I am assuming that those of you who have signed up to get my Garden Gang Alerts are wildlife gardeners, that you garden with native plants that serve as nectar plants and host plants for our butterflies and moths, that your yard hosts many birds that feed on those caterpillars, that you welcome all beneficial pollinators, not just butterflies and moths, including bees wasps, flies, beetles, and hummingbirds. If so, your gardens concentrate a super abundance of beneficial pollinators and you are obligated to notify any agencies or private companies that do spray for pest insects like mosquitoes and ticks in your neighborhood.
I am quite flabbergasted by folks who claim that spraying does not occur in their neighborhood. Do they know that with certainty? My neighborhood alone, during this drought summer (except for these crazy rain events), has already been sprayed three times (as of July 3, 2024) by the Cape May County Department of Mosquito Control. If I was not on the Cape May County Department of Mosquito Control’s “Notification List,” I would never know they’d sprayed. They do it at night (between 7:00 p.m. and Midnight or between 3:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m.), by truck, as they drive by.
So, please, for the well being of pollinators you’ve drawn in and concentrated (or if you keep bees, or if you garden organically), if you live here in Cape May County, New Jersey, where spraying for mosquitoes occurs regularly (in response to residents calling in and complaining), you can call and tell the Cape May County Department of Mosquito Control that you do not want your property sprayed.
Call the Cape May County Department of Mosquito Control 609-465-9038 Monday – Friday ( 7:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.) Ask to be put on their “Notification List” / “No Spray List” Be ready to provide: (1) your name, (2) snail mail address (street address), and (3) e-mail address (so they can notify you when spraying needs to be done in your town).
If you have called previously to be put on the “Notification List” (“No Spray List”), you will remain on this list indefinitely, unless you choose to be removed from the list by calling the Cape May County Department of Mosquito Control.
If you live in another county in New Jersey, where mosquito spraying also occurs, you can call your county mosquito department too and make this same request.
Mosquito Education
Regarding mosquito issues in your neighborhood, education is key. Prevention is the first step. Since mosquitoes need to breed in stagnant water, the most effective form of mosquito control is to remove all open containers to stop mosquito larvae from surviving in them. The non-native Asian Tiger Mosquito (above) breeds readily in man-made sites: saucers under plants, tires laying around, open buckets, etc. It is the main nuisance mosquito around homes and can be avoided. Kyle Rossner, an entomologist formerly with the Cape May County Department of Mosquito Control, created this MOSQUITO HABITAT CHECKLIST (click HERE) to help property owners resolve mosquito breeding sites they themselves may have created. Print this checklist and share it with any neighbors who call the Department of Mosquito Control and complain about mosquitoes or have signed on for treatments by a private company. There is a good chance they have caused the surge of mosquitoes themselves.
JUNE 9, 2024, UPDATE: As I was writing this post on June 4th we were starting to see Ruby-throated Hummingbirds trickle back to our feeders. While sitting on our screened back porch the evening of June 2nd Clay had a female visiting a nearby feeder regularly. I had both males and females hovering outside my office window (where I normally have a feeder hanging, but hadn’t hung one yet). On June 5th I hung that feeder and enjoyed a steady procession of hummingbirds (plus their buzzing wings distracted me). By June 7th some favorite feeders were emptying in two days. Sure enough, Japanese Honeysuckle was DONE! The garden is full of bugs for hummingbirds, but June is a relatively quiet time in my garden for hummingbird nectar plants, so feeders are key! As of June 9th, Coral Honeysuckle is no longer covered in blooms, but will continue to bloom sparsely until the frost. Lyre-leaved Sage, Wild Columbine, and Red Buckeye are all done (and in seed). Foxglove Beardtongue is waning. I can’t wait until the late June/early July hummingbird favorites bloom: Red Bee Balm, Wild Bergamot, Blazing Star, Trumpet Creeper, and many other nectar-rich & insect-rich natives!
Originally written on June 4, 2024
This past spring was one of our best springs for Ruby-throated Hummingbirds (I’ve peppered this post with photos from spring 2024). I’ll quantify that in a bit.
