OMG - what gorgeous plants, flowers, and cats. I love the pitcher plant (assuming it was growing in boggy situation?). The lobelia is stunning. Is dog fennel hardy? I'm gonna have to check that one out.

Thanks for sharing your gorgeous images, BTG! I'd love to try some gerardia, but is that the one that is parasitic on other plants? I tried to grow some from seed in a flat, and I guess that's why it didn't work. Next time I'll just throw the seeds out in the weeds! LOL!

Susan

Beautiful pictures! What a blessing to have such habitat for the critters. Is seed available for that Gerardia? I'd love to throw some out in the corner of the yard in my "natural" area.

The Cardinal flower is such a wonderful plant. Once it finds a good place to grow, it rewards with such wonderful flowers and visitors.

Will you have your Big Thicket Habitat open to visitors?
It looks like an incredible place.

Sandy

Gorgeous! What a wonderful habitat. I'm sure that the plentiful rains helped.

I've never seen a lobelia look so happy.

Thanks for sharing.

Those are the most gorgeous red lobelias I've ever seen!
And the gerardia/agalinis looks like mine now - blooming everywhere. Only difference is, I haven't found any cats on mine, so I may check the plants growing nearby.
I noticed a lot of goatweed/croton of some variety in the first picture. Did you check for leafrolls with leafwing cats in them?
MissSherry

MissSherry - I hate to ask - but we can always use croton seeds here. You simply can't find them online at all. Many of us northerners have them all year round, so if they produce seed, perhaps you could send some to Michelle for distribution???? It would be so gratifying to have some seeds to start. I have some that I am sharing with Sandy, but more would certainly be welcome for us and others who'd like to have their host plant available.

Susan

Monet would have fell in love with your garden. It's beautiful!

Edna

Yes, I'll do that. I haven't participated in the seed swap, because I'm so busy with planting, planting and cleaning up the property.
MissSherry

Yes, the white topped pitcher plant is in area that stays relatively damp. Dogfennel (Eupatorium capillifolium) is a stately native weed. I found it to be easily managed, but it gives a distinctive odor when broken or burnt. It may be what gave me a very wierd feeling in the head, but it didn't last long, so it could potentially be allergenic to some.

This is sort of funny - http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/54505/

This wikipedia says that dogfennel is host for the scarlet bodied wasp moth.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eupatorium_capillifolium

Agalinis are hemiparasitic, perhaps, some more than others.

Does anyone know if any Agalinis lack chlorophyl entirely?

Several of them are endangered in parts of their range.

http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=AGALI

Yes, my preserves are open to visitors, I gave my first tours this Fall. It was absolutely amazing, on the first tours of both of the preserves there were more butterflies than I had ever seen at either before, or anywhere else in my life for that matter. I selected both of these properties for the diverse plant communities already in place.

The one in the Big Thicket is currently threatened by a major oil and gas company that wants to drill right beside it, part of the drill site, overlaps the preserve.

At first this seemed like a dream crusher, however, I really feel that the Almighty led me to and allowed me this property. I accept the fact that divine will often takes a different course than our own personal ego's. So I am making myself available to make lemonade out of lemons.

We'll see how things progress. It will be interesting to say the least.

Oh, yes, and we saw Pvs at the BT preserve, for the first time, there, and they showed up in bunches!

They seemed noticeably larger than the ones that I normally see.

I have both goatweed and gerardia seed available for trade.

I would like any type of Asclepias other than curassavica or tuberosa.

I also have pint sized or 4" A. tuberosa for trade for other types of Asclepias of same size.

I am interested in trading for both seeds. I have lots of Asclepias Incarnata seed. This particular AI plant was totally covered with flowers and has produced over 2 cups of seed. It is a pink color. I can share a bunch of these seeds. I can give you a few, about 6, Sullivan seed and a few Common Milkweed seed also.

You can email me on my page.

OKSandy

Well, if I needed any selling on the Lobelia, you just did it! My wife and I were talking about putting some in an unfortunate patch that has failed to keep two different kinds of Salvia (guaranitica, which was not frost-resistant enough; and nemorosa, which somehow can't survive when there's a 10" rain deficit...)

(AND, the L. cardinalis is a MD native :)

Jeff

L. cardinalis is one of my favorite plants. It is all over the place at the Essex preserve. Hummers and butterlies really like it, especially palamedes swallowtails.

It has a long bloom period too.

Some of the ones in the pic, or some of the ones on the other side, were about six foot tall! They usually don't get that big.

Oh, boy, I'm tickleder pink than pink ol' elephant!

No, oil well on the preserve Thank you God!!!

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU

atleast not for now anyway, blessed be, por favor.

Thank you for answering my prayers, and let it remain so.