When Tunia is not at school, she spends a lot of time in her favorite garden. Many little animals and insects visit here, and Tunia watches them as they go about doing their work with the flowers.
Since Rhode Island is in the northeast part of the United States, most of what grows in this garden blooms during spring, summer, and early autumn. There are a few plants, however, that do begin blooming in late winter.
A bee visited a Coneflower in Tunia's garden. Coneflowers are also called Echinacea, and they are used in some herbal medicines. Some people believe Echinacea can help prevent colds.
Tunia also watched a bee on the Liatris. Liatris is unusual because the flowers open from top to bottom.
Butterflies will only feed in sunny locations and this Butterfly Bush suited a Monarch just fine as it sipped nectar. The Butterfly Bush is a shrub. Also called Buddleia, this plant survives well in areas that have a lot of air pollution, so it should do well in urban neighborhoods where air pollution is often high.
There are times when Tunia simply liked to look at the delicate flowers on the Hydrangea, which is also a shrub. Hydrangea blooms are often cut and dried so that they can be enjoyed all year. The colors of Hydrangeas vary from white to pink to blue and the color depends on the acid and alkaline conditions of the soil in which they grow.
