The monarch caterpillars in our garden haven’t been surviving over the past two years & I shared my disappointment with a friend in horticulture. It may have been due to neighbors pesticides, predators, or some other factor.
She suggested collecting caterpillars just after they hatch, and providing fresh milkweed leaves daily in a protected mesh enclosure.
This morning we awoke to this wondrous surprise!
They only eat Milkweed.
It is an evolutionary protection.
It makes them poisonous to birds.
There is more to this story and why they are dying off due to global warming.
It turns out that Milkweed seeds may not sprout if they were not subjected to a hard freeze over winter.
@Sheril Congrats on your butterfly.
My family has had good luck with Monarchs in our backyard garden, although it took several years of letting milkweed and other native plants grow wild in our yard.
We also cordon off any plants where the caterpillars build their chrysalis, so they won't be accidentally disturbed.
My milkweed is four yrs old. They have a tap root and take a while to show in spring. Once they poke out, they take off and will spread over time.
I leave my cats and butterflies outdoors. I have over 20 that pupated this year, and about 8 cats died. Some years will be better than others. Cycle of life. A second batch of cats have hatched and are happily fattening up.
I live in cooler canadian temps along one of the great lakes.
Plant milkweed in a sunny location. They will come. 😊
Yay! I leave mine to spread where they may. Hopefully my neighbours will benefit.
Mary
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