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| Coreopsis or tick-seed has many varieties, and they favor beneficial insects. |
More than once someone has said to me, "Did you plant that on purpose?" Many overlooked plants are the best possible treatment for the ills caused by monoculture - too much of the same plant.
My blog-friend and reader has a vineyard, and he points out the difficulty in controlling all the evils drawn in by a mass of grape vines. I see the same problem with rows of roses. Fortunately, I can drop beneficial insect plants wherever I want and provide host plants for my little allies.
Almost Eden is the next-door nursery, and the owner has the same philosophy about planting that I do. His wife works in hospitality for Walmart, so I do not have to listen to rants about our local mom and pop store.
I went through his website, looking for hummingbird plants - not only a major education by itself but also great encouragement for the future. The distant and expensive online nurseries deliver plants where the first question is - "Has it died yet?"
Any supplier is going to make me dizzy with the varieties of plants I have never grown. I know some of the names superficially, but that does not make me knowledgeable about how to use them and enjoy them. Some brand new names for me were - Chaste Tree and Beautyberry.
Now I am especially interested in plants -
- Favored by beneficial insects. The life stages of various beneficial insects need more than food for their babies. The adults need their own food and shelter.
- Visited by hummingbirds. Free hummingbird food is a plus since I do not own or fill feeders.
- Loved by bees of all types. In Phoenix we had the leaf-cutter bees, black and ominous, but harmless. They lumbered through from time to time, harvesting leaves from my bougainvillea jungle. There are many varieties of bees, and they have their special roles.
I planted my latest finds from Almost Eden this morning. Sassy, after enjoying her 6 AM walk, sat nearby and supervised each hole.
Mrs. Ichabod wants screening plants to block the unscenic back alley view. I was able to put the Chaste Tree in just the right spot to grow 10 - 20 feet tall. This shrub-tree is the ultimate bee plant, which is fine with me. The flowers are beautiful and fragrant.
The Big Slug Trap
I began with one can of beer in the old roasting pan.
- First night - 24 slugs were in the brew and dead.
- Second night - more slugs were slowing moving in. In the morning many dead slugs were missing and the pan was almost dry.
- Third night - the pan was completely cleared of all beer and all slugs.
Hummingbird Plants - a complete list
