Elizabeth's Secret Garden

  Have you ever wondered how something so tiny can turn into something so beautiful? A butterfly starts its journey in the humblest of ways. It starts out as a tiny egg that with the naked eye would be easily missed. In that egg resides the genetic make up for what will one day be a butterfly. We all have to start somewhere, right? Butterfly raising is a journey. It can be frustrating at times, but oh so delightful if you stick with it. Like a caterpillar, you devour books and information to care for your precious soon to be butterflies. The metamorphosis takes place as you apply your knowledge and then that knowledge allows all those once distant dreams to take flight. What came first the egg or the butterfly? Well, in this case it all starts with a fertilized egg from a mother butterfly. This female Gulf Fritillary is curling up her abdomen and depositing a egg on her host plant passionvine. For starts with butterfly gardening you are going to need flowers and lots of ...

Butterflies alight in us a wonder and curiosity of how such a small insect can conquer and soften the hearts of people across the world. To see a butterfly brings peace. I can stay mesmerized for hours watching butterflies fly from flower to flower. All heads turn at the mention of a butterfly being present. We desire to know the secret of how a wiggly caterpillar can turn into a winged creature, but that mystery is the magic behind a butterfly. They appear to be amongst the most delicate of creatures, but it is because of this elegance and fragility that we seek to become attuned to our surroundings. Butterflies welcome us to explore the rest of creation. They invite us to take care of our environment and praise God who was behind every detail of their design. We have only begun to scratch the surface of life and science so I invite you to come along with me as I take you on a journey of pictures I took while visiting the Magic Wings Butterfly House at the Museum of Life and Science....

  I’ve been raising butterflies for 5 years ever since I was 15 years old. I wrote my first book about butterflies after gathering research from all my experiences and stories. https://www.createspace.com/4083202 We call ourselves butterfly enthusiasts. You’ll know us we you see us. The people who wear everything from shirts with butterflies on them to butterfly purses and matching butterfly earrings. We are fearless and will climb through a poison ivy patch if it means finding a hard to find butterfly host plant.  We will tramp through roadside ditches if it means finding Milkweed for our Monarch babies. We will stop at nothing to insure the safety of our precious butterflies so beware. Alright, I’m exaggerating here, but I can assure you that butterfly lovers are among the coolest people I’ve ever met and are among the generous of people. There have been many people who have helped me along on my butterfly journey and below are pictures of my butterfly conservatory durin...

    Judi Sunshine the owner of Wingin’ It Butterfly Farm came for a tour of the official home of Elizabeth’s Secret Garden and to see the butterfly conservatory which is in the construction phase. It will be enclosed with screening and be a safe haven for butterflies. The goal is to breed various butterfly species including Monarchs, Gulf Fritillaries, Black Swallowtails, and more. I’m very grateful to Judi for getting me started off this butterfly season with a selection of butterfly enclosures as well as Monarch eggs. If you are in need of butterfly raising supplies such as microscopes, enclosures, butterfly nets, and more check out her online store. http://www.butterflyfarmingsupplies.com/   I’m getting close to having 100 Milkweeds for the Monarchs. Many of them are small, but they grow fast. Monarch conservation is close to my heart and I do presentations at schools and camps teaching about butterflies. The dream I once had is now really happening. I encourage...

  After the construction of our modular home, we were left with several wood pallets. Most people would disregard them and consider them trash, but we looked at them and saw a potential treasure. A treasure because they would save us money. Who would pass that up? When I see those pallets I think of the saying,“A penny saved is a penny earned.” – Benjamin Franklin. And just like that “ka ching” money saved that can be put towards the next project on SHAPE Eco Farm. Here is my sister standing next to our reclaimed wood pallets. You can find wood pallets by approaching a construction site and taking them off there hands. I’m sure they would oblige quickly because that is one last thing they have to haul off to the dump. Assembling these compost bins was a snap. All that is needed is people (most importantly), screws, wood pallets, and a drill. We have  a saying around our house, “If you want to eat, you got to work.” It has worked well for us thus far.     We...