I hung our feeders on April 16, 2024, a little later than usual. That evening at 5:04 p.m. the first one appeared. In following days and weeks they were daily visitors to our five feeders, which are scattered around the yard so returning females can feed in peace and be more inclined to nest in our yard. Each day we witnessed chases, and a female came in to drink and bath several times at our fountain.
They were drawn to all the spring-blooming goodies I’ve planted to attract them (Lyre-leaved Sage, Wild Columbine, Coral Honeysuckle, Red Buckeye, Coral Bells, blueberries, and Pinxterbloom Azalea). Since their diet is also made up of soft-bodied insects (the protein they need), they find those “a plenty” in our half-acre of native plants.
By early May a few of our feeders were being emptied of their 2 ounces in 2 days. So, after washing these feeders (which I do every 7 days or sooner if the solution turns cloudy), I refilled them with 4 ounces of solution (instead of my normal 2 ounces for slow periods). Those feeders were also emptied in 2 days. Hmmmmm! This was unlike any spring we’ve experienced when 2 ounces per feeder easily lasts a week. This rather intense and steady Ruby-throated Hummingbird action lasted until the evening of May 18, 2024. Then they were gone, or so it seemed.
The next day I looked around and, sure enough, Japanese Honeysuckle had just begun to bloom, right on schedule. Each mid-May through mid-June Ruby-throated Hummingbird sightings drop off abruptly. Many assume that they’ve left, but in fact they are feeding on blooming Japanese Honeysuckle instead.
Tonight while sitting on our screened porch, Clay witnessed a female Ruby-throated Hummingbird come repeatedly to the feeder hanging from our back porch. Maybe she has young already. As I sit here on this cool June 3rd evening, the sweet scent of Japanese Honeysuckle drifts in my open window. Yes it is highly invasive, and we’ve removed it and are always on the lookout for seedlings in our woods and elsewhere on our property. But a mass of it covers the chain link fence that surrounds our backyard. Because it grows up and over the chain link fence from each of our neighbors’ yards (to either side), we let it be. It is too mighty a task to remove it.
We have a few more weeks of infrequent Ruby-throated Hummingbird sightings. Why? Because they will continue to feed instead on Japanese Honeysuckle as long as it is blooming (@ mid-May – mid-June). As a long-time naturalist and wildlife gardener, I’ve shared this observation/fact in my Hummingbird Fact Sheet for over 30 years now (point 5 under “Feeder Maintainance,”) but still people are caught by surprise when activity drops way off.
But they’ll be back, so be sure to keep your feeders well maintained with fresh solution. And be sure to provide native nectar plants they are drawn to, like Foxglove Beardtongue, a great native perennial during the quiet bloom period from late May to mid-June.
If any of your neighbors are swayed to hire one of the Mosquito and Tick Removal companies, speak to them about your hummingbirds and share that the sprays used by these companies impact hummingbirds, the insects they need to feed on, and many, many beneficial insects. Read my post, “Help! A Private Company is Spraying The Neighbor’s Yard for Mosquitoes.” It contains many more details on this topic. And just today, June 4, 2024, there was an excellent article on this topic (“What are Eco-Friendly Ways to Control Backyard Bugs“) from the New York Times climate desk.
This summer I am teaching a “Landscape Design With Birds & Pollinators in Mind” class twice in Avalon. These 2-hour indoor classes are co-sponsored by the Avalon Environmental Commission and the Avalon Free Public Library. The classes are FREE but registration is required. Details follow:
June 14 (Friday), 2:30-4:30 p.m. (same class offered Fri., August 16, but at a different location) “Landscape Design with Birds and Pollinators in Mind” by Pat Sutton Registration required; Space limited to 20 Where: Avalon at the Tennis Building, 250 39th St, Avalon, NJ 08202
August 16 (Friday), 2:30-4:30 p.m. (same 2-hr class offered Friday, June 14, but at a different location) “Landscape Design with Birds and Pollinators in Mind” by Pat Sutton Registration required; Space limited to 20 Where: Avalon Free Public Library, 235 32nd St, Avalon, NJ 08202
DETAILS ABOUT THESE CLASSES:
Registration is required.
For the June 14th CLASS Avalon property owners began registering May 17. Registration opened up to others on May 31.
For the August 16th CLASS Avalon property owners may register beginning July 19. All others may register beginning August 2.
