Native Plants Taste Yummy

A bunch of us have gathered at the Bergamo Center in Dayton, Ohio for the annual Mid-West Native Plant Conference. It is about as congenial a group of folks as you'll ever find, and ones I share a lot in common with. Several friends were eager to share the news of Spicebush caterpillars, knowing that would be first on my agenda.


How fitting to find him nibbing on a native plant- Spicebush!



After dinner Wil Hershberger gave his amazing program on the "Songs of Insects." His knowledge and enthusiasm for this insects is downright contagious. After the program Wil and Jim McCormac led a night hike, with what may well be the largest group ever gathered in the name of "Katydid." By the way, we learned in the south, "Katy-didn't!"

Here the crowd gathers in excitement around the Spicebush caterpillar we had seem earlier in the day. At night he glowed eerily under the flash-light beam. You have to love a group of people who "ooh" and "ahhh" over a butterfly in this basic form! No pretense here!

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Native plant people value nature in its most basic forms, and help preserve biodiversity! My kind of people!