Native Gardener: West Coast Monarchs are Over Wintering Happily

Welcome to my Garden Blog

Nature: wild & untouched. Photographing it, preserving it, taking walks and drinking in the landscapes as they unfold.

Gardens: touched by loving hands. Cultivated, nurtured. Drinking in those landscapes is wonderful, as well.

In my garden one enjoys some of both. Generally unpruned & wild, my plants reshape the garden as they grow.

Beyond the garden borders, natives from the Santa Monica Mtns await. Oak trees with their shady canopies. Cactus & Sage in the sun.

Always there are animal creatures to join in the fun.

I look forward to sharing some of my experiences with you as they unfold.

Saturday, November 3, 2012

West Coast Monarchs are Over Wintering Happily

Monarchs Over-Wintering Now in Pismo Beach, CA Photo by Kathy Vilim (click to enlarge & enjoy)

As I write this, Hurricane Sandy has made life very perilous for many hundreds of Monarchs on the eastern seaboard. They are supposed to be long gone on their way to Mexico to over-winter. Why are they still around? Read: Hurricane Sandy Hits by Carole Brown.

Yet, here on the West Coast, oblivious to the perils their eastern cousins face, Monarchs are happily overwintering right now. I just visited two sites where there is protected habitat for them, and they are here in full force, swooping and gliding, gold-orange wings against blue sky.

I viewed them through a telescope at the Monarch Grove in Pismo Beach. The telescopes were great because my neck was getting sore from looking up into the giant Eucalyptus trees. The Eucalyptus are their favorites, and I was glad this grove of trees was spared so that the Monarchs could return here year after year.

Hope you enjoyed my monarch picture (Click to enlarge). For more on the Western Monarchs, see my post from last November: Monarchs of the West via BeautifulWildlifeGardens.com.