To register, please call the Avalon Library at 609-967-7155 or stop by their circulation desk at 235 32nd St, Avalon, NJ 08202. At registration, participants will receive Pat Sutton’s handout, “Landscape Design with Pollinators and Birds in Mind,” which includes instructions on creating a sketch of their property required for the class. Be sure to read this handout over prior to the class so that you get as much as possible out of the class.
The property sketch should be emailed to Pat 3 days prior to the class (so by the end of the day on Tuesday, June 11th for the June 14th class and by the end of the day on Tuesday, August 13 for the August 16th class). The property sketch should have the registrant’s name in large, bold letters on the sketch in a spot that will be included when it is photographed or copied and sent to Pat. Photograph the property sketch (so that your name on the sketch shows up), and e-mail the jpg or pdf scan to Pat Sutton (Pat’s e-mail is at the top of her Landscape Design HANDOUT received upon registration). In the e-mail subject line registrants should enter: “Landscape Design – June 14 or August 16 (whichever day/class they signed up for) – their full name.” If you feel more comfortable sending Pat a few photos of the area you would like to transform into a native plant habitat, by all means send photos instead, but please don’t crash her computer with many HUGE photos. If you have any questions, reach out to Pat (but hopefully everything is explained in her handout and these instructions).
The first half of the class will cover resources and a slide program about the topic. During the second half of the class the group will brainstorm the projected images of each participant’s rough sketch. This brainstorming session should result in participants heading home with ideas and plans to enhance each of their properties for pollinators and birds.
Doug Tallamy is returning to Avalon, NJ, this August to present a brand new program. I’m intrigued and looking forward to hearing it. Like me, he gets e-mails, calls, and requests to answer questions folks have. Often, these requests are from folks who have read his 4 excellent books, heard him speak, jumped in to planting native plants, but they want and need more information. Well, Doug Tallamy plans to include many of those questions and his answers in this new program. Mark your calendar and don’t miss it!
Monday, August 26, 2024 7:00 p.m. Doug Tallamy presents: “I Know You’re Very Busy but … I want to learn more about nature gardening” WHERE: Avalon Community Center 3001 Avalon Avenue Avalon, NJ 08202 FREE, no preregistration needed
ABOUT THIS PROGRAM in Doug Tallamy’s words: Nearly every day I get emails from people who have read my books and heard my talks and yet still have questions about ecological landscaping. These are good, thoughtful questions about ecology and evolution, biodiversity, invasive species, insect declines, native and non-native plants, conservation and restoration, residential and city landscapes, urban issues, oak biology, keystone plants, Homegrown National Park, monarchs, supporting wildlife at home, and more. In this talk I address as many of these queries as I can with hope that my answers will further motivate people to help restore ecosystem function where they live, work, play, worship, and farm.
Doug Tallamy is the T. A. Baker Professor of Agriculture in the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware, where he has authored 111 research publications and has taught insect-related courses for 41 years. Chief among his research goals is to better understand the many ways insects interact with plants and how such interactions determine the diversity of animal communities. His books include Bringing Nature Home, The Living Landscape, co-authored with Rick Darke, Nature’s Best Hope, a New York Times Best Seller and The Nature of Oaks, which won the American Horticultural Society’s 2022 award. In 2021 he cofounded Homegrown National Park with Michelle Alfandari. His awards include recognition from The Garden Writer’s Association, Audubon, The National Wildlife Federation, Allegheny College, Ecoforesters, The Garden Club of America and The American Horticultural Association.
Change the course of dwindling bird, butterfly, and moth numbers by gardening for LIFE with native plants. Learn from the guru who has taught so many so much, Doug Tallamy: Entomologist, professor at the University of Delaware, and author of four highly educational, eye-opening, and award-winning books.
Don’t miss this opportunity to hear Doug Tallamy speak. Too, please spread the word. Let’s grow our numbers! Bring your friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, and your landscaper (so you can speak the same language)!
I’ve been chipping away at my wildlife gardens since sometime in March. I am quite sure that as recently as two weeks ago I could still easily spot all the baby Black Walnut trees coming up in my perennial gardens that squirrels had planted for me. I kept trying to bring that task up to the top of the list. Too, just two weeks ago there were many bare areas in the perennial garden. In just two weeks perennials have exploded, there are hardly any bare areas, and those Black Walnuts, well, good luck finding them now.
