Parklane Landscapes

09/08/2026

Mini meadow project we have been working on near State College, PA. The first picture shows the second buckwheat cover crop in bloom. Second picture shows the buckwheat after termination by mowing. Third and fourth pictures are after a shallow tilling and planting of the third cover crop (oats), which will eventually winter kill. Late November/early December (before our first snow) we will plant the wildflower seed into the standing oats. Organic cover crop seed and zero herbicides were used.

09/04/2026

Give the next generation something better to inherit—a living world they can recognize as worth protecting.

Protect what remains. Restore what has been lost.

08/31/2026

This is a milkw**d tussock moth caterpillar (Euchaetes egle), a native insect that feeds on milkw**d, a plant defended by toxic chemicals that this insect, like the monarch, can tolerate.

Its life gets even more interesting after it becomes a moth.

At night, bats hunt moths using echolocation. When a bat targets it, the adult milkw**d tussock moth can produce ultrasonic clicks using specialized organs called tymbals. Those clicks are part of an acoustic defense system.

Research has shown that bats can learn to associate the moth’s ultrasonic signals with an unpleasant meal and subsequently avoid the clicking moths.

In other words, this moth has evolved a way to send a warning signal to a predator in a language humans generally can’t hear.

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08/29/2026

08/23/2026

If you plant them, they will come! **d **dformonarchs

08/17/2026

A moth isn’t just something flying around your porch light.

It’s a pollinator.
It’s food for birds and other wildlife.
It’s part of a much larger ecological system that we rarely see.

A healthy landscape isn’t just beautiful. It’s alive.

— Parklane Landscapes

08/05/2026

The process of planting a meadow begins long before the wildflowers are sown. In the method we used for this meadow project, the soil was tilled, sod was raked off, and rocks were removed to provide the best possible seed-to-soil contact. We then planted a smother crop of buckwheat. We use at least two smother crops of buckwheat, revisiting the site after each crop germinates to identify any bare spots and reseed them if necessary. These are just some of the steps we take to ensure you get the best meadow possible.

The first photo shows the mini meadow project during the first buckwheat smother crop. While it’s beautiful in full bloom and provides a temporary food source for pollinators, its real purpose is below the flowers.

Buckwheat grows quickly, shading the soil and suppressing w**ds. After the first crop flowers, we mow it, rake off the cut material, and immediately sow a second crop of buckwheat, shown in the second photo. Repeating this process helps reduce the w**d seed bank naturally, giving the future meadow a much better chance of success—all without relying on herbicides.

No one wants a meadow full of w**ds, which is why these preparation steps are among the most important. A thriving meadow isn’t created by simply scattering wildflower seed. It’s built through careful preparation, patience, and working with nature.

07/29/2026

Not all lady beetles are bright red with black spots. Pennsylvania is home to numerous native and introduced lady beetle species that come in a wide variety of colors and patterns. Most are beneficial predators that help control aphids and other soft-bodied, plant-feeding insects.
Pictured is the checkered-spot lady beetle, also known as the 14-spotted lady beetle or simply P-14 (Propylea quatuordecimpunctata), enjoying an aphid breakfast.

07/23/2026

Tiger bee fly (Xenox tigrinus) that was spotted by us a few days ago. The tiger bee fly deposits its eggs close (near carpenter bee entrance holes) to where carpenter bees have laid their eggs. The tiger bee fly larvae then eat the carpenter bee larvae helping to keep carpenter bees in check. Tiger bee flies are also great pollinators and they do not bite or sting, so be on the lookout for this great beneficial.

07/15/2026

The insect pictured here is the small milkw**d bug (Lygaeus kalmii), a native insect commonly found on milkw**d.
Milkw**d is best known as the host plant for monarch butterflies, but it supports an entire community of native insects. Every milkw**d plant is part of a much larger web of life.
When you plant milkw**d, you’re not just helping monarchs—you’re helping support an entire ecosystem.
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