The GGAPC Continues, Year 4

 

Citizen science projects can really contribute to the data needed and used to understand how a wild organism is faring. There are annual bird counts and butterfly counts nationwide. In Georgia, now wrapping up its fourth year, there is a Pollinator count. This year’s count happened amid a spell of rainy weather but it cleared up enough in my area to count on Saturday.

Despite working with me for the last two years, my grandson was too impatient this year to sit for 15 minutes. He started to count but could not finish and I had to discard his count. I will try with him again next year.  I went on to finish two counts, one on cutleaf coneflower (Rudbeckia laciniata) and another on hollowstem Joe pye weed (Eutrochium fistulosum).  I often use these two plants; they are both usually blooming nicely during the time period of the count (3^rd week of August).

Joe pye weed (Eutrochium fistulosum)

The GGAPC website has a summaries of the previous years’ participation, with data on the number of counters, the number of insects counted, and numbers by category:

2019: 4,698 counters tallied over 131,000 insect visits.

2020: 3,746 counters tallied 81,095 insect visits.

2021: 5,941 counters tallied 111,743 insect visits.

Bumble bee on Rudbeckia laciniata

I hope that many researchers are able use the more detailed data (spreadsheets with county and insect details are available) to see how our insect population in Georgia is faring. One goal of the project is to bring more awareness to the general public about the abundance and diversity of pollinators; people are encouraged to prepare by planting more suitable flowers (and native ones, I hope!).

If you’re in Georgia (or South Carolina, it was added as a location this year), I hope you will count with us next year. It only takes 15 minutes and a blooming plant to make it happen. Here are links to my previous blogs on counting efforts in 2019, 2020, and 2021. 

I didn’t have nearly as many butterflies this year (really, I only had one that kept flying from flower to flower), and I was disappointed to not see the elephant mosquito this year (but other people reported it so clearly this is a good time of year to see it).

Carpenter bee on Eutrochium

August 2022 Moment in Nature

This month’s #amomentinnature was not captured in film and lives only as a beautiful memory. One of my favorite shrubs is my plumleaf native azalea (Rhododendron prunifolium) which blooms in late July and often into August. The shrub sits next to my front porch.

Rhododendron prunifolium

This week, as the last of the azalea’s blooms opened, I passed the window as a hummingbird checked each bright red flower for nectar. It was such a special moment to see her enjoy one of my favorites. I do have a sugar hummingbird feeder but seeing them use the native plants is so rewarding. 

Other plants that I’ve seen them use this year are jewelweed (Impatiens capensis), cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis), scarlet sage (Salvia coccinea), scarlet beebalm (Monarda didyma), and my dad’s favorite shrimp plant (a tropical non-native).

Fall Clematis Lookalikes

 

I’ve written about native clematis before. For the most part, native clematis look like small bells; a friend used to call them American bells. You can read my earlier post about native clematis here. One clematis, however, is different and its difference leads to confusion with a very similar non-native species; both species are both blooming now.

Clematis virginiana, native

Clematis terniflora, not native

These two clematis species are so similar that I can’t tell them apart by the flower alone. The native species is known as virgin’s bower (Clematis virginiana). The non-native species is known as sweet autumn clematis (Clematis terniflora, also called C. paniculata). Each of them has small, open white flowers with four white petals. Their growth habit is similar and both can be found this time of year flowering profusely on roadsides where they have scrambled above shrubs and perennials to create a snowy, white blanket.

It is the foliage that we must look for when identifying the species of these similar plants. Each species has compound leaves with 3 leaflets (occasionally the non-native may have 5 leaflets and there may be some whitish stripe on the leaflet). The leaflets of the native species have toothed edges (also called dentate) while the leaflets of the non-native species have smooth edges (also called entire).

Clematis virginiana seedheads

Clematis terniflora seedheads

I also find that the seedheads of the native species are much showier, apparently because it has more carpels. See photos above.

You may ask why it matters which one we grow when they look so much alike. I could find no research about which one bugs prefer, either for nectar or for foliage (as a host plant). Given there is still so much insect interaction still unstudied, I prefer to cultivate the native one in the hope that it offers a slight advantage over the species which only recently arrived.

Meadows Matter

 

I went up to Big Canoe this week; it is a large, residential community in Pickens County where they have preserved a lot of the natural areas. Along the winding roads, I spied plenty of native ferns, sourwood saplings, and even some dwarf pawpaw shrubs contributing to the cool, leafy-green feeling that is so unlike most residential developments.

I was there to give a talk to the Wildflower Bunch Garden Club about native plants. All the attendees recognized that their community has much natural beauty, thanks in part to the native plants and the natural environment. Someone mentioned a meadow area that had been developed with the help of Audubon and Walter Bland, a longtime GNPS member and owner of Rock Spring Restorations. This area is called McDaniel Meadows. On our way out of Big Canoe, we stopped to visit it and see how it has grown (it was created in 1999).

According to the sign, the meadow area and trail included plants to help create a bird sanctuary as well as be of benefit to pollinators. Berry-producing shrubs included American beautyberry (Callicarpa americana), two species of Viburnum, spicebush (Lindera benzoin), elderberry (Sambucus canadensis), serviceberry (Amelanchier) and even several fruiting paw paws (Asimina triloba). These were on the edges, leaving the meadow relatively open to supporting native perennials and annuals.

A mowed edge for neatness, a bunch of goldenrod; the meadow is much deeper than it appears

I had heard in advance that the meadow wasn’t being managed much so I was curious to see how it was faring. The most noticeable “flaw” was that some of the more aggressive perennials were dominating the space. First and foremost, tall goldenrod (Solidago altissima) was taking up a lot of the space.

Thuggy plants affect plant diversity as they crowd out things that are less capable of holding their ground (for example, they crowd out smaller plants). However, these thuggy plants still contribute: goldenrod hosts more insects (butterflies/moths) than any other perennial. These plants are likely providing significant insect meals for birds that need them (baby birds, warblers, other insectivores).

Lobelia cardinalis

First ironweed bloom

Tall ironweed (Vernonia) was also quite abundant. A cloud of blue blooms in the center turned out to be downy skullcap (Scutellaria incana), while purple passionvine (Passiflora incarnata) twined its way through the plants. A bit of partridge pea (Chamaecrista fasciculata) was evident in the drier areas while cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis) thrived in the moist spots. Another area was full of Canada germander (Teucrium canadense), but the flowers were just about spent.

Coreopsis in open areas

Cutleaf coneflower just starting

As we walked the trail, smaller sunny areas were more open and there was mountain mint (Pycnanthemum), Coreopsis, cutleaf coneflower (Rudbeckia laciniata), Joe pye weed (Eutrochium fistulosum), numerous grasses, and the seedheads of spring-blooming false indigo (Baptisia) and Penstemon. Shady areas had bear’s foot (Smallanthus udevalia), Indian plantain (Arnoglossum), elephant’s foot (Elephantopus tomentosus) and natural populations of ferns.

Passionvine and bee

Joe pye and mountain mint

This was an ambitious project, and I think it is largely successful. Bird calls were abundant and I pointed out to my husband how much the birds appreciate these areas where they can feel safe darting in and out of the vegetation. Yet still there are open, sunny areas for birds that need that habitat. That thuggy goldenrod will be a lifesaver when it blooms for late summer butterflies like migrating monarchs (and seed eating birds will feast on the seeds and stem insects all winter). At over 20 years in, there is lots to still admire about this meadow.

Viburnum fruits ready now

Elderberry also ready