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Welcome ! This site contains my latest thoughts on various topics including Wellness/ Mental Health/Self Care; Natural History/ Caring for the Planet; Education and Children; Photographs, Art, and Creative writing. Most photos are my own.

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Latest Nature Blog:

Monarch Season in Rhode Island USA

monarch butterfly on common milkweed in bloom
monarch egg on underside of common milkweed
monarch caterpillar on common milkweed
monarch caterpillar on common milkweed
tiny early instar monarch caterpillar on common milkweed (finger for scale)
monarch caterpillar on butterfly weed Asclepias tuberosa

I have been letting the native common milkweed grow and spread in my lawn, flower beds, and vegetable garden. While they do look a little coarse, the flowers are quite fascinating and the scent is amazing. Milkweeds are the only food of the monarch.

When I started to see the adult butterflies in early summer I started to look for the eggs. Then for the caterpillars in their stripey pajamas. They were very tiny at first. For some reason the butterfly weed (orange flowers) grow better at my neighbor’s house in the hill. She brought in a broken off plant and when I looked at it I found a caterpillar, then took a picture and found another and then….counted 5. The next day we moved them back outside near the other plants.

They are getting bigger and some of the butterfly weed plants are just denuded stalks.

Coming Soon: Native Plants in Coastal Rhode Island July/August 2022

planned Project: Local Invasives and their Native Relatives

About

I am a nature lover, photographer, writer, and mental health professional.

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Currently I am not sharing any contact information