1.1K Views
Butterfly plants in action
by
Douglas Hunt
(IC: professional)
When it comes to butterfly plants, they talk about larval plants and nectar plants, but everybody seems to sweep under the rug the fact that larval plants are there TO BE EATEN. Today I found hundreds of brightly colored caterpillars chomping away on my coonties (Zamia pumila). If all goes well, they will turn into lovely echo moths (Seirarctia echo), and I'm letting them feast. To provide the nectar side of the equation, a gulf frittillary (Agraulis vanillae) conveniently stopped by to sip from my Vitex agnus castus. Sometime not long ago, it had done the same thing to a passion vine (Passiflora spp.) that those brightly colored caterpillars are doing to my coontie.
Enjoyed the project?
Published June 7th, 2013 3:46 PM
Comments
Join the conversation
3 of 16 comments
-
-
Vicki on Jun 03, 2014I still have parsley, fennel for eastern butterfly swallowtail caterpillars here every year. they do come back by self seeds. save my job to plant those. ha. now wait for caterpillars to feast on those herb plants.
-
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?