Pollinator Habitat Demonstration Gardens: Groundwork!

Guest Post by Anne Dannenburg

The Birds of Vermont Museum and the Huntington Historical and Community Trust are collaborating on developing Pollinator Habitat Demonstration Gardens. This project is an effective partnership between Huntington’s two non-profit organizations whose missions include enhancement of rural landscapes for wildlife as well as community outreach and education.

Over the period of 2 – 3 years, the gardens will be created on the Birds of Vermont Museum property. The Huntington Historical and Community Trust received a $1500 grant from the Norcross Wildlife Foundation, providing start-up funds for garden establishment and the initial educational materials.

The project will rely on volunteers for much of the work including turf removal, soil preparation and planting… so, we need your help! If you can lend a hand, please contact either of the Pollinator Gardens co-directors: Erin Talmage (Birds of Vermont Museum) at 802 434-2167 and Anne Dannenberg (Huntington Historical and Community Trust) 802 434-3901.

Stop in and see the project progress. [Anne has been working incredibly hard! –KJT, ed.] The Museum is open daily through the month of October, and by appointment through the winter. Our trails are open from sunrise to sunset year-round.

Highlights of July 8th Butterfly Walk

We could not have asked for better weather during the July 8th ButterflyWalk. Clear blue skies and comfortable temperatures welcomed the eighteen nature lovers that joined Vermont Entomological Society naturalists and entomologists for an exploratory stroll on the Birds of Vermont Museum grounds.  Make sure to check out the list of the many butterflies, insects, and other miscellaneous critters participants got to experience up close!

To learn more about the Vermont Entomological Society check out their website, where you can find gorgeous photos and information about the society.

Atlantis Fritillary similar to the one above were sighted during the July 8th Butterfly Walk.

Butterflies, Insects, and Misc. Critters viewed on July 8th:

Butterflies:

  • Atlantis Fritillary Butterfly
  • Clouded Sulphurs Butterfly (male)
  • Dun Skipper Butterfly
  • Monarch Butterfly
  • Question Mark Butterfly
  • Azure Butterfly
  • Northern Pearly Eye Butterfly
  • Red Admiral Butterfly

Moths:

  • Sod Grass Veneer Moth
  • Mottled Snout Moth
  • Gypsy Moth (caterpillar)
  • Plume Moth
Misc. Flying Species:
  • Enallagma Skimming Bluet (blue damselfly)
  • Bright Green Damselfly
  • 12-Spotted Skimmer Dragonfly
  • Red Dragon Fly
  • Dragon Fly (exoskeleton)
  • Crane Fly
  • Scorpion Fly (female)
  • Serpent Fly (mimics wasp)

Beetles:

  • Click Beetle
  • Japanese Beetle
  • Whirligig Beetle
  • Case-bearing Leaf Beetle

Other Species:

  • Bush Katydid
  • Grey Grasshopper (gripped and turned a dime – VERY IMPRESSIVE!)
  • Large Tan Spider(male)
  • Crab Spider (3 sighted, 1 was eating another insect)
  • Water Boatman
  • Water Scorpion
  • Frogs & Tadpoles
  • Leeches
  • Salamanders
  • Raven (heard)
  • Black Billed Cuckoo (heard and sighted)
Interested in identifying butterflies in your own backyard? Check out “Gardens With Wings” for help identifying butterflies by their shape, wingspan, opened and closed wing color, common name and family name.

Highlights of July 8th Butterfly Walk

We could not have asked for better weather during the July 8th ButterflyWalk. Clear blue skies and comfortable temperatures welcomed the eighteen nature lovers that joined Vermont Entomological Society naturalists and entomologists for an exploratory stroll on the Birds of Vermont Museum grounds.  Make sure to check out the list of the many butterflies, insects, and other miscellaneous critters participants got to experience up close!

To learn more about the Vermont Entomological Society check out their website, where you can find gorgeous photos and information about the society.

Atlantis Fritillary similar to the one above were sighted during the July 8th Butterfly Walk.

