Tag Archives: gardening

raising monarch butterflies

I decided to single-handedly save the monarch population in a single season; you can now refer to me as Monarch Mommy™

This, of course, is a joke (the saving the species part, not the Monarch Mommy™ part), and since raising monarchs indoors can be quite a hot top on the internet (who knew, right?), I’m going to start this post with a clear disclaimer: apparently it’s not been proven that indoor rearing of monarchs has done much — if anything — to help the general monarch population.

Some studies say that, if done improperly, the indoor raising of monarch butterflies can actually have an adverse effect on the general monarch population.

*steps onto my soapbox*

Let me just say that I completely agree with some reasonings (like it can make spreading disease easier), while other reasonings I completely disagree with. For instance, believing that nature successfully “picks off the weak” and that we’re interfering with that process by protecting them?? Um, here’s my hot take: having a wasp lay eggs in a caterpillar doesn’t mean that a caterpillar is weak, it just means that it was one unlucky little dude who now has to endure a horrific death!

I believe that my butterflies were part of the migratory generation (also known as the “super generation”), and they were much larger than other monarchs that I’ve seen around

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jubilant sun

the sun peeks over the horizon,

golden beams winding through branches,

dappling the sleeping plants in glory.

dew drops rest on stems,

held captive in the hair of the plant,

shimmering and glinting,

like pearls ‘round a rich woman’s neck,

everyday magic so easily overlooked.

they stretch and reach their arms to the sky,

elegant smiles on their concealed faces,

coaxed back to life by a jubilant sun.

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raising eastern black swallowtail butterflies

It was soon after I bought the Painted Lady caterpillars (mentioned briefly in my recent post) that I went down to the spring plant sale at the farm and had the tiny baby Eastern Black Swallowtail caterpillars pointed out to me on the dill plants for sale.

I’ll admit that as much as I love dill, the reason I got the dill plants was to try raising these butterfly babies.

The only butterflies that I’d ever raised up until that point had been Painted Ladies, so I was psyched to have another species to watch grow. I will say that at the end of this particular journey, I was very relieved to set them free, because it was a bit of a roller coaster. But I’ll also say that I think I learned a couple things, and I’d probably try it again if I find some more babies next year!

(you can watch the YouTube short that I made about raising them here!)

cutest lil face munchin on his dill leaves 🥺

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the past month

July has come and gone (if you missed my July wrap, you can watch it here!), and we are well and truly into summer. As in, it’s frickin hot, and I don’t remember the last time we got rain. I’m giving my gardens just enough water to make it through these hot days, but they could really use a good soaker.

The pole beans are finally producing (I always forget how late they start, but once they start, the harvests are plentiful until the first frost), the butternut squashes are climbing to the sky and have quite the collection of babies growing, and the zephyr squashes have been as delectable as ever.

my friend Brandi sent me these marigold seeds (left) a few years ago, and I’ve continued collecting the seeds and growing them every year since!

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a small update

It’s been a hot minute (literally) since I’ve posted on this blog — you have no idea how many drafts I’ve started in here, only to lose steam halfway through and never publish them!

When I disappear from one place, it usually means that I’m busy elsewhere, and that has definitely been the case this time around.

Although summer has technically just started, it’s been so much fun so far.

releasing my dear Painted Lady butterflies (more on this later in the post)

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march wrap

While January and February seemed to fly by, March seemed to go on forever.

Looking back on the month’s wrap I can’t believe that some of the clips were from the 31 days of March — it felt like they were taken months ago.

Although the weather is in its annual spring fickleness, the fam and I have been making sure to enjoy all of the warm days we get. Spontaneous afternoons spent hiking, laying in sunny fields, and listening to the spring peepers were a March staple (and are carrying into April).

The grass is turning more green every day, and buds are starting to pop on the trees and bushes.

So here’s a short photographic recap of the month:

I’m not sure that I’ve ever posted photos of this coat on my blog, but, FUN FACT: I made it out of my old bedspread last year

I bought the pattern from ReillyFitzsimmons, and it was easy and great, aside from the fact that I did have to downsize a lot because the pattern is unisex and created by a man

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spring equinox

5:01am EST / Thursday, March 20th, 2025

The spring weather took its sweet time arriving this year (as predicted by Punxsutawney Phil), but with a slight upward trend in the temps, the peepers have taken up their spring song, the flowers have popped up overnight (literally), and we caught the first glimpse of our resident groundhog when she crawled out from under the barn for a drink of water.

I’d love to add some more crocus colors to the garden at some point, since we currently only have dark purple, and light purple ones

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calendar collages

Last year I was given a pile of old gardening magazines; I didn’t have a plan for what I’d do with them, but I held onto them because I just had a feeling that they’d come in handy at some point.

It took a while, but I was right.

believe it or not, these millions of scraps of paper were somewhat organized

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exciting new things

I painted my room pink.

After years of debating, I did it, and I couldn’t be happier with the end result. It’s a pale, light pink, but the paint color is called lavender moon, so it has a subtle lavender undertone which makes it super soft 🌙

looking cute in one of the outfits I finished this year (although 90% of the time lately I’ve just been in comfy shorts and an oversize t-shirt because I’ve been workiiiiiiing)

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happiness

This week I’ve been focusing on the simple task of being happy.

And by simple, you know I mean arduous.

Okay listen, I haven’t lost it completely…the foundation that I so carefully constructed during the last 6 months is still there…underneath some rubble. A serious lack of blue skies, a desk that is sticky from the constant humidity, and some unexpected happenings that have happened have caused a few recent earthquakes. Or maybe some natural, beneficial forest fires.

(it’s yet to be determined)