#whitetailedeer

[itskatra-blog]

Kalmia latifolia – Mountain Laurel

Plant community: Oak Hickory Forest

Native region: Eastern United States

Mature size: Height: 5 to 15 feet, Spread: 5 to 15 feet

Habitat: Forest edges, forests, meadows and fields, swamps, wetland margins (edges of wetlands), woodlands

Hardiness Zone(s): 4-9

Leaf color: glossy evergreen, dark green above, yellow-green below

Bloom color: Rose to white with purple markings

Benefit to Wildlife: Mountain-laurel's leaves, buds, flowers and fruits are poisonous and may be lethal to livestock and humans. However, white-tailed deer, eastern cotton tails, black bear, and ruffed grouse are known to utilize this species especially as winter forage or during years of food shortages.

Larval host: Specific larval host: Laurel sphinx (Sphinx kalmiae) (1/8)

Sources:

https://gobotany.newenglandwild.org/species/kalmia/latifolia/

http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=c798

http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/shrub/kallat/all.html

http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species/Sphinx-kalmiae

[colinpurrington]

Redbud (Cercis canadensis) leaves emerging from a protective plastic tube, one of hundreds at Hildacy Farm Preserve in Media, PA. It’s expensive and labor-intensive, but far easier than enclosing the entire area in a 12-ft deer fence. Restoring wolves and mountain lions would probably work, too, but that might be concerning to preserve visitors.