What are you talking about? These are great pictures! The gulf fritillary just started to show up here, looking forward to caterpillars. I have an incredible amount of variegated fritillary caterpillars all over. I usually leave some of the violets, but didn't get around to pulling the rest before I started noticing caterpillars. So of course they will stay.

Thanks Iris! Glad to hear that the gulf frits are starting to show up. They sure are prolific egg layers and I've never had any problems with wasps bothering their eggs or cats..thank goodness.

Thanks Shane! Wow, you better hope your passionvine grows new leaves quickly :)

Those are beautiful pictures, Rhonda - I would have never known there was any wind.

I'm starting to find gulf frit cats, so I'm sure they'll soon have my vines looking like the one in the above picture.

Sherry

Thanks Sherry!!! Glad to hear you finally got the gulf frit cats :) Luckily, we have had so much heat and rain that the passion vines recovered well after the first batch of cats were gone a month or so ago.

In the spring, a bunch of cats like in first photo were on leaves of a passiflora (not a red one, btw) and overnight disappeared and the leaves remained barely nibbled. Assume they were picked off by a predator?

Probably, Irma. The lizards get many of the cats on my property. You probably have a few also.

Irma,

Lots of mine disappear (many remain though). I've never seen wasps around the passionvine but I bet Tom is on to something as there are tons of lizards everywhere here.

Aww, they're ADORABLE!

Thanks mblan!!

Rhonda, so glad to see that you are now getting Monarchs, Frits, and Goldrims on a regular basis. You planted. You got.

Well done.

Congrats.

Are there Julias as far north as you? Pipevines as far south?

How's Joe?

Thanks Tom!!!

I haven't seen a Julia or a pipevine yet. There's really no one around me that has an established butterfly garden to ask what butterflies to expect. However, I am getting a couple of neighbors interested and have made a few trips with them to nurseries to pick out plants :)

I saw a tiger swallowtail yesterday but didn't have my camera ready. My parsley died and my fennel is struggling. Do you know if they will use Magnolia grandifloras, specifically Edith Bogue and Little Gem?

How is your garden doing? I'm sure you're seeing tons of butterflies now. I would love to have a garden like yours but I know it has been a 20+ year project for you.....not something that happens overnight.

Do you have Panama rose (bush penta)? It is supposed to be a great butterfly plant that gets pretty big. Mine, however, is not much bigger than when I planted it (every other plant has at least quadrupled in size) and although it always has pink flowers I have never seen one butterfly use it :(

Joe's recovery is progressing steadily, however he is getting a little impatient to be done with PT. But, he does it religiously. Thanks for asking.

Take care,

Rhonda

Hey, Rhonda, glad to hear that Joe is progressing. PT is difficult, but very necessary. One needs to do the right things after PT also.

I assume you are asking about plants to attract Tigers. No, I don't think that those Magnolias are used by Tigers. The best plant, or one of the best plants, is the Sweet Bay Magnolia. If you remember I have a very large one at the back of my house. I suppose some Tigers use it. I have seen some cats in the past, but not many. These trees really like water. There are a lot in the park where I ride and walk. The park has many wetlands. I was hoping that I would see more tigers. I do see some every week now, but not every day.

I think the best overall tree for butterflies and birds is the Wild Black Cherry tree (Prunus serotina.) I believe it attracts something like four different butterflies, including Tigers. I had one that got very big and then all of a sudden just died. I'm thinking of getting another one, but I'm starting to run out of room. The park has a lot of these trees.

I do have the bush penta and my experience is much the same as yours. It is growing, but very slowly. Now it is almost completely covered by the Mexican Sunflowers. The damn squirrels keep climbing on them and knocking down the branches, even though I have them staked.

My parsley is still doing well. I keep the plants well watered an in mostly shade. Now there are a bunch of black swallowtail cats on them, as well as the fennel. I will be out of town for the next four days and I assume most of them will be eaten before I return.

An yes, lots of butterflies now. I'm also seeing one or two hummers fairly regularly, but they don't use the feeders.

Rhonda, I do have 2 Panama roses, and they do get butterflies. I just bought one, that I've been looking for it, for a while, Dombeya burgessiae (Seminole). I saw it at Fairchild's. It gets a lot of butterflies on it, and it's gorgeous. I got it at Homestead, in a native nursery. MY 2 Dutchman's Pipe, both Elegans, are completely gone, the butterflies eat them up. I have to go back to Homestead, to get another one. The Polydamas is still coming to my yard, and I don't have the host plant. I haven't been able to find the native one, just got some seeds for it.

Tom,

Thanks....yes, PT is very necessary. Joe has seemed to turn a major corner this week and has progressed very far :)

Thanks for the info on the magnolias. I do remember your beautiful magnolia! But, I definitely won't be planting another magnolia here as they get too big. I agree about the wild black cherry. I had several nice specimens in both Ohio and Williston that came up naturally. They were great host plants. But, they get too big for this lot as well. So...guess I need to keep my dill, fennel, parsley alive LOL

Thanks for confirming that I am not the only one that doesn't have success with the Panama Rose :) I was going to ask if you wanted it LOL Maybe I'll dig it up and relocate to a more open spot where it isn't competing with my now jungle garden.

Congrats on all the swallowtail cats! And, if I were a hummer (have been told that I have the energy of one), I would ignore your feeders as well and dine on your flower smorgasbord :)

ily,

That's great that the Panama rose has done well for you and attracts butterflies.That Dombeya
burgessiae (Seminole) is absolutely gorgeous!

I'm so glad that their are so many butterfly lovers who don't mind having their vines/plants eaten up :) I remember talking to the owner of a small nursery I frequented in Williston. He had many butterfly host plants that he grew from seed and cuttings and never used pesticides on. I always bought my milkweed there and each had several monarch cats. He told me of a customer who came in and walked up to him stating "I noticed several bugs on your plants. But don't worry, I squished them all!" Well, Tony quickly went over the the milkweed and found not one remaining caterpillar! After explaining to her what the "bugs" were, he told her to leave and never return! LOL

Peter and Suzanne,

Thanks for the info on the gardening group and the wonderful photos! You have an awesome butterfly environment and it's great that you are sharing your knowledge and garden with others :)

Rhonda

Rhonda, I found these pictures of the Panama Rose you might enjoy,

Beautiful pictures everyone.

Last year some Master Gardeners took a trip to Seahorse Key (off Cedar Key). And the Zebra Longwings were incredible! There were SO many flitting around. It as very magical. A lot of wild passion vine growing there.

Wasps get a lot of my larvae and I have to say that if they didn't my passion vine would be down to the ground. Cats have taken my pipevine down to no leaves several times.