The lushness and fullness of a perennial garden in late May is joyful to behold. All of sudden my asters were three to four feet tall. So I got my clippers out and gave them and a few other fall-blooming perennials a HAIR CUT . I cut back New England Aster, Common Blue Wood Aster, Smooth Blue Aster, and Tall Sunflower (my stands of White Wood Aster did not yet need a haircut). Why haircuts, you might ask. It is quite simple. If you want these fall-blooming perennials bushy and full of flowers when they bloom, they need haircuts now, otherwise by fall they will be so top heavy that they are likely to flop over from the weight of flowers on long, unbranched stalks.
Years ago Flora for Fauna (native plant nursery) owner Karen Williams shared this sage advice about maintaining one of my favorite native perennials, New England Aster, and I’m about to share it with you. Though this post is for folks with plants that are several years old and flourishing, not for brand, spanking new plants that have just been put into the ground this year.
NEW ENGLAND ASTER 2 HAIR CUTS: Memorial Day & 4th of July
Blooming New England Aster is a magnet for Monarchs and other pollinators, here on October 2nd in my garden
New England Aster can get very tall and top heavy by the time it blooms in the fall. And the last thing any of us want is for its lovely spread of glowing purple flowers, nectar, and joy to be laying on the ground come fall.
To help it grow into a many-branched, bushy plant instead of a tall, gangly, top-heavy plant, all you need to do is to give it 2 hair cuts on or around the 1st two holidays of the growing season: Memorial Day and 4th of July. Of course these dates are not single-day events, but roughly when you want to give New England Aster its hair cuts. Too, you can be the judge if you need to do your hair cuts earlier, or even if the 2nd haircut is needed. With the cool and relatively wet (and very pleasant) spring we had in southern NJ in 2024, I noticed that my plants needed hair cuts quite a while ago. Know that you can jump start the process by several weeks to a month some years!
As a wildlife gardener I don’t clean up and toss the cuttings, but instead leave them on the ground at the base of the plant. That way any caterpillars that went for a tumble with the cuttings can climb back onto the plant and continue to munch. Doug Tallamy (author of Bringing Nature Home, Nature’s Best Hope, and The Nature of Oaks) shares that 112 species of butterflies and moths lay their eggs on our native asters, making asters one of the TOP 20 perennials used by butterflies and moths for egg laying. Don’t be surprised if some of your cuttings take root and become additional asters!
New England Aster in need of its first haircut, otherwise this plant will certainly flop come the fall blooming periodNew England Aster after its first haircut. I cut a good foot or two off the top of each stem (hedge trimmers work great . . . no need to be fussy and cut stem-by-stem).13 days later, the New England Aster is already branching heavily where each stem was cut.
Around Memorial Day, I cut each stem 1/2 (or 2/3) off (or about a foot or two off the top, depending on how tall it is, if that is easier for you to remember). I use big shears and just chop away. What happens next is that each cut plant stem sends out 2 or more new shoots where it has been cut, in other words it branches and becomes more bushy!
E. Cottontail caught in the act of giving Common Blue Wood Asters a hair cut on May 28th one year
Some of my asters get regular haircuts from plentiful E. Cottontails (they must think our yard is one large salad bowl crafted just for them). I’ve planted the lovely fall-blooming, shade loving Common Blue Wood Aster, Symphyotrichum cordifolium, under our Tulip Tree and in our woods. Despite hungry rabbits it has flourished and spread into other beds, our meadow, the perennial garden, and elsewhere and that pleases me. It is so plentiful that it keeps the rabbits busy and away from most other asters. We’ve fenced our yard, so deer are not an issue for us. But other gardeners share that deer routinely give their asters hair cuts.
If needed, around 4th of July, I give my plants their 2nd hair cut (not back to the 1st cut, but cutting back some of the new growth since Memorial Day). You may want to be more creative for this hair cut and cut the many stems in your plant different lengths. For instance, give the stems in the foreground more of a hair cut, the stems in the middle less of a hair cut, and the stems in the back just a little hair cut. This way your plant stems will bloom at different heights.
