Sago Palm

July 27, 2006
I spent another morning cleaning out from underneath the male sago.... Some say you shouldn't cut out the bottom fronds, but after so much damage from the Asian Scale, they look terrible. AND this is our yard and who ought to say whether its okay or not. If they die we won't have to deal with the Asian scale any more. It had such a foothold before we bought the place. The female is quite large, just not as tall as the male. I've discovered that as much as I love nature and natural things, I also like order. I love cottage gardening, but like it a bit more orderly and 'kept up' than when I was younger. A bit of dirt between the plants pleases me also. Lots of green, a bit of color here and there is also great.

We're in the rainy season again with daily deluges. This afternoon's thunderstorm shook the house for a while. Its fun to open the curtains and watch the wild winds exercise the limbs on the big oak out front. Such a surprise not to find one limb broken and on the ground. They said the winds were around 60 mph with higher gusts.. there were only about 5 minutes worth of hail. Hopefully nothing was damaged.

A plumbago planted two years ago is struggling out there.. one lone blossom. Perhaps it deserves digging up, replacement soil and a second chance.

Ambulance next door tonight. We're only hello and over the fence neighbors, but neighbors still feel like family.

Catapillars

July 16, 2006



I bought a cassia which I love for the blossoms. I found out yesterday that sulphur butterflies also love the cassias. Mine has not bloomed for almost two years and I was checking to see what the problem might be and found two big fat cats - one green, the other yellow, along with several small stink bugs. I posted the pictures for ID, kept them on leaves in a container overnight and carefully put them back in the bush this morning. Tonight my thoughts are "What WERE you thinking? " Yes I love to watch butterflies, but I've intentionally only chosen nectar plants instead of larva hosts. I bought that plant because I loved the blossoms. I'm not sure I'm willing to have NO blossoms so that they have one more plant on which to lay eggs. I might take some cuttings and put in a few more plants in another area and move any cats I find to a designated spot. I guess I'm not THAT much of a larva, butterfly hatching enthusiast that I'm willing to give up all the flowers.


Ruella is supposed to be invasive. I love these blooms and so far have found nothing I can't control and even with encouragement, it doesn't s