Outside of their screened porch Kai Andrews and Marc Speiss have created a garden patch that takes advantage of water that runs off their roof. Swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata), the tall plant, is a larval food for monarch butterflies, so they and their son Ronan can enjoy seeing the cycle of life. This milkweed usually has pink flowers, but their population is white-flowered.
Other flowers in this bed include Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) …
… red-flowered tropical sage (Salvia coccinea) …
… and winged loosestrife (Lythrum alatum), a lovely blue-flowered wildflower that “volunteered” …
Red mangrove propagules (Rhizophora mangle) grow in a ceramic pot along with herb-of-grace (Bacopa monnieri), a larval host of the white peacock butterfly …
On the other side of the door grows lots of turkey tangle frog fruit (Phyla nodiflora), larval food for white peacock, phaon crescent, and common buckeye butterflies, asa well as wonderful nectar source for pollinators …
Their creative use of a small space that takes advantage of moist conditions is part of an attractive landscape that delights people of all ages …
… and provides habitat for wildlife …
Click here to see more photos of this inspirational yard that we visited on 7/23 & 7/24.
Eugenia Chapter - Florida Native Plant Society 