Summer 2024 Update: 2024 was a very odd (hopefully not the “new normal”) summer. Late May through all of June 2024 we experienced a severe drought in Goshen (Cape May County), NJ. We had no measurable rain for 6 weeks, coupled with a heat dome that hovered over us during the longest days of the year. It was brutal. Many native perennials suffered and barely grew. By July 4th, when I normally give some of my fall-blooming plants their 2nd haircut, it was totally unnecessary. Thankfully, we had some crazy-heavy rains that helped rejuvenate wildlife gardens (June 30 -July 1 we had 4.4″ and July 12-14 we had 5.85″ of rain — I submit daily rainfall to CoCoRaHS). One plant I did give a 2nd haircut to was my Tall (or Giant) Sunflower. And I did not do that until July 9, 2024. In my garden this summer nothing else has needed the 2nd haircut.
You may find that some plants haven’t grown as tall as others, so you may choose to pass on the 2nd hair cut for some plants. If so, you’ll find that these plants will bloom earlier. This staggers the blooming period so that you have New England Aster nectar, color, and joy far longer in your wildlife garden.
My garden on September 27th full of mounds of blooming asters, thanks to hair cuts earlier in the year.
A bit more advice: once given hair cuts, New England Aster has “ugly legs.” The stems below the 1st haircut look “not so nice” . . . the leaves darken and fall off and the stems are quite bare. So you’ll want to have other perennials in the foreground blocking that view, so you’re not looking at ugly bare legs.
You can give 1-2 haircuts to some other fall-blooming perennials that grow tall and flop, so they’ll instead branch and become more bushy: Goldenrod Sedum Sunflower
I love Tall (or Giant) Sunflowers and so do the Monarchs when they are migrating through in the fallBut if I’ve forgotten to give Tall (or Giant) Sunflower the 2 haircuts, it can be a beast to prop up or tie up, and keep from falling over, as you can seeSeaside Goldenrod chopped back after its 1st haircut. As it continues to grow I often spot stems I missed, grab the clippers and take care of business
For some summer-blooming plants that grow too tall for your garden, you can give them one haircut around Memorial Day, forcing them to branch, become bushier, and bloom lower. I sometimes do this with some of my favorite summer nectar plants so that I have an easier time seeing and photographing pollinators on them: Culver’s Root Garden Phlox (I tried this for the 1st time in 2023) Ironweed Joe-pye-weed Sneezeweed Blue Vervain various Bonesets
Culver’s Root responding to its haircut, branching nicely!I gave the Culver’s Root stems in the foreground a haircut, but left the back stems untouched. This way the untouched stems will bloom on time and the branching stems (due to a haircut) will bloom a bit later, and so the plant will offer nectar for a longer period
You can always experiment on other fall-blooming perennials that have flopped in your garden. If you’re not sure how hair cuts will turn out on plants other than those I’ve mentioned, try giving a hair cut to one stem ONLY (or if you have several plants of Cut-leafed Coneflower, for example, in your garden, give one of them hair cuts so you can compare results with your uncut plants). Then see how your plant reacts and whether you like the results.
Don’t hesitate to ask a question, but please use the Comment Box at the end of this post, so others can benefit from your question and my answer. Maybe scroll down through previous questions; you may find that your question is already answered.
This year I am excited to share that I will be leading tours of my wildlife garden for the first time since COVID. It’s been a long time since the last tour (2019) and I’ve missed sharing my wildlife habitat and all the wonder unfolding in it, plus it has evolved as I’ve learned more, as plants have grown and spread, and as I’ve acquired additional Chocolate Cake nectar and host plants. I will be leading these tours for CU Maurice River, a non-profit organization (registration will be required through CU Maurice River, not through me).
In this post I’ve included photos of the garden in late June when the tours will occur(as well as late June garden visitors). Don’t let the photos of ornate bees, flies, & wasps deter you from signing up for this tour. We’ve never been stung in our garden. All these beautiful pollinators are far too busy gathering nectar and pollen, avoiding predators, seeking mates, and selecting nest sites to show any interest in us! Details follow:
“Tours of Pat Sutton’s Private Wildlife Garden” 47 Years in the Making Saturday, June 29, 2024 (RAIN DATE: Sunday, June 30, 2024) Morning Session: 9:30 a.m. to Noon (SOLD OUT a/o 5-31-24) Afternoon Session: 2:00 to 4:30 p.m. (SOLD OUT a/o 5-31-24) Limit / Session: 20 COST/tour: $30 (CU Maurice River member), $40 (nonmember)
These tours are SOLD OUT as of 5-31-24. Please email [email protected] OR call (856) 300-5331 to get added to a waitlist
Contact CU Maurice River at the office (856) 300-5331 to register and pay for this garden tour or do so on their website. For the Morning Tour registerHERE. For the Afternoon Tour register HERE.
