'Sounds good, Laura!

I keep finding black swallowtail cats, so I'm up to 12 now, with the last two being much smaller than the others. 'Don't know if the Mama laid eggs more than once or if they're just runts. :) I'm about to run out of mock-bishop's weed, so I put rue in the container with the little cats - here's hoping they transition. I may or may not be able to find MBW roadside, I've never looked for it.

My second tiger is real big, should pupate soon, and the first one should be emerging soon. I've released another spicebush swallowtail - this time a male - and found another tiny one on what's left of the leaves on one of the spicebushes. The tiny one is now eating sassafras.

I released another long-tailed skipper - one more to go. I keep releasing pipevine swallowtails, and I released another red-spotted purple. I'm waiting on the second palamedes chrysalis to open up! I've also released a lot of sleepy oranges, and the giant swallowtail Mama laid still more eggs on Ptelea trifoliata. I also found two more little American lady cats on pitiful cudweed, so I brought them in and am feeding them decent cudweed - the other one emerged recently.

Everything is going well here, except for little or no rain, so I'm having to water, which I hate.

Sherry

I forgot to mention that the gulf frits are growing like weeds, and I think I saw a variegated frit the other day, so I'll be checking the passionvines and violets for cats.

There are also a lot of long-tailed and silver-spotted skipper cats on the Amorphas, Robinias, and Desmodiums. I'm seeing lots of what look to be newly emerged checkered skippers flying around, so I imagine they're using the Sidas, which are plentiful.

Sherry

Sounds like you are having a good year except for the rain. We actually got 3 inches last night. Good for the garden but not for my son's baseball games.

~Laura

Laura, I can't seem to get the GFs to lay eggs on my Maypops...just the Passiflora caerulea! They are about to eat all the leaves off a very huge vine! I've moved a few cats to them but the mommas won't lay their eggs on them for some reason!!!

Sherry, what type of violets do you have that the Varigated Frits use? I have a light blue violet as well as a purple & have never seen cats on them! I usually pull up my pansies when it starts getting hot but this year I have had Varigated Frit cats all over them so I've tried to keep them growing as long as I could but the 90+ temps are getting them now!

Lila, I find them on common violets. Common violets have many scientific names - Viola floridana here - but they're all the same plant. They're the ones with the purple flowers and the heart-shaped leaves that thrive in the shade. We also have white-flowering violets, V. primulifolia, but I've never found any cats on them.

I'm surprised that your gulf frits won't use maypops/P. incarnata - that's their very favorite here. It's puzzling how the same species can favor one plant over the other in different parts of the country!

Sherry

Lila, I thought that my Passiflora 'Lavendar Lady' (an incarnata cross) was the favorