HOMES OF THE TREASURE COAST
The guest house affords privacy and spectacular views of the St. Lucie River and the tropical pool.
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Melynda breeds butterflies in her screened-in garden.
BUTTERFLY SANCTUARY
Melynda has a green thumb and is constantly planting and
replanting around The Hammock. “I am the jungle mama.
My mother was a Master Gardener and my grandmother
grew everything we ate,” she said. “The only thing we went
to the store for was flour, sugar and frosted flakes. I spent my
summers shelling peas and picking plums.”
A self-taught butterfly expert, Melynda has built a butterfly
hatchery and plans to travel to Mexico to see the migration of
Monarch butterflies. She breeds 10 different species by growing
the plants that provide nectar and other plants that will
serve as hosts for butterflies to lay their larva. “I am Mother
Nature in there,” she said.
“Here we are like the (Beverly Hillbillies) Clampetts,” Melynda
said. “We had a duck who raised her ducklings here
for six years. We have four cats, two dogs and we get visits
from possum, raccoons and birds. We had a wild turkey come
through one time.”
On the Fourth of July last year, more than 300 people enjoyed
the Stuart fireworks show from the yard, but the couple
is more comfortable entertaining 20 family members and
friends for a southern-style outdoor Thanksgiving feast. >>