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Garden Tip #1

Keep an eye on watering everything which is newly planted. It doesn't take much for new little transplants to dry out and die before they have a chance to get established. Check every day for adequate moisture until plants take-off and start to grow. Newly planted trees and shrubs need to be monitored, typically needing deep waterings of 1-2 inches per week. Maintaining adequate moisture is important for good root establishment. Remember to mulch plants to preserve and balance soil moisture.

Garden Tip #2

Deadhead or prune back spent flowers on your perennials. This will manicure your garden and can stimulate re-blooming of delphinum and columbine as well as other perennials.

Garden Tip #3

Thin (by picking off) excess fruits from apple, pear and peach trees to a ratio of one fruit per 6-8 inches of branch.

Garden Tip #4

Direct seed sunflowers in your garden. Consider staggering planting new seeds every week or two

Water Quiz!

No winner last month?? What, what? Well, that just means you get a second chance to win a TYN rain gauge by answering this month's question!

How much water does the average individual use daily?

Shelby Co. Two-Part TYN Home Landscape Workshop

Dates & Times: June 11th & 12th 2012, 6 pm- 9 pm

Location: Agricenter International, 7777 Walnut Grove Rd. Suite B, Memphis, TN

Description: Take away a nine principle approach to landscaping that is both sensible and kind to the environment. Soil testing, rain gauge, workbook and more are provided!

Class size: Limited to 25

Cost: $35.00 per individual, $50.00 per couple

Registration: Contact Chris Cooper via 901-752-1207 or ccoope27@utk.edu (Advanced registration required)

Montgomery Co. TYN Home Landscape Workshop

Date & Time: June 23, 2012; 8:30 am - 3:00 pm

Location: Civic Hall in Clarksville, TN

Description: Take away a nine principle approach to landscaping that is both sensible and kind to the environment. Soil testing, rain gauge, workbook and more are provided.

Class size: Limited to 25

Cost: $35.00 per individual, $50.00 per couple (includes lunch)

Registration: Contact Karla Keen via (931) 648-5725 or kkean@utk.edu (Advanced registration required)

Greetings!

It's May! When did that happen? Well, here at TYN we are making the best of the summer-like weather by enjoying the butterflies and bees getting an early start, flitting from flower to flower.  With that in mind, we have a wonderful line up of articles this month starting with an article on butterflies and mimicry by author Paulette Haywood Ogard and photographer Sara Bright!  We saw these two present at the recent  Native Plant Symposium in Chattanooga and they were wonderful!  They have recently published a book called Butterflies of Alabama, Glimpses into their Lives which is a beautiful collection of photographs and detailed information about the lives of butterflies. Also, this month we have a fantastic article from our very own Lyn Bales about the Prothonotary, a bird that, as Lyn describes, embodies avian perfection.  Finally, do you want to try your hand at attracting butterflies to your yard? Check out our final article on an easy low-maintenance garden with a colorful pallette of native plants that will provide nectar for these fantastic creatures. We hope you enjoy this month's newsletter and don't forget to take the Water Quiz challenge and check our timely garden tips!

Happy Gardening!

The TYN State Management Team

Spicebush Swallowtail caterpiller

In the world of nature, appearances can be deceiving.  If you open a furled leaf on a Spicebush shrub, the beady eyes that look back at you might belong to a small green snake, or they might adorn a Spicebush Swallowtail caterpillar that only appears to be a snake in order to frighten would-be predators.  A sharp knob on the side of a twig might be a thorn, or it might be the Falcate Orangetip's chrysalid, protected until spring when the tiny, winged adult will emerge from its prickly-looking pupal case.  And that dead leaf dangling from a branch?  It might be withered foliage, but it could be a Goatweed Leafwing butterfly, aptly named because its wings so perfectly mimic dry brown leaves.

