Backyard Orchard News
Lady Beetles: The First Ladies of the Garden Having a Ball
See those red spots on your milkweed seed pods? Lady beetles (aka ladybugs or "garden heroes") are...
A lady beetle feasts on aphids on a milkweed plant, Gomphocarpus physocarpus, also known as balloon-plant milkweed or hairy balls. Note the spiky hairs. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Peek-a-boo? Or peek-a-beetle? A lady beetle, resplendent in red, crawls through the spiky hairs of milkweed seed pods. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Hurry! A lady beetle snags aphids on a milkweed seed pod, while other aphids try to escape (far right). (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
What This Katydid Did...
It's not a question of whether katydid did or didn't. She did. In answer to...
Who goes there? That would be a katydid peeking out between yellow rose petals. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The green katydid cannot camouflage itself on a yellow rose. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Bottoms up! A katydid tunnels into a yellow rose. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Once Upon a Monarch...
We first saw her at 10 a.m. on Oct. 27, 2017. She was eating. That's what monarch caterpillars do...
A monarch caterpillar dines on tropical milkweed on Oct. 27, 2017 in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The monarch caterpillar, found Oct. 27 on milkweed in Vacaville, Calif., formed this chrysalis on Nov. 4. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
On Nov. 22, the chrysalis darkened, revealing the iconic orange, black and white wings of the monarch in all its transparency. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
On Nov. 22, the monarch eclosed. It's a girl! Here she clings to her pupal case. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Monarch Mom Rita LeRoy, farm keeper at Loma Vista Farm, Vallejo, is ready to release the Vacaville-born and reared monarch at the butterfly sanctuary at Natural Bridges State Park, Santa Cruz, on Nov. 24.
Guess How Many Are Coming to Dinner?
Set a plate for one and you might get three more diners. Such was the case recently in a Sonoma...
Dinner for one? One and done! (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Dinner for two? This is something new! (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Dinner for three? Let's all say "Whee!" (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Dinner for four? We can accommodate even more! (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A Royal Moment with a Queen Bumble Bee
It's Thanksgiving Day and time to give thanks for NOT what we WANT, but what we HAVE. And, not for...
A queen bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, nectaring on Salvia indigo spires in Kate Frey's pollinator garden on Nov. 12, 2017 at the Sonoma Cornerstone. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The queen Bombus vosnesenskii begins her bumble bee acrobatics in the Kate Frey pollinator garden, Sonoma Cornerstone. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Ah, nectar. The queen bumble bee extends her tongue (proboscis). (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)