My latest blog: Tea or Espresso? The joy of mini-Phalaenopsis orchids

You've probably heard the term "windowsill orchids." Then when you got home from the store with your big Phalaenopsis you thought, "Wait a minute! This isn't going to fit on a windowsill." No, it won't. But meet the Teacup and Espresso — two tiny, whimsical orchids that absolutely will.

News Alert!

The Warner Robins Native Plant Education Center will hold a grand reopening on Sept. 5 at its new home (photo above) at Southern Accent Landscape Supply at 1438 Housers Mill Road in Fort Valley. (Photo: Stephanie Welch)

It's officially that time of year: the monarch butterfly migration has begun. In western Minnesota, Journey North has received its first roost reports of the season as monarchs cluster en route to their overwintering sites in Mexico.

Blooming now in my garden

Phlox paniculata 'Jeana' is putting on a show right now — and the pollinators can't get enough of it. This remarkable cultivar, discovered growing wild along a Tennessee riverbank, produces smaller florets than most summer phlox, which turns out to be exactly what butterflies and bees prefer. It blooms for weeks, shrugs off powdery mildew better than almost any other tall phlox, and stops traffic in the summer garden. If you don't have it, you want it.

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.