Sign up for the session that best fits your schedule (morning or afternoon tour), and join Pat Sutton for a late-June tour of her 47-year-old wildlife garden in Goshen (Cape May Co.), NJ, when some of her favorite nectar plants are in bloom and drawing in pollinators.
Pat’s gardens showcase the many different ways a habitat can offer food, cover, and water. This one-half acre property shelters 202 species of native plants, including 127 native perennials (plus Partridge Pea, a native annual), 60 native trees, shrubs, & vines; 9 native grasses, and 5 native ferns. Pat’s garden plant signage includes common & latin name, year planted, source of plant, and often specific wildlife that benefits from the plant. Pat’s wildlife habitat includes two wildlife ponds (that numerous frogs, toads, dragonflies, and damselflies breed in), many and different water features, bird and butterfly feeding stations, a pocket meadow of wildflowers and grasses (see 1st photo in this post), extensive shade gardens in under shade trees, wildlife corridors, shrub islands, a woodland of native plants (saved from a jungle of Multiflora Rose and Japanese Honeysuckle in 2009), and a full-sun pollinator garden.
Over the 46 years Pat & Clay have lived at this site (since 1977), they’ve tallied 213 bird species including such unlikely species as Varied Thrush, Pileated Woodpecker, Golden-crowned Sparrow, and Black-headed Grosbeak (wintered). They’ve also tallied 79 butterfly species (the 2nd highest butterfly yard list in NJ)! But a real scare in the last 6 or so years has been a drastic drop in diversity and numbers of butterflies (and moths), despite Pat continually adding to their property’s offering of native nectar & host plants.
Fortunately, other pollinators (bees, wasps, flies, day-flying moths, and beetles) caught Pat’s fancy. They seemed to be abundant, but in reality, they too are probably far fewer during today’s “Insect Crisis,” than they once were. Pat readily admits that “in the good old days, we were so dazzled by the clouds of butterflies dashing about the garden that we barely noticed the other pollinators.”
With less travel during the Pandemic, Pat explored her wildlife gardens almost daily, savoring the myriad of native plants and the many pollinators attracted to them. In previous years she’d dabbled at learning bee, wasp, and fly pollinators, but they are tough! With the help of iNaturalist and Heather Holm’s book Wasps, she earnestly studied and documented the pollinators benefiting from her wildlife habitat.
Late in 2023, Pat was given hope (and great joy) when she tallied up the pollinators (beyond butterflies) benefiting from their diverse ½ acre property. She’d photographed 111 pollinators, including: 37 wasps, 31 flies, 26 bees, 9 beetles, and 8 diurnal moths nectaring in the gardens. That project is ongoing. You can check out Pat’s iNaturalist sightings HERE(once there click on “Sightings”).
During this tour you are sure to see butterflies and many of the other pollinators that have caught Pat’s fancy, Ruby-throated Hummingbirds and other songbirds, and learn of many native nectar and host plants, as well as enjoy many fun garden features and design ideas.
This totally educational experience will benefit and dazzle long-time gardeners and new-to-wildlife-gardening participants alike.
Native plants will be available for sale at two nearby sites the day of these tours.
Upon registration, participants will receive instructions for the tour.
I’ve had fun updating the page about “Our Wildlife Garden,” which is a history of how our garden came about, changes over time as I learned more and more, and recent additions with each new native plant nursery that is born in our area (and that I want to support). You can find this page in the top “ABOUT” header, which also includes a page about me, another about Clay, and another about media covering us.
An amazing friend helped me move my website to Go Daddy on March 7, 2024. After a wonderful week in South Carolina, I had a chance today, March 19th, to speak to Constant Contact (the fee-based service I subscribe to for my Garden Gang alerts) and they reassure me that both “Join Pat’s Gardening Gang” buttons / links on my website are working. YEA!