Why the subterfuge?  Because butterflies, in all their developmental stages, must avoid being eaten if they are to survive long enough to reproduce--and hungry mouths are everywhere! Butterflies have developed numerous predator avoidance responses, but mimicry is one of the most fascinating.

Left image: Goatweed Leafwing butterfly Right image: Falcate Orangetip's chrysalid

Many butterflies mimic objects that most predators deem inedible.  Since predators are carnivores, butterflies, caterpillars, and even chrysalides often resemble leaves, broken twigs, or other plant parts.  Hungry eyes on a quest for flesh usually overlook them.  Some swallowtail and admiral caterpillars look remarkably like bird droppings, so shiny that they appear fresh and wet! It may seem disgusting, but dung is imitated because excrement is universally shunned as a food source. 

Some butterflies mimic other, inedible, butterflies. Pipevine Swallowtails, Monarchs, and Viceroys are classic examples.  Their caterpillars eat toxic plants, retain poison molecules within their bodies, and become poisonous in their own right.  Even adults are unpalatable.  As many as six non-toxic butterfly species mimic the Pipevine Swallowtail's black-and-blue winged, orange-spotted appearance. Monarchs and Viceroys mimic each other.  Both are distasteful to predators because their larvae eat chemically protected milkweeds and willows, respectively.  The caterpillars of the two species look nothing alike, but the adults' appearance is remarkably similar. Hungry birds get a double whammy and quickly learn to avoid both orange-and-black patterned butterflies.

Top images from left to right: Red-Spotted Purple; Black Swallowtail; Spicebush Swallowtail Bottom image: Pipevine Swallowtail

We have only scratched the surface of the intricate adaptations involved in predator avoidance through mimicry.  Combined with other techniques like camouflage, toxicity, startle effect, and evasive flight, it's enough to make your head swim.  Or perhaps to share Thornton Wilder's sentiment, "Oh, earth, you're too wonderful for anybody to realize you."

Sara Bright is a professional photographer whose work has been featured in Canoe, Southern Living, Birder's World, Outdoor Life, Geo, and Portico, and is on permanent display at McDonald's Corporation, Alabama Power, Wachovia Bank, and the Birmingham Botanical Gardens. 

To learn more about butterflies and their extraordinary lives check out Paulette and Sara's recent book Butterflies of Alabama; Glimpses into Their Lives

Purchase a copy from the University of Alabama Press 

The prothonotary: as close to avian perfection as nature gets

By Stephen Lyn Bales

If there is one group of birds that everyone oohs and ahhs over, it's the warblers. Even experienced birders will drive hundreds of miles just for the chance of seeing a rare one. In many circles, they are known as the "crown jewels" of American birds.

Prothonotary Warbler

Truth is, they are not actually warblers. Early American explorers misidentified them, but the name is here to stay. To somewhat correct it, the name of the American group was changed to Wood Warbler because most but not all are found in the woods. (The American robin is not a true robin, it's a thrush, but that incorrect moniker stuck as well.)

The funny thing about New World wood warblers is that they do not warble. They are not particularly good singers but rather produce a vocalization described as a "lisp, buzz, hiss, chip, rollick or zip" or various combinations of those wispy sounds.

Although, they may not be the best avian singers, they are undeniably beautiful.  Small and colorful, each species has a different exquisite combination of reds, oranges, yellows, blues, greens, like a giant box of Crayola crayons dropped from Mt. Olympus.

There are a total of 53 wood warbler species found in North America, well 52 if you leave out Bachman's warbler, which is probably extinct. Of the 52, fourteen are western species and 38 are eastern. Of these, 24 species actually nest in our state, although some very sparingly and most retreat to the mountainous regions of the Cumberlands or the Great Smokies.

There is one 24-karat treasure that nests in the lowlands, floodplains and shorelines of the Mississippi and Tennessee Rivers. It is so breathtakingly yellow it outshines a school bus and outrivals a lemon. Once known as the golden swamp warbler, the name was changed to prothonotary warbler because its plumage reminded the Louisiana Creoles of the robes worn by the protonotarios, an advisor to the pope in the Catholic Church. And indeed, it's a yellow so sublime, so heavenly; it surely must have a divine provenance.

