Tom, probably the best host plant for central Florida would be rabbit's tobacco, which likes well drained soil and can survive heat. I've never found a place to buy the plants, but you could probably order seeds or maybe find some plants growing roadside that you could dig up and take home. Here's a good link to what the plant looks like - Rabbit's Tobacco They've changed the scientific name to Pseudo something or other. You probably wouldn't find it looking like that, since it usually has American lady nests on it. It doesn't bloom until fall, at least here it doesn't, and I rarely ever see any blooms, because the caterpillars keep eating it down. It looks exactly like pearly everlasting, a plant that grows in cooler climates, which I've planted, but didn't return, couldn't take the heat, I guess. Sherry

Dave, Those are great shots. I guess I don't understand the whole feral cat thing in your area. Around here, you can call the Animal Shelter and they will lend you or set traps, you catch bring in, and they spay or neuter. If then you as the "neighbor" have the choice of releasing them or keeping them, or trying to integrate them into new homes. The shelters are full of sweet "adoptable" cats. So they do the free altering. A friend of mine who lives in my neighborhood, takes in pregnant mothers. Lets them have their littleones in her house, and then takes them all to the Shelter for spaying/neutering. She's found homes for most of the kittens, and the three mothers come to her for food, but basically are still feral. She has 2 of her own and kept 4 from the first litter she took in.

He looks real comfy! Sandy, is it safe to lay something right on top of the heater like that? I'm so paranoid, doesn't even have to be my house and I worry! Our beasts all pile up around the wood stove, which only has a pan of water on it! ;)

Socks, you must be thinking of Mickey, who died in January 2010. I'm having second thoughts about taking on this cat. I don't know if she's nursing, but I think she's pregnant. And apparently she comes from the horse farm next door. The two cats I have now came from there, too. A female had been coming around, just like this one. She had just weaned a litter, and I rounded them up, taking the orange tabby kittens to the shelter (where they said orange was the color most likely to be adopted) and keeping the mother and her black kitten. She was pregnant when I had her spayed. I certainly don't want to punish this current cat for her owner's neglect, but there's a limit to how many cats I can save. There was a time when my DH and I rescued dogs, cats, and horses without limit, but I'm not in that position anymore. I'll talk to the owner about taking the cat myself to be spayed, at his expense. We discussed this a few years ago, but at the time he wanted me to keep the cat in my house for the required two-week healing period. I might agree to do that this time if certain conditions are met. Or maybe I'll find he's not interested. We'll see.