Scientific Name: Colias philodice
Family: Pieridae
Native Range: North America, Pennsylvania
Size:
Active:
Color and Appearance:
Scientific Name: Papilio polyxenes
Family: Papilionidae
Native Range:
Size: Medium, 10 – 15 mm (0.4 – 0.6 in)*
Nest: Social, colony*
Nesting Location: Human-made hives, tree cavities, tree limbs or branches*
Nest Materials: Hexagonal cells of wax*
Active: Early spring – late fall*
Color and Appearance: Black with golden hairs*
Pollen Collection: Pollen baskets on hind legs (coriculae)*
Flight Distance: ~ 2 miles, 3.2 km*
*From Heather Holm, Pollinators of Native Plants: Attract, Observe and Identify Pollinators and Beneficial Insects with Native Plants. Minetonka: Pollination Press, LLC, 2014., p. 267.
Scientific Name: Strymon melinus
Family: Lycaenidae
Native Range: Throughout North and Central American and northern South America
Size:
Active: Early spring – late fall*
Color and Appearance: Black with golden hairs*
*From Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gray_hairstreak
Scientific Name: Junonia coenia
Family: Nymphalidae
Native Range: Year-round residents of Florida, migrants through the rest of the Central and Eastern United States.*
Active: Late spring – fall*
Color and Appearance: Brown wings with notable round patches*
*From Heather Holm, Pollinators of Native Plants: Attract, Observe and Identify Pollinators and Beneficial Insects with Native Plants. Minetonka: Pollination Press, LLC, 2014., p. 222
Family: Hesperiidae
Native Range: Worldwide, North America, Pennsylvania*
Size: Small – Medium 1.2 – 1.6 inches (35 mm – 42 mm)
Active:
Color and Appearance: Mostly browns, yellows, and oranges. Wings held folded or with upper and lower wings at different angles.*
Larval Host Plant: Sedges*
*From Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grass_skippers
Scientific Name: Asclepias syriaca
Family: Apocynaceae
Height: 2-3 ft
Spread: 1-2 ft
Bloom Time: July-August
Native Range: Throughout North America except west coast, Pennsylvania
Ecological Value: Larval host for monarch and queen butterflies. Nectar plant.
Human Value: Flowers are exceptionally fragrant. Seed pods are edible.
Scientific Name: Asclepias tuberosa
Family: Apocynaceae
Height: 1-2.5 ft
Spread: 1-2.5 ft
Bloom Time: July-August
Native Range: Eastern and Southwestern North America, Pennsylvania
Ecological Value: Larval host for monarch and queen butterflies. Nectar plant.
Human Value: Native American used it medicinally. The stringy fibers were used to make twine and rough textiles.
Scientific Name: Asclepias incarnata
Family: Apocynaceae
Height: 4-5 ft
Spread: 2-3 ft
Bloom Time: July-August
Native Range: Throughout North America except west coast, Pennsylvania
Ecological Value: Larval host for monarch and queen butterflies. Nectar plant.
Human Value: Native American used it medicinally. The stringy fibers were used to make twine and rough textiles. The seed parachutes are six times more buoyant than cork and 5 times warmer than wool so large quantities were used to stuff pillows and life jackets during World War II.
Scientific Name: Spirea japonica
Family: Rosaceae
Height: 4-6 ft
Spread: 4-6 ft
Bloom: Time June
Native Range: Japan
Ecological Value: Nectar for butterflies.
Human Value: Ornamental
Scientific Name: Buddleia sp.
Height: 6 – 12 ft.
Spread: 4 -15 ft.
Bloom Time: June – October
Native Range: China, Japan
Ecological Value: Provides nectar to pollinators. Potentially INVASIVE
Human Value: Buddleia cultivars have been developed that do not produce seeds. I received this plant from a fellow gardener whose garden had become too shady for it. I have never noticed that it self-seeded so it may be a non-fertile cultivar.
Buddleia blooms on new wood each year. The old wood tends to become leggy and less productive over time so I cut this plant back almost to the ground ever spring or every other spring. It produces blooms earlier on years when I don’t cut it back, but it also grows taller and larger.
