Still hope to grow native orchids in my habitat and around my pond.

I really want to grow Lady Slipper Orchids in my wildlife habitat. The more I looked into doing this the more I realized its not going to be easy. Most orchid experts recommend that growing them from seed is almost impossible without lab conditions. I know they grow in the wild on their own so I am hoping it will work for me if I meet the requirements they have in the wild. I went to a friends and raked some leaves in the woods behind them. I need leaf mold to meet the conditions they would have in the wild. I will plant one packet of seed directly outside. I will try to grow the other pack of seeds in a flask like they grow them in a laboratory. If all else fails I also bought some bare root lady slipper orchids. They are very small but I will probably have a better chance of getting them to grow. There are around 50 orchids that are native to Pennsylvania and I am hoping to get a few different types to grow in my wild life habitat area.

I tried to save my tulips this year by putting tomato cages around them but the deer still got them. They come back every year but as soon as they send up a flower spike the deer get them. I hope that the native plants I have been adding will still make the yard look good for spring. My wildlife habitat is not all native plants and most people think you have to use all native plants. This is not true as long as they are not invasive species and as long as they help provide the element essential for wildlife to thrive. These elements are food, water, cover or hiding places, shelter and places for wildlife to raise their young. A wild life habitat can be as small as a balcony garden or as large as you want. It could be as simple as a butterfly habitat that has milkweed and other plants that attract butterflies. For water you could put sand in a shallow dish and just keep it wet the butterflies will be able to get moisture from the wet sand as well as minerals and salts in the sand. Cover would be under plant leaves for Monarch butterflies you will need milk weed because that is where the monarch lays its eggs and it is the only plant the caterpillars eat. The flowers will provide nectar for the adults. Butterflies like flat open flowers because it is easier for them to get nectar from. Finally for shelter you can use a butterfly box or make one there are all kinds of instructions and videos on line showing how to make them.

I am excited about my garden this year and after putting in a shed and more hardscaping last year along with a new water spigot I think its going to be easier to get plants to grow on the sunny side of the house. I am also going to build some raised beds by the shed to grow vegetables. I already have started to collect seeds and have some asparagus. I want the typical plants like tomatoes onions peppers but I also want to try some other stuff like fennel dill and other herbs. I have strawberries rhubarb and blue berries along with some red currant that I started from seed that are still very small but if I move them to the raised beds they will probably grow faster. I think I also need to fence everything in because people are cutting through my yard and killing a lot of the plants on my hillside.