My latest blog: Fall is golden for gardens

Hummingbirds, monarchs, queen bumblebees and native bees are all fueling up right now — and your garden can be their lifeline. Discover five essential native nectar plants, curated by the State Botanical Garden of Georgia, that will make your fall garden a pollinator powerhouse.

Blooming now in my garden: Echinacea purpurea

Some people don't think of white as a color. I not only think of it as a color but as a beacon that draws the eye into the garden. This is a white form of the coneflower Echinacea purpurea. Coneflowers are drought and heat tolerant, deer resistant and bloom into the fall—just at the right time for migratory and resident bees and butterflies. Deadheading early flowers will encourage more blooms. I leave the fall blooms on the plants into the winter until the goldfinches and other birds have eaten all the seeds in the seed heads.

In progress: A children's picture book

I have written a children's picture book about the epic migration of the monarch butterfly. When I was developing the idea for the book, one of the most respected voices in pollinator science in the Southeast told me I would need a new angle. I found one.

The book is built around new tracking technology that allows children — in a classroom setting or at home — to follow tagged monarchs in real time via a smartphone app, turning the reading experience into a living, interactive journey. The classroom application in particular suggests strong potential for school system adoption. This technology angle makes it meaningfully different from previously published children's picture books about monarchs. I am seeking representation for a single book, but the real goal is a trilogy covering the full migration.

The manuscript — scientifically accurate and narrative-driven — has received a very positive review from the director and an acquisitions editor at a major academic press, an editor with a children's book background who offered specific suggestions to strengthen it. All have been incorporated. I am now seeking literary representation. (Photo: Susan Meyers, Monarchs Across Georgia)