Greetings From SeaWorld’s Garden of Discovery

August 2003

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What’s Happening in SeaWorld’s Gardens This Month?

Before many people have had their first cup of coffee in the morning the SeaWorld Landscape team is hard at work. Early morning can only be described as a busy time for the Landscape Department crew members.

The work day begins at 5:30 am with all staff members participating in 15 minutes of structured exercise. This is intended to provide conditioning as well as assuring that our Landscapers are awake before going into the park! At first light the Landscape team breaks into a flurry of activity. Many tasks can only be taken care of in the morning. All vehicles (trucks, tractor, crane) only operate at this time. Small power equipment (mowers, roto-tillers, gas hedgers) also must be used before park guests arrive.

The park is divided into 3 landscape maintenance sectors. Each area has a supervisor and crew that takes care of all landscape needs. Morning priorities include an array of tasks. Color beds demand attention. With the huge number of color beds in the park crews are removing and replacing flowers on a weekly basis. Every effort is made to have planting completed before guests arrive. Hand watering is also a constant need. Most of the decorative pots and hanging baskets in the park need water 3 – 5 mornings per week. Members of the irrigation crew typically make repairs and run systems in the early morning. Beyond the routine, morning is the time that upgrades and improvements are made to the infinite number of perennial plant beds in the park. This might include everything from adding some new shrubs to planting a specimen tree with a crane.

So, before guests enter the park at 9:00 in the morning the Landscape team has met many objectives. Quality in terms of landscape presentation and site cleanliness are always prevailing goals. Enjoy the show.

Members of the SeaWorld Landscape team at work before park opening.

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Butterfly Gardening

Butterfly gardening can be fun and very rewarding. Here are a few things to consider when planning a garden.

Background

• Butterflies are members of the insect order Lepidoptera, which in Greek means "scale winged." Millions of minute scales give butterfly wings their distinctive patterns.


• Over 700 species of butterflies live in North America. Unfortunately, many species are close to extinction.


• Perhaps the most noteworthy feature of this creature is their growth process called metamorphosis. Butterflies change from crawling caterpillars to flying adults.

• Certain plant species serve as host plants for caterpillar larvae while others are attractive as nectar sources for adults. Introducing these plants to a garden should attract butterflies.


• In planning a butterfly garden initially consider what species frequent an area and what plants are attractive to them. There is an abundance of literature available concerning butterfly host plants for various areas.


• Selecting a visible but wind-sheltered location with full sun is of primary concern.


• Throughout the year, different butterfly species are active in San Diego gardens.


• Some butterflies are very selective in terms of nectar plants while others aren't so picky.


• Popular host plants for San Diego butterflies include Lantana, Buddleia and Asclepias. Noteworthy, butterflies visiting our country include red admirals, monarchs and painted ladies.

• Butterflies have 4 stages of life; egg, larva, pupa and adult.


• The life span/cycle of a butterfly varies within different species and geographic ranges.


• While in the larva state they will molt 4 – 5 times. At this time there are many hormonal changes going on.


• Butterflies hibernate or diapause in all stages of life, some in winter and some in the summer. This is done mainly to avoid harsh conditions and to extend their life span.


• Butterflies’ color vision far exceeds humans’, reaching well into the ultraviolet.


• Butterflies camouflage themselves at rest by holding their wings together exposing their muted underside color and markings.


• Some butterflies such as the Monarch and the Pipvine Swallowtail feed upon poisonous plants thus making them poisonous to birds which makes them undesirable prey.

Adult Monarch Butterfly

Wildlife Watch

Recent entries from our Wildlife Spotters log include:

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Upcoming Event

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Weather Report

August is one of SeaWorld San Diego’s warmest months. Normal conditions include daytime high temperatures in the low 80’s with overnight lows in the upper 60’s. Normal rainfall for the month is a miniscule .10th of and inch.

Live weather from SeaWorld

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