Special Mother's Day Message♥

Happy Mother's Day

Here is a wonderfully lovely video from Explore.org!  They send me daily learning content by sharing live video feeds with us from around the world.  The kids are currently obsessed with the nests filled with babies and the caring mama's nurturing their littles!  Scroll down to their link for a special Mother's Day message...

We love, love, love their motto... Never Stop Learning!

Photo credit: Gooseberry Patch

"We ❤️ Moms"

"Moms make the world go 'round, and we see evidence of that every day on our nature and animal cams.

From panda mommas wrangling rascals to bald eagles who teach their young to be assertive with food, moms provide a vital foundation for all walks of life. Today we honor and recognize them with this compilation of touching mom moments, and hope you enjoy watching your favorite moms live on explore.org.

Never Stop Learning,

Your extended family at explore.org"

We Love Moms ~ Explore.org ~ One of our favourite live learning experiences ♥ 

 

Canadian Tiger Swallowtail... so many lovely butterflies visiting our backyard habitat:)

 The Canadian Tiger Swallowtail 

(Papilio canadensis), so pretty... 

We'll have to go around on the weekend to check out all the new blooms and new butterflies!

Here is our life cycle of a butterfly that can be found in our nature center:)  It's perfect for continuing the conversation and the learning... curiosity and inquiry♥

 

 All the butterflies are attracted to the lilacs.

We have 4 different kinds of butterflies we have had the privilege of documenting this year.  We've also been fortunate to have humming birds who frequent our fragrant blooms each year♥

 

Wildflower Farm hosts thousands of Monarch Butterflies

"What a Monarch Wants, What a Monarch Needs …

Posted: 18 May 2011 10:11 AM PDT

Monarchs feasting on a Meadow Blazingstar

During late July to September Wildflower Farm hosts thousands of Monarch Butterflies.  They come in the hundreds and swarm our Meadow Blazingstar plants (Liatris ligulistylis) to the point that the flowers droop with the weight of dozens of Monarchs.

Up until now we had not known why the Monarchs vied for the Meadow Blazingstar  more than its sibling, Prairie Blazingstar or any of our other delectable wildflowers.  Sure the Monarchs did all the rounds, visiting the coneflowers, bergamot, rudebeckias, ironweeds and so on.  But by far they preferred the Meadow Blazingstars. 

I had always thought the nectar of the Meadow Blazingstar was richer, but as it turns out it isn’t just the richness of the nectar (if that plays a role at all), its the way the nectar is offered.  Liatris ligulistylis belongs to the asteraceae family, which includes over 22,000 species such as sunflowers, coneflowers and no surprise asters.  One of the defining characteristics of the asteraceae family is that the flowers are made up of tiny little florets, providing the butterfly with an all you can eat smorgasbord.  Instead of flying from flower to flower, the butterfly can ‘just dip its proboscis into one floret after another’.  Meadow Blazingstars ‘are packed with these thin, soft, tubular florets’ that are tailor-made for the monarch’s proboscis making them the garden favourite. So for now a part of the Monarch Mystery is solved.  If anyone knows more on why butterflies choose certain flowers over another please let us know."

• For More wonderful Blog posts like these, please visit The Wildflower Farm.  We visit the Wildflower Farm every year and always come home with something special... The kids love just sitting in the grass and gazing at all the beautiful butterflies:D