Butterflies, Insects, and Misc. Critters viewed on July 8th:

Butterflies:

  • Atlantis Fritillary Butterfly
  • Clouded Sulphurs Butterfly (male)
  • Dun Skipper Butterfly
  • Monarch Butterfly
  • Question Mark Butterfly
  • Azure Butterfly
  • Northern Pearly Eye Butterfly
  • Red Admiral Butterfly

Moths:

  • Sod Grass Veneer Moth
  • Mottled Snout Moth
  • Gypsy Moth (caterpillar)
  • Plume Moth
Misc. Flying Species:
  • Enallagma Skimming Bluet (blue damselfly)
  • Bright Green Damselfly
  • 12-Spotted Skimmer Dragonfly
  • Red Dragon Fly
  • Dragon Fly (exoskeleton)
  • Crane Fly
  • Scorpion Fly (female)
  • Serpent Fly (mimics wasp)

Beetles:

  • Click Beetle
  • Japanese Beetle
  • Whirligig Beetle
  • Case-bearing Leaf Beetle

Other Species:

  • Bush Katydid
  • Grey Grasshopper (gripped and turned a dime – VERY IMPRESSIVE!)
  • Large Tan Spider(male)
  • Crab Spider (3 sited, 1 was eating another insect)
  • Water Boatman
  • Water Scorpion
  • Frogs & Tadpoles
  • Leeches
  • Salamanders
  • Raven (heard)
  • Black Billed Cuckoo (heard and sighted)
Interested in identifying butterflies in your own backyard? Check out “Gardens With Wings” for help identifying butterflies by their shape, wingspan, opened and closed wing color, common name and family name.

Through the Window: September Feeder Birds

Against the shifting foliage, we’ve seen many birds (some the last of the year, as they migrate southwards).  Nearby, we also observed a mammal of some note!

Birds:

  • Blue Jay
  • Grackle
  • Hairy Woodpecker
  • Downy Woodpecker
  • Ruby-throated Hummingbird (last male on 9/7/2010; last female on 9/14/2010)
  • Purple Finch
  • Red-breasted Nuthatch
  • White-breasted Nuthatch
  • American Goldfinch
  • Mourning Dove
  • Tufted Titmouse
  • Dark-eyed Junco
  • Rose-breasted Grosbeak (still here 9/11/2010)
  • Northern Cardinal
  • Black-capped chickadee
  • White-throated Sparrow (9/17/2010, 9/29/2010)
  • Easter Phoebe
  • Pileated Woodpecker — swooping over and museum
  • Song Sparrow
  • Bluebird (9/28, 11:30 a.m.)

Mammal:

  • Bobcat sighted by a cyclist on 9/20/2010 at 1:33 p.m., just north of museum parking lot on Sherman Hollow Road

And something you can’t actually see from the window, but must get up and walk to:

Autumn Flowers at the Birds of Vermont Museum
Autumn Flowers at the Birds of Vermont Museum. Photo taken in September 2005 in the field between the road and the pond.

Garden Blog #4 Guest Post by Nic Cormier 8/3/10

Planting continues in the new garden, and around the Museum. The Irises have been planted in the small bed beneath the welcome bulletin board along the path that leads to the Museum. We also obtained some Coreopsis (Tickseed) plants, planted at the entrance to the keyhole pathway, and Garden Phlox which I planted near the Cosmos and Penstemon. The new Red Bee Balm had been getting munched by the local woodchuck so Allison and I dug a small trench around the flowers and drove wooden stakes in along the trench. We then buried the bottom of the chicken wire in the trench and used carpenter staples to secure it to the stakes. This seems to be holding up fine for now but the next step would be to acquire some large rocks to place around the fence to prevent the woodchuck from being able to dig at all. Brian Valentine will be donating more Red Bee Balm to replace that which the woodchuck ate.

Erin found me an old bird house in Bob’s workshop a couple of weeks ago to use in the garden. So far all I’ve had time to do is to sand it down and clean it up a bit. The idea is to make it not only look nice but to make it sound enough to have soil and plants on its roof. To do this I will cut some pieces of wood to make a border around the roof about two or three inches high that will hold soil. In this border I will cut holes near the base so all excess water will drain out. Once that is all set we will erect it in the garden with squirrel shields and put the soil on it and plant some small plants like Thyme in the soil.

Right now there isn’t a whole lot else going on. The Cosmos are still flowering along with the Thistle, Marigolds, Garden Phlox, Pink Penstemon, Blue Lobelia, Dwarf Solomon’s Seal, Pink Turtlehead, Purple Coneflower and Dianthus (in the more shaded and weedy spots).

7/17/10 Garden Journal #3

Guest Post by Nic Cormier, Education Intern

Last week we got a responses to our post that we had put on the Front Porch Forum asking if anyone had any flowers or plant donations for our gardens. Ms. Janet Labelle, who lives just down the road from the museum, invited us to her home to see if there were any plants she had that we wanted. By the end of the visit, she had kindly donated Pink Penstemon, Wild Columbine, Hazelnut/Filbert crosses, and Bee Balm. That same day Mr. Bill Mayville donated some red and purple Bee Balm and planted them himself. This week Bill also brought us old slabs of rock, which had been a foundation to a house, for our rock paths and keyhole garden. Erin’s neighbors, the Zimmerman’s, recently cut down and chipped a few old trees in their yard. They said we can go anytime and take as much as we need for mulch, which we have been using steadily for the past few days. Thanks to all for the donations.

