It’s understandable that when the word “butterfly” is heard, one gets excited. What’s not to love about any of the members of order Lepidoptera (I seriously knew that)? Go ahead and add the word “garden” on top of “butterfly” and you’ve got a recipe for some real excitement.
*True story, when I first met Ms. Childress, I mentioned butterfly gardens to her and she started running around the office, screaming and knocking over filing cabinets.
I’ve met people who were passionate before, but until I met her and found out about her passion for butterflies and gardens (see anecdote above*), I had no idea what passion was. Over the summer, she was quite often found amidst her plants (or her “babies”). Once I even saw her arguing with one. She’sfirm, but fair.
Some of her more precious babies include the Rattlesnake Master (see below), a member of the carrot family (!) that is common in most Illinois counties, sans those in Southwest Illinois. Fun fact: Pioneers originally thought that the root could be used as an effect antidote to the bite of a rattlesnake, (hence,the name) but they were way off. Perhaps that’s why so many pioneers died; that, and dysentery.
We also actually have an endangered species in our garden, the Small Sundrops, which is normally foundout on the East coast and only blooms during the day, so that’s alright. This one was a recent adoption from Oakton Ken, still a tiny baby and hasn't bloomed yet, so look it up yourself if you want to see it in all it's glory.
On top of that, we’ve got the Eastern Prickly Pear cactus. That’s right, a cactus in the Midwest. Talk about it. We’ll let that sink in.
Once you check your heart rate, go ahead and read on at your own risk.
You may have just missed the yellow blooming of one of the tallest plants in our haven(right by the Southwest corner of the building), and that would be the Compass Plant, an essential component to any prairie that’s worth admiring. Pioneers believed that it’s leaves always faced in the North/South direction, and while that may be true more often than not, it’s not always reliable. We certainly wouldn’t call those pioneers a “credible source” with their “fringe” and “manifest destiny” and “cholera” and “having to caulk the wagon and float across the river.”
**Authors note: I don’t remember a lot from “history,” but I did play a lot of Oregon Trail as a child.
***Authors note again: I destroyed that game.
~ Mr. Kett
*True story, when I first met Ms. Childress, I mentioned butterfly gardens to her and she started running around the office, screaming and knocking over filing cabinets.
I’ve met people who were passionate before, but until I met her and found out about her passion for butterflies and gardens (see anecdote above*), I had no idea what passion was. Over the summer, she was quite often found amidst her plants (or her “babies”). Once I even saw her arguing with one. She’sfirm, but fair.
Some of her more precious babies include the Rattlesnake Master (see below), a member of the carrot family (!) that is common in most Illinois counties, sans those in Southwest Illinois. Fun fact: Pioneers originally thought that the root could be used as an effect antidote to the bite of a rattlesnake, (hence,the name) but they were way off. Perhaps that’s why so many pioneers died; that, and dysentery.
We also actually have an endangered species in our garden, the Small Sundrops, which is normally foundout on the East coast and only blooms during the day, so that’s alright. This one was a recent adoption from Oakton Ken, still a tiny baby and hasn't bloomed yet, so look it up yourself if you want to see it in all it's glory.
On top of that, we’ve got the Eastern Prickly Pear cactus. That’s right, a cactus in the Midwest. Talk about it. We’ll let that sink in.
Once you check your heart rate, go ahead and read on at your own risk.
You may have just missed the yellow blooming of one of the tallest plants in our haven(right by the Southwest corner of the building), and that would be the Compass Plant, an essential component to any prairie that’s worth admiring. Pioneers believed that it’s leaves always faced in the North/South direction, and while that may be true more often than not, it’s not always reliable. We certainly wouldn’t call those pioneers a “credible source” with their “fringe” and “manifest destiny” and “cholera” and “having to caulk the wagon and float across the river.”
**Authors note: I don’t remember a lot from “history,” but I did play a lot of Oregon Trail as a child.
***Authors note again: I destroyed that game.
~ Mr. Kett
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