This gourd placed close to a water source can provide a nice home for a Prothonotary Warbler.

Prothonotary warblers are also the only warbler that are cavity nesters, naturally building their nests in hollow trees or old downy woodpecker holes, which means they can be attracted to a nest box or gourd.   If you live on the river or a stream that feeds into a nearby one, simply place a container (they have even been know to use an old coffee) five to ten feet above the water and hope that this golden ray of sunshine claims your site as its new home. And, if it does, consider yourself blessed.

• Prothonotaries are the only warbler species that will use a nest box.
• Their preferred habitat is river shorelines, streams, wetlands or swamps.
• Prothonotaries can be found along the river shoreline at Ijams Nature Center in Knoxville. 

Stephen Lyn Bales is a senior naturalist at Ijams Nature Center and author of Natural Histories and Ghost Birds published by UT Press. Visit his nature blog at http://stephenlynbales.blogspot.com 

Make your own butterfly haven!

Interested in creating a small butterfly magnet in your yard?  This little 49 sq. ft. garden may do the trick! This garden layout can be used anywhere in your yard where you have average soil and full to moderate sunlight. All the plants featured are perennial and native to Tennessee so they will continue to come back year after year providing a relatively low maintenance, butterfly loving garden.  

1. Purple Coneflower
Echinacea purpurea
Striking, large flower heads rise above neat clumps of foliage 2 to 3.5 feet tall. The flower heads have light rose rays (petals) and contrasting orange-red centers. At maturity, the rays angle downward and the center assumes a distinct cone shape. Plants are perennial and bloom June through August. Coneflowers seed is good for birds, too.

2. Bee Balm
Monarda didyma
Monardas are plants belonging to the mint family. They have square stems, aromatic foliage and showy, unusual flower heads. They prefer full sun and average to moist soil. Bee Balm has deep red flowers with reddish bracts from July to September. It grows to three feet tall with rich green leaves. This native perennial also attracts  hummingbirds.

3. Butterfly Weed
Asclepias tuberosa
Another native perennial, Butterfly Weed has striking brilliant orange flowers blooming from early to late summer. The flower clusters may be up to 1.5 feet wide, and established plants may form clumps 3 feet wide and 2 feet tall. This perennial does best in full sun and a dry, well-drained location. The monarch butterfly particularly loves this plant and lays eggs that develop into the caterpillar. The caterpillar later forms a chrysalis on the plant from which hatches the mature butterfly. 

4. Wild Ageratum, Mistflower
Conoclinium (Eupatorium) coelestinum
Native perennial with approximately 1'-3' tall flat-topped clusters of small, soft-blue, fuzzy flowers appear amidst the bright green foliage of this perennial Wild Ageratum. It flowers from July through October and prefers sun or partial shade and moisture. 

5. Phlox, Smooth Morris Berd
Phlox glaberrima 'Morris Berd'
'Morris Berd' has bright, rose pink flowers with white eyes for nearly 2 months in late spring to early summer. It grows 18 to 24 inches tall, is densely mounded, and is evergreen. Give this beautiful perennial full sun or part shade, and average soil. 

Find all these plants and more at Sunlight Gardens and special thanks to their great information about each plant.  

Butterfly garden with spring to early summer blooms

Butterfly garden with summer to early fall blooms

Illustrations by Katie Walberg

The above illustrations provide a guide to blooming times and how the garden will look as it matures. This small powerhouse of a garden provides food and shelter for wildlife as well as establishing beautiful native plants in your landscape.

We hope you get out there and start attracting some butterflies to your yards! They are fantastically beautiful creatures that will provide much joy to you, your family and the environment! 

For a downloadable copy of this article with layout grid, plant names and illustrations go to this link: Create your own butterfly garden!