In July of 2023, Brennah made a post here about the importance of our native button bushes to the pollinators at Crossing Hedgerows. Of course it has beautiful photos, including the incredible blossoms: https://www.patreon.com/posts/86598986 button bush - after the flowers have faded It's hard to do justice with pictures to show the size this particular one has grown to now, but it has grown quite large indeed! And I want to give a ...
🦋 These are a few of the wildflowers and some of the scenery currently at Crossing Hedgerows Sanctuary. There has been such a variety of butterflies, bees, insects, pollinators, birds, and wildlife this year… it has been incredible. ironweed evening primrose monarch butterfly boneset 🦋 Inviting in so much diversity to our ecosystem over the years has truly paid off. We have done very ...
This morning I planted a black willow tree that was donated by friends of the sanctuary, Rocky and Lucinda. We add it to our collection of various types of willows on our land, most of which are the shrub variety. black willow Willow catkins are one of the earliest sources of food in the spring for pollinators. Willows also help clean the ground water, provide wonderful materials for crafting, and of course bring ...
By Jean Cavanaugh(A Wild Plum from this past August) Another of the native shrubs we have planted at Crossing Hedgerows is the Wild Plum. At one time, native plums were one of the most established wild food crops of Native Americans. According to the book, Native Plant Agriculture, by Indigenous Plants, Native Plums are more energy dense than any domesticated fruit you'd find in the grocery store and is only rivaled by other wild fruits such as serviceberries, ...
(Sumac Berries by Brennah Cavanaugh Photography LLC)It's been awhile since I have posted a native plant profile! All the plants I post about are ones that we have planted or are protecting on our land at Crossing Hedgerows.Most people are familiar with sumac, but don't realize how valuable it is. Because so many of our native thicket plants have disappeared to large swaths of farmland, it's another of the ones that we have encouraged on our land.The ...
By Brennah Cavanaugh, Board Member of Crossing Hedgerows Sanctuary Buttonbush is a bush with very unique looking flower clusters that are almost perfectly spherical. Its flowers are adored by pollinators of all sorts, but due to the long tube-like shape of the individual flowers in the cluster they are especially attractive to pollinators with longer tongues, like butterflies, bumble bees, and hummingbirds. (The unusual shape of the flowers make them attractive to humans, too!) It is ...
As you might know by now, I like to periodically highlight plants we have at the farm and sanctuary. Today's pick is the False Indigo bush. False Indigo Bush in blossom - photo by Brennah Cavanaugh Photography LLC This is one which we planted back around 2014 in various areas because it does well in wetter habitats. It is a native plant to the area that is also a nitrogen fixer, meaning that it adds natural ...
Honeyberry Flowers with Bumblebee by Brennah Cavanaugh Photography LLC taken on 5/2/22I'm sure I could feature a different plant each day of the year and still not cover all of the various ones at the farm and sanctuary. And the same goes for the pollinators and various wildlife. So I'll share a little about Honeyberries (Lonicera caerulea) today, and hopefully you will enjoy it. :)The honeyberries, which are a type of honeysuckle with edible berries, are flowering ...
Photo by Brennah Cavanaugh Photography LLCAnother wildflower currently blossoming at Crossing Hedgerows is our white Virginia Bluebells. This plant was given to us by our friend Gary Urick, along with the Aconite which was mentioned in a previous post. According to the University of Wisconsin Horticulture, regarding Virginia Bluebells: "It is considered threatened in its native range, primarily because of habitat destruction and the prevention of natural flooding of rivers, and is increasingly found only in isolated locations." "The flowers ...
Taken March 2, 2021One of the earliest flowers to bloom here at Crossing Hedgerows is Winter Aconite. It gives a splash of color in the late winter and early spring, and provides some of the first pollen and nectar for the pollinators. We planted it a couple of years ago, and it would be wonderful to plant some snow drops along with it as they blossom about the same time. So far it is only this tiny patch, ...
The fragrance of the Autumn Olive flowers in the springtime is fabulous. It's such a joy to walk back towards the woods and be greeted with their sweet smell rich in the air. The blossoms are now beginning to fade away, but they have been a great source of pollen and nectar for the pollinator insects. Their speckled leaves are now coming in fully, and when fall rolls around, they will produce their yummy speckled berries (which ...
Yesterday we received a batch of seed packets we ordered, so we can add a few more varieties of pollinator plants to the farm and sanctuary. We love wildflowers! Some we will plant this spring and some need to be planted in the fall. Welcome to our new seeds! May they grow well and be happy. Jean