Garden Ponds For Outdoor Design of Yard

Filed under: Gardening Portal — admin at 11:16 am on Friday, May 23, 2008

In the world of gardening and outdoor design, more and more
people are opting to use what are called garden ponds in their
yards. These are usually found in the backyard of the house and
are there simply for decoration. These ponds can be man-made or
for those who are lucky enough, they can be natural. The more
natural the ponds looks the better then garden will look overall.

Ponds are not without their troubles and hassles however. If you
do have a pond in your yard then you must take every effort to
ensure that the pond is cleaned and well kept. For each season
of the year there are different things that you can do to ensure
that your pond is looking great.

In the spring most people are preparing for summer so they must
prepare their ponds as well. If the pond is a man made pond then
you should increase the circulation of water in the pond. If you
have fish in the pond, then you should start feeding the fish
when the water temperature reaches fifty degrees or higher. When
the water temperature rises, the fish will begin surfacing
again. Any unwanted weeds and leaves should also be removed from
the ponds as soon as possible in the spring season.

Backyard ponds look great when they have flowers and plant life
growing in them. Therefore when the summer season begins you
need to begin taking care of your plants. You should begin
feeding your plants. This means fertilizing them. During the
summer you need to remove dead foliage from the bottom of the
pond. If you pond contains any fish then you should remove any
dead and rotting fish from the bottom.

The fall of the year is the worst season of the year for having
ponds in the yard. This is the time of the year when the leaves
begin to fall of the trees. These leaves will surely fall into
your ponds and will cover the top of the water. IF the leaves
are left in the pond then you could cause damage the water and
the plant and animal life that live in the water. When leaves
decay they can disturb the ecological balance of the pond,
whether it be man made or natural. You should always make every
effort to remove all leaves from the water.

Usually during the winter ponds are frozen over. If the pond is
man made then you might want to remove the water from the pond
if you do not wish it to freeze. In most cases ponds are usually
left alone and they freeze during the winter months. Therefore
people do not need to do anything to care for them.

Butterfly - Life Cycle Summary

Filed under: Gardening Portal — admin at 1:15 pm on Monday, May 19, 2008

INTRODUCTION

Butterflies are beautiful insects of nature and often admired for their vibrant colors. According to The American Heritage Dictionary, they belong to the biological order of Lepidoptera, and have distinct characteristics: slender bodies, knobbed antennae, and four wings (Dictionary.com). The Lepidoptera classification order is derived from Greek origin meaning “scales” and “wings” (Jeananda Col).

Butterflies are members of the insect family and their traits include 3 pairs of legs, a segmented body, and two pairs of wings. Although they are members of the insect family, and carry the same characteristics of other insects, butterflies generally appeal to people where most insects do not (Earthlife.net).

Why are butterflies so unique? One distinguishing reason can be found by exploring a butterfly’s life cycle. Butterflies go through the process of metamorphosis: a distinct transformation from an egg to a butterfly.

LIFE STAGES OF A BUTTERFLY

As a result of metamorphosis, butterflies go through a series of four, very distinct, life-type changes.

The four stages include: egg, larva, pupa, and adult.

•Egg Stage - the beginning of life for a butterfly. The egg is a product of adult reproduction and is deposited on tree leaves by a sticky hormonal substance from the adult.

•Larva Stage - typical in appearance to a caterpillar. The majority of the larva’s lifespan is spent eating and the first meal is usually it’s own eggshell. As a result of continuous consumption, the butterfly will increase several thousand times in size. It will spin a silky pad before progressing to the next phase. It is not yet mature and it is unable to reproduce at this point.

•Pupa Stage - resembles a tiny leathery pouch. A pupa is also known as a chrysalis, and is a result of “pupating”. In transforming from the larva stage, the butterfly breaks out of its exoskeleton by wiggling out of their skin. A spiny appendage appears at the bottom of the abdomen and is called the cremaster. The butterfly connects the cremaster to the silky pad and hangs there to rest. Many body parts are visible including the wings, abdomen, legs, and eyes.

•Adult Stage - known as the adult butterfly.

The time length of the development cycle of the butterfly varies from species to species and from climate to climate (Monarch Watch). There are more than 150,000 species recognized however most of these are moths.

NOTE: All visuals have been removed.

Additonal Resources

Dictionary.com “The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English
Language, Fourth Edition” Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin
http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=insect

HHMI (Howard Hughes Medical Institute) “Where Do Butterflies Come From? http://www.hhmi.org/coolscience/butterfly/ 9/29/04

Jeananda Col, “All About Butterflies” http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/butterfly/

Monarch Watch 9/29/04 http://www.monarchwatch.org/biology/anat3.htm

“The Lepidoptera Part 1. Butterflies” 9/29/04 http://www.earthlife.net/insects/lepidop1.html#3

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