Our yard is alive with wildlife this spring, so thought I would post some photos of the critters and a few native plants they’re especially attracted to. The insects attract a host of larger insects and in the chain of life, they in turn attract a rich bird and lizard population that feeds on them all. The last photo I took was of a Cooper’s hawk hoping to feed on one of those birds. [Read more...]
Native Bees and Other Wildlife Find Our Home
March 31, 2013 by · 1 Comment
What a joy this spring to walk around our yard here in Southern California – a former lawn now full of native and other wildlife-attracting plants. The native bees have arrived in higher numbers, challenging the busy honeybees on our blooming ceanothus and lavender. Our resident Anna’s hummingbird seemed to survive the cold spell this winter and is perching on his usual tree branch
[Read more...]
Go Organic — and plant milkweed — to Save Monarchs
March 14, 2013 by · 4 Comments
An article on page three of today’s Los Angeles Times talked about declining monarch butterfly numbers in Mexico where it winters. But here is an important takeaway that was buried a bit in the article: the use of genetically modified crops (GMOs) in the midwest where the monarch breeds contains Roundup (glyphosphate) that is killing the monarch’s vial food source — the milkweed plant . [Read more...]
Our Vital Pollinators: Birds, Bats, Bees and Butterflies
February 23, 2013 by · 2 Comments
Pollinators – birds, bats, bees and butterflies – are critical. They pollinate over 200,000 of the world’s flowering plants, including 80% of our food plants. The genetic material they transfer allows seeds to form, which continue the species.
Kurt Leushner, a popular professor at the College of the Desert in Palm Desert, highlighted our local pollinators at a recent horticulture meeting.
Below are some of his highlights [Read more...]
Low-water Yard Attracts People and Wildlife
February 1, 2013 by · 2 Comments
One thing Redlands resident Brenda Wolfe definitely didn’t expect after she converted her former landscape, primarily composed of a not-so-healthy lawn and an oleander hedge, to a low-water one. “I’ve learned I need to close the blinds in the bathroom. I’m not used to having people standing out front. [Read more...]
Infected Firewood is Transporting Oak Beetle
January 28, 2013 by · 1 Comment
When we moved from the San Diego area nearer to Los Angeles, old coast live oaks — the native oak that epitomizes California – were dying off from a new pest. We lived in the east part of San Diego County and were concerned about the pest as we heard reports of it moving westward. Especially since our property had a half-dozen 80-year-old oaks on our property.
Unfortunately, the beetle – the goldspotted oak borer or GSOB– that is causing this is moving north [Read more...]
Nature Photos of 2012
January 2, 2013 by · 2 Comments
Nature was very talkative in 2012. May we continue to see her beauty and learn her lessons in 2013. Photos below. [Read more...]
