I miss these guys!

Morning chores

It's another gorgeous morning in southeastern Alabama...and it was rise and shine at 6:00 a.m. today! After my first cup of coffee I took out the compost...and then dug a new hole to bury the fallen spoiled pears I picked up yesterday. Delighted to find some earthworms, I'm excited that the little guys will be in place to help break down the pear fruit.

Yesterday I laid out my very first "official" Alabama lasagna bed. I tried this method in Kentucky and had good succes with it. I've been reading this gardening book and it's got me excited to make some new gardening beds... and also motivating me to rake lots more yard debris this fall. A girl can never have too many piles of leaves, straw, newspapers, and clumps of sod! I may even try it out this fall with some cool weather vegetable seedlings. I didn't have much luck with my broccoli and cauliflower two years ago...but this new bed gets more sun...so maybe that's the key?

Amazon Marketplace is so cool! I just received my gently used copy of Kaufman's Field Guide to Butterflies of North America... and not a moment too soon. While picking up the icky half-eaten and bruised pears for composting, I noticed two beautiful butterflies flitting around the spoiled fruit. They looked similar to the female Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (black with blue and orange spots). But not quite. So I took photos and then started looking for identification in my new field guide. Found it! They're Red-Spotted Purples...and are in the Admiral family. When I read about their habits...there it was! They're spoiled fruit eaters! So gratifying to know that the pears that do not make it to my stove top for freezing are being composted to attract worms and food for Red-Spotted Purples.