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| I want to make a garden attractive for butterflies to lay eggs - I've tried several suggested plants with little luck, and I have lots of butterflies, but none apparently laying eggs. I have searched for common milkweek - nursery people laugh and say, go dig it up, I don't know where there is any. So, I have gotten seeds and a planted a few to see what they look like to be prepared to plant the rest in the spring. What does a milkweek seeding look like - is there a source of seedling pictures?? |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| I have a seedling image site bookmarked, but it didn't have an image for common milkweed (asclepias syriaca). But I found the link below and it has one picture that's labeled "Common milkweed and Butterfly Weed seedlings." |
Here is a link that might be useful: milkweed seedlings
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| Here's the link to the seedpod and seedling images. It shows asclepias incarnata, but not syriaca. |
Here is a link that might be useful: seedpod and seedling images
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| Thank you! For some reason I could not go directly to the place you suggested but I had been googling milkweed seedlings and once I looked for seedpods and seedlings I found wonderful sites - I ready now for spring! |
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| Hi Gail, I've been meaning to get back to this thread and post a pic of some of my Asclepias seedlings. Here's a pic from June 2008 - my first year winter-sowing. According to my records this is 4 different species of Asclepias - A. purpurascens, A. tuberosa, A. incarnata, and A. curassavica. Don't they all look alike? They look kind of the same when they first sprout, until they get a bit larger. The only one I'm sure about is A. incarnata is the lower right. |
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| I've seen Monarchs lay eggs on our Asclepias Tuberosa (butterfly weed), i.e. the standard orange variety. So I'm thinking if there is any sort of lack of milkweed you're going to get them lay them in any milkweed that exists! i.e. these guys, when they got done with the sedum they went over to the butterfly Weed across the sidewalk.
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| So many things eat the milkweed in my garden that I am lucky if the Butterflies can have enough leaves to support them. Hasn't happened, yet. This year I finally had some caterpillars hatch. Was excited and then the bees, which check these plants daily, ate the caterpillas. End of that. I bought fennel seeds for next year. Different butterflies but still get to watch them develop. The secret for us is to cut a stem with the caterpillars and put them in a container and continue to feed them and change out the fennel greens daily. A lot of work but at least bees don't get them. Two sides to every story: Can't say the bees are bad, because they are also eating unwanted worms. Bob |
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| I'm pretty sure you mean "wasp" not bee... bees don't eat bugs as far as I'm aware. But we definetly got a ton of wasps which do eat bad bugs. That weeping cherry on the right of the monarch was in really bad shape, aphids and caterpillars were eating it to death, but once I started putting good pollinator plants around the wasps cleaned up that mess and the tree started to flourish. I know you want to see the butterflies, but remember the wasps are keeping all the other bad bugs away as well. I just don't want people to think bees are responsible for this. |
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| You are so right. Wasps, not bees. As wrong as it is, I call anything that has a stinger a bee. If I get lucky enough to get a honey bee which is rare, I brag that I saw a honey bee. Again that is probably the wrong word, but I am too old to care. Now when one of the many bumble bees that are around here in the spring landed on my wife's pants leg and then she bought it in the house (unknowingly) and then she sat on it and the stinger shot into her leg.... Well, she called that bee by a different name, which I can't print here. :-) |
Here is a link that might be useful: Bee clothing
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| So many things eat the milkweed in my garden that I am lucky if the Butterflies can have enough leaves to support them. Hasn't happened, yet. Yes, milkweed does seem to attract a panoply of insects - not to mention the occasional critter that chomps it down. This is why I regularly patrol mine and either squish or banish all insects. The lady bugs and occasional spider get tossed into another garden, but most get squished. I like insects, but since my property is a Monarch waystation, I raise and tag Monarchs (didn't see any this year unfortunately), and I collect seed, I want the foliage and seedpods to be healthy. The Monarchs are welcome, but the other bugs not so welcome. Edited to add: this doesn't include flowers! all pollinators are welcome on those. |
This post was edited by terrene on Wed, Sep 25, 13 at 18:57
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