So, if you are not already a member (already getting my e-mailed alerts) and would like to learn of programs and workshops I am giving hither & yon, wildlife garden tours I am leading, wildlife garden tips, nature notes (like when to expect returning hummingbirds), reminders of native plant sales, excellent learning opportunities, etc. sign up today!
My garden is largely made up of natives, but I love hummingbirds and they love Cannas. I have added some non-native hummingbird favorites, as long as they are not problematic (invasive) and Cannas fit that category. They bloom all summer and fall until the first frost.
Those of you with Cannas will want to dig up their tubers, if you haven’t already, before the ground freezes hard. I normally dig mine up sometime in November or December for the winter. This year I just tackled the task on January 6th. If you haven’t done so yet, use a mild day to get this task done before winter sets in.
If the task of digging them ALL up is just too much for you (as it is for me) , dig up just enough tubers (from just a few of your plants) so you’re sure to have enough to plant in all your favorite spots next spring (where tubers you left in the ground rotted over the winter). Now that I’ve grown older and wiser, that’s what I do and my back is much happier with this decision.
You could leave your Canna tubers in the ground, but some, if not all of them, may ROT over the winter. I’ve found that most of the Cannas growing in a sheltered, south-facing garden in my front yard survive the winter and resprout nicely each spring. So I leave those in the ground and the bulk of them survive. But nearly all the Canna tubers in my backyard gardens rot over the winter, so those are the ones I dig up each late fall / early winter. If you do dig up Canna tubers and store them properly over the winter, you’ll have viable tubers to plant the following spring plus many extras to give away to family, friends, co-workers, and neighbors.
Canna tubers multiply! The other day when I dug up 7 Canna tubers I’d planted spring of 2023, my wheelbarrow filled with 50-60 tubers. Yes, while tapping them on my wheelbarrow to get all the embedded dirt off, many broke into pieces, but that’s OK!. Each will produce Cannas in spring when planted.
Tubers dug up from only 7 plants
HOW TO WINTER OVER YOUR CANNA TUBERS
I dig my Canna tubers up in late November or December, or some years later (before the ground freezes). My step-by-step process follows:
This is what Cannas look like after the first frost, browned and limp, no longer green
I cut the stems off at the ground to make the task of digging the tubers up more manageable
I scrape away any mulch to expose all the tubers
By fall, one small tuber planted in spring has multiplied into a sprawling array of tubers
With a shovel or pitch fork I dig down under the tubers (placing my shovel well outside the exposed tubers). I loosen the tubers and pry the enormous mass out of the ground
You can break big ones apart into smaller and more manageable tubers
Tap the dirt off the Canna tubers
Place a large plastic bag in a shallow tray or a crate
Put a layer of dry leaves, shredded newspaper, or dry pine needles in the bottom of the bag (to act as insulation against freezing)
Lay the Canna tubers on top
Cover the top layer of Canna tubers with more dry leaves, shredded newspaper, or pine needles (to protect them from a brutal cold winter). Tuck more of the insulating material (leaves, pine needles) down around the edges.
Pull the bag shut
We put our Canna tubers in the crawl space under our house because we don’t have a garage or basement. A friend with a basement, puts hers into trash cans with leaves or shredded newspaper and keeps them in her basement. You could probably store the crate or trash can full of Canna tubers in a garage as well.
We’ve recycled a friend’s grape tray (that he gave us after wine making) and use it to contain our bag of tubers nestled in pine needles. It is shallow so we can easily slide it into our crawl space under the house
PLANTING CANNAS IN SPRING
Once the ground is warm, plant single canna tubers here and there around the garden in spots that get full sun. They are a lovely accent in the garden. Or you might enjoy planting a border or a circular bed of them (they make a great “hide and seek” spot for kids to play in).
Don’t plant your canna tubers too deep, otherwise they’ll take forever to peek through the soil & bloom. Simply scrape away a shallow area (not a deep hole), lay down the Canna tuber, and cover it with a thin layer of soil.
One tuber will grow into several tubers (sometimes numerous tubers) and send up a number of stalks that will bloom all summer and right through late fall until the first frost, drawing in constant nectaring hummingbirds.
