Zebra Hellconian butterfly
How was the beautiful Butterfly Garden created? First, our HG Recreation District gave us (Butterfly Society) this little earthly piece of heaven to make the garden. The society and garden are not funded by the HGRD or HOA; we are funded by annual club membership dues and fundraising opportunities. Please join us in October for our season opener as we have many things planned to celebrate. Contact Kim Basile at 443-253-5062 for more information about the society, garden and upcoming events
The Butterfly Garden is used by many people for a myriad of purposes. Lots of people just go to the garden to relax, chill out, think, meditate, pray, be close to nature, whatever. The garden is an extremely relaxing place to do just that. How can you be up tight when you are surrounded by the serenity of nature?
Others go to the garden because they enjoy butterflies and the plants they utilize for food and protection for their eggs. The garden is verdant with its rich colors from the vegetation. And the plants are much larger than just a few months ago – this is the growth-rich climate of Southwest Florida, after all. The garden looks amazing, thanks to a group of very dedicated volunteers in the Garden Society. They have done a tremendous amount of work in weeding the beds, trimming the vegetation, keeping the garden neat, replacing needed plant life, etc. for your enjoyment.
Have you gone there and seen a butterfly and wondered, “What is the name of that beautiful creature? I wish I knew….” When I was there this morning, I saw at least a dozen different butterfly species, ranging from the very common monarch to skippers, fritillaries, sulfurs, swallowtails and our Florida State Butterfly, the Zebra Hellconian (shown in the attached photograph). However, the society has added something to help all of us – a very large identification plaque showing different kinds of butterflies’ native to Lee County, complete with photographs and some information about each of them. So now, you can go to the garden and know the name of that butterfly. Additionally, the volunteers have added name labels to many of the plants in the garden.
And to entice the artistic residents of the Glen to visit the garden, the Butterfly Society has added two Sand Hill Crane metal sculptures. The society members are enabling us to be encouraged about many different kinds of nature and art. Thank you, Butterfly Society members.
If you’ve not visited the garden lately, please take a few minutes to come to the garden soon. The serenity of the garden will influence you as the butterflies and other kinds of insects flit around looking for food and shelter. Take some time to sit on the garden benches. Enjoy. Smile. Relax.
