USF Botanical Gardens is having their annual Butterfly, Herb and Native Plant Fair this weeekend.