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I hope this finds you in good spirits and enjoying the off and on spring weather. You may have noticed that there wasn't an April edition of our newsletter, and that our May issue is late, too. We hope to get back on track with producing our newsletter as scheduled.
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It's been a very busy start for us this season! Our Spring Plant Sale Fundraiser was so successful that we ended it after one month due to selling out of our most popular plants. What normally would take us two months to accomplish was done within one month. Whew! We're a bit exhauted! However, John and I are incredibly grateful for all of the support we have received from you and others. We truly could not do all that we do without your help!
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Since the plant sale ended early and we still had plants that would be ready for May, we decided that we would hold an Open House Pre-Sale to offer those plants people were hoping to get, plus a few extra that we weren't able to include in our initial spring sale. Details below.
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This summer we have some new citizen science projects and activities that we are excited about! Coming up the first weekend in June is our first NC Under-reported County Mothing Project survey in Yadkin County. Later in the month we will be hosting the Hillsborough Moth Crawl followed by the Wilson County survey. In July we will be conducting surveys in Cleveland and Hyde Counties. In August there will be multiple NABA butterfly counts to join: Orange County, Durham County, Guilford & Rockingham Counties, Pilot Mountain, Hanging Rock, and Mayo River.
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We've also partnered with Jeff Pippen and his long-term citizen science project the Carolinas Butterfly Monitoring Program. Be sure to check out the program's website and sign up to attend a workshop or adopt a route to monitor.
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So far this year in our backyard habitat we've had American Lady, Black Swallowtail, Silver Spotted Skipper, and Spicebush Swallowtail caterpillars. No Monarch caterpillars that we know of, which breaks at least a 5 or 6 year streak of having them when the females migrate into the area. Though we're missing the Monarch cats, we're thrilled to have so many species in the yard once again.
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7th Annual Open House & Plant Swap
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You are cordially invited to attend our annual Open House & Plant Swap!
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The purpose of our Open House is to allow public access to our backyard butterfly and moth habitat to see in real life what plants look like fully grown, and hopefully to be inspired to create your own Leps garden or habitat.
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We will also have volunteers at the event to answer questions and provide information.
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Tickets are free or donation-based. They are not required to attend, but we do want you to request them so we can estimate how many people plan to attend.
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Open House Pre-Sale
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We will be running an Open House Pre-Sale starting Monday, June 5th at 10 AM and ending on Thursday, June 8th at 11 PM.
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All orders will be pre-paid for pick-up the following week Monday, June 12 thru Thursday, June 15th and on the day of Open House, Saturday, June 17th. We will not be offering the option to pay-in-person for pick-up orders.
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We will also have plants available at the Open House event on Saturday for those who wish to shop in person.
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Our online store will be updated the last week of May to feature the plants we will have available for purchase.
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Open House Volunteers Needed!
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𝐖𝐞 𝐍𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐕𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐫𝐬!
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2-4 people needed who can volunteer as Butterfly Whisperers and Plant Mavens. Any amount of knowledge of butterflies and plants that you are willing to share with others is welcome.
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4-6 people needed to assist with the Plant Swap, parking, gophering, order pick-ups, and attending the Free Plant Table.
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All positions are for a 3 hr shift, morning or afternoon. Volunteers will receive a free Backyard Butterflies T-shirt, lunch, and a 10% discount on the purchase of plants.
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Our NC Under-reported County Mothing Project is now accepting participants for our upcoming moth surveys to be conducted this summer in June and July. All ages and moth experience levels welcome.
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Each survey is conducted over two nights at an AirBnB rental property located in an under-reported county. Participants' lodging accommodations are provided at no charge.
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Participants are responsible for their own transportation to the survey site, and any travel, meal, or incidental expenses.
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To become a participant, you will need to create a NCUCMP Participant User Account, complete an online orientation, and submit a registration form.
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To complete the registration form you will need to submit a record of COVID vaccination and an iNaturalist username. If you don't have an iNaturalist account creating one is free.
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If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us!
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Plant Donation Program Spring Recipients
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We are proud to announce this year's recipients of our Spring Plant Donation Program!
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Our annual goal for our Plant Donation Program is to donate a minimum of 200 plants per season to qualifying parks, schools, HOAs, nonprofit organizations, public or community pollinator garden projects, and other organizations looking to support butterflies and moths.
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Applicants may choose from a pre-selection of Keystone, Host, and Nectar plants. HOAs may receive up to a donation of 10 plants. All other qualifying applicants may receive a donation of up to 20 plants.
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This spring we gave awards to 9 applicants with a total of 180 plants donated with a fair market value of $900. We are currently accepting applications for fall awards. Awards for the fall will be distributed in early October. Learn more and apply at Plant Donation Program.
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Recipients not photographed: Lynn Odom, Durham Woman's Club; Ashley Niehaus, Girl Scouts.
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The Episcopal Church of the Advocate
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Green Magnet Elementary School
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Marvin B. Smith Elementary School PTO
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Middle Creek Elementary School
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South Mountains State Park
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Please spread the word that we can help hungry caterpillars!
We offer Caterpillar Support to those who are in need of host plants, foster care, or adoption of caterpillars.
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There are 21 species of caterpillar that we can provide the host plant for, and we can also provide host plants for some species of moths.
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This program is free of charge. All you need to do is apply letting us know what host plants you need, or if you need us to foster care or adopt your caterpillars.
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Not sure what plants to grow in your habitat? We can help by conducting a free yard consultation that will provide you with a plant recommendation list.
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Support Our Missions
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Your contribution helps us fulfill our missions of providing education, community outreach, and assistance in creating backyard butterfly and moth friendly habitats.
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