nature illustration
Happy Accidents by Cordelia Norris It’s been hot, and I’ve been busy, with a coloring book to get out the door, so I’ve let my yard go. Since my book, Backyard Pollinators—A Partnership with Plants, features a cross-section of pollinators across North America, I’ve rationalized letting the yard go as a type of fieldwork, an exercise in seeing what plants make their home here on their own, and what pollinators they attract. Since we live at the end of the street in an older neighborhood without an HOA, I’ve only had to endure the puzzlement of my neighbors and their increasingly pointed mowing right up to the very edge of our property. If you have an HOA, you can try the same approach with container pots or a raised bed. Now I have occasionally mowed parts of our yard just so that we don’t have a five-foot tall thicket, but I wait as long as possible between mowings, set the mower as high as possible, and leave a lot of areas and any interesting plants alone. The results of been fascinating: different wild flowers have bloomed at different times, along with ferns and a couple of really nice saplings. This relaxed approach also attracts more pollinators. If I’d been mowing regularly, as a good
suburbanite is supposed to do according to some doctrine inherited from the 1950s, I would never have known that our front yard could be carpeted variously with Daisy fleabane, flowering vines, creeping Jenny, and black-eyed Susans. Along the way, I’ve sought out advice from a few plant lovers who know a lot about native plants to ensure that this laissez-faire approach to landscaping wasn’t accidentally spreading invasive plants. So when privet reared its ugly head, an aggressive invasive, I knew to pull it up. I’ve also pulled up some thorny vines that don’t seem to do illustration by Samantha Gallagher anyone any good. But Illustration of miner bees on willow, by one of the contributors to the for the most part, I’ve most recent coloring book in the Coloring Nature series. just enjoyed seeing what comes up. I found that this is a great While researching Euphorbias for an entry, way to get saplings that you can then I was surprised to learn this plant also relocate to a more favorable position or belonged to that large and diverse genus. give to a friend. I identified it as Euphorbia maculata, spotted sandmat spurge. Even better, this little Tiffany Miller Russell, one of the two co-authors of Backyard Pollinators, is based plant is a native! I’ll now happily leave this attractive volunteer growing wherever it outside of Boulder, Colorado and has decides to be. experienced similar “ah-ha” moments. “I’ve learned a lot while researching this book! I’ve really been noticing and appreciating more pollinators and plants in my garden and while hiking. There are a couple plants in my own garden that I’ve been wondering about for years and have finally identified.
photo by Cordelia Norris
Bees and other pollinators are frequent visitors to those who let their vegetation grow.
Fall 2021
“One is a ‘weed’ that springs up everywhere in the yard—cracks in the sidewalk, the lawn, and especially in pots. I’ve tended to pull this volunteer out, but always somewhat reluctantly because I enjoy its delicate red and green foliage.
“The other ah-ha discovery was a garden flower that grows and blooms prolifically. Neither of us knew what it was, so we’ve just been calling it ‘the pink stuff.’ Thanks to one of the illustrations in the book, I finally learned this flower is red valerian! It’s originally from the Mediterranean, grows worldwide in many conditions, and is a great attractor of pollinators. I think it’s contributed to the swallowtails that glide continuously outside my studio window in the early summer!”
(continued on page 8)
Cape Fear’s Going Green
7