We still have a bucket of Irises brought to us by Rick that have yet to be planted. A few Trumpet Vines need a trellis before they can be planted near the viewing window, and a couple of Stonecrops that will be going in near the rock wall in the feeding yard. We are currently working on creating a keyhole garden with a stone walk-way for a fun element to the garden as well as a walk-way to a compost pile and another to the sewage pipe, both of which will be rock pathways. In the center of the keyhole we plan to erect either a bird bath that we make or a bird house with a roof that holds soil and can be planted with a short flowering plant.

Some plants that are still on the wish-list are Spicebush, Coreopsis, Turtlehead, Cardinal Flower, Winterberry Holly and Butterfly Bush, but we would also take almost anything that is donated.

On rainy days I have been working on the signage and guide that will be used. It is exciting seeing the whole project come together from thoughts to paper to reality.

7/3/10 Garden Journal #2

Guest post by Nic Cormier, Education Intern

Until last week the garden bordering the lawn had not been worked in almost five years. A few previously planted perennials managed to keep a foothold among the abundant “weeds”.  Additional native flowers, sometimes considered weeds, were also uncovered. We plan to open it back up and bring some order to the garden once more. The goal is to make a garden that attracts birds and butterflies, using primarily native plants. We want this to be an educational tool for visitors as well, who will see what we have done/are doing and hopefully feel inspired and empowered to do something similar in their backyard.

Last week we took some time and cleaned out plants that we didn’t want in a ten foot by five foot section. We left the plants we liked and knew were beneficial to wildlife. Interspersed within these we planted Marigolds, Astilbe, Bleeding Heart, Foxglove, Snapdragons, Cosmos, Dwarf Spirea, Salvia spp. and Black-eyed Susan. We also released a Coneflower, Black-eyed Susan, Sweet William, Mystery Plant (see picture) and Hemp Nettle. The plants that we put in (minus the Black-eyed Susan) were all donated from Pleasant Mount Farm. (Thank you Heidi!)

We also drew up plans for future gardens, and now we are looking for some plants that may be donated or sold at discount.  (The Museum is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization, for contact info see www.birdsofvermont.org)

Here is a list of what were looking for:

Chokeberry- Aronia ssp.

Spicebush- Lindera benzoin

Columbine- Aquilegia ssp.

Butterfly Bush- Buddleia ssp.

Swamp Milkweed- Asclepias incarnata

Turtlehead- Chelone glabra

Fireweed- Epilobium angustifolium

Cardinal Flower- Lobelia cardinalis

Bee Balm – Monarda ssp.

We would greatly appreciate any and all donations and/or inquiries into places where we could get them. As stated before we are trying to make the garden as native as we can but we will not say no to non-native species, unless they are invasive.

Below is our mystery plant. Do you know what it is?

6/15/10 Garden Journal

Guest Post by Nic Cormier, Education Intern

Last weekend, Erin and I took a walk around the gardens talking about what should be done with what and where. While we were in the more open section we noticed some interesting flowers that neither of us had seen before. They are round and some of them are multicolored, red, red/pink or pink/white. The unopened blossoms look very much like green Sea Anemone’s (spiky and round). There are also 2 other flowers we don’t quite know what they are, both are growing in mostly shaded areas and are about 2 to 3 feet in height. The first has leaves that resemble the Rosaceae family, like Sumac or Mountain-ash and at the top of the stem is a cluster of small pink/white flowers. The second is about the same size but has small pinkish flowers all up the stalk, the flower petals are pulled back like a Lilly and the anthers are long and black.

So far things we know we have are Bladder Campion, Snapdragons, Petunias, Thistles, White-Cedar, Christmas Fern, Sensitive Fern, either Ladies Fern or something like it, Wild Geraniums, Spotted Jewelweed, Blu Flag Iris, Yellow Iris, Bleeding Hearts, Forget-me-nots, Wild Bergamot and cultivated Bee-balm, Lasy’s Mantle, Lilacs, an ornamental Willow, Raspberries, Sedums, Dame’s Rocket, Lupines, Goldenrod, Milkweed, Oxeye Daisy, Chives, Wild Strawberris, Skunk Currant, Tall Buttercup, Creeping Buttercup, Self-heal, Ground Ivy, and of course Dandelions.

There are plenty more that we have not I.D.’d yet but were working on it. Our main goal is to have a Bird and Butterfly Garden of Native New England/Vermont plants and through this blog we can instruct people of the species benefited by the plants and hopefully get some feedback on what others have learned so please, we encourage all voices and opinions on this subject!