Over the course of the growing season I regularly deadhead spent flowers, careful not to cut off the next bud.
BRAZILIAN SKIPPER
Between 2018 and 2021, there were quite a few Brazilian Skippers sightings in southern NJ, well north of their normal range (but zero sightings in 2022 and 2023). Brazilian Skippers lay their eggs on Canna leaves to create the next generation. Many of us with Cannas had an opportunity to study the entire life cycle of this cool southern butterfly. The eggs are creamy white and often laid here and there (as a single egg) on top of Canna leaves. Once the caterpillar hatches it makes its way to the edge of a Canna leaf, makes two cuts (or chews), folds the bit of leaf in between over, zippers it shut with silk, and hides inside.
If and when we have another good Brazilian Skipper year, look for these tell tale folded over leaf edges to find your first Brazilian Skipper caterpillars. Monitor their growth and you’ll be sure to also find their large chrysalis. Be careful not to be too nosy, or you may attract predators to the Brazilian Skippers’ hidey hole.
As part of the Avalon Environmental Commission’s “Pollinator Garden Series” (click on underlined text to see other programs I will be doing in Avalon in August and September) I will be leading a tour of two private backyard habitats in Avalon, NJ, next Wednesday, August 9, 2023, from 9:30 – 11:30 am. The Avalon Environmental Commission is hosting this tour. Donna Rothman, Chair of the Avalon Environmental Commission, will be sharing her garden on this tour.
One garden has been transitioning to native plantings for wildlife for some time. In this garden participants will get to see some sizable native trees and shrubs that are hugely beneficial to migrant and breeding birds, as well as butterflies and moths for egg laying. Native perennials have been added as well, including milkweed, to beds of ornamentals.
Lisa McNichol enjoying her flourishing pollinator garden
The second garden is brand spanking new as of last May (planted May 23, 2022). By August 2022, when only three months old, this 12′ x 25′ native plant pollinator garden was already drawing in butterflies, egg-laying Monarchs and Black Swallowtails, native bees, flies, and wasps (all beneficial pollinators), and birds. It has been a haven and teaching garden ever since for the owners’ two grandsons as they studied the life cycles of Monarchs and Black Swallowtails.
Join me if you can. We’ll meet at the Avalon Pollinator Garden (71st Street and Ocean Drive, Avalon, NJ) in Armacost Park, orient participants, and soon after drive (in our respective cars) to the 1st garden, then on to the 2nd garden. Please arrive promptly (shortly before 9:30 a.m.) to be oriented for the tour and so that we can leave shortly after to have as much time as possible in the two gardens.
Tour Two Private Backyard Habitats in Avalon, NJ with Pat Sutton and the Garden Owners Wed., August 9, 2023 (Rain Date: August 10) 9:30 am – 11:30 am
All are welcome. FREE. No preregistration necessary.
Meet at Avalon Pollinator Garden on 71st Street and Ocean Drive in Avalon, NJ, for orientation, then participants find their way to the two private yards in Avalon.
TOO, if you haven’t marked your calendar yet, DO NOT MISS Doug Tallamy’s upcoming presentation in Avalon, NJ, on Mon., August 28, at 7:00 pm, “Homegrown National Park,” where you will learn the importance of landscaping with native plants to life itself! Details HERE and HERE).
Learn all about our MOTTO, “Plant it, a NATIVE PLANT GARDEN, and they will come!”
Pat
Hi Gang,
I am quite flabbergasted by folks who claim that spraying does not occur in their neighborhood. Do they know that with certainty? My neighborhood alone, during this drought summer (except for these crazy rain events), has already been sprayed three times (as of July 3, 2024) by the Cape May County Department of Mosquito Control. If I was not on the Cape May County Department of Mosquito Control’s “Notification List,” I would never know they’d sprayed. They do it at night (between 7:00 p.m. and Midnight or between 3:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m.), by truck, as they drive by.
So, please, for the well being of pollinators you’ve drawn in and concentrated (or if you keep bees, or if you garden organically), if you live here in Cape May County, New Jersey, where spraying for mosquitoes occurs regularly (in response to residents calling in and complaining), you can call and tell the Cape May County Department of Mosquito Control that you do not want your property sprayed.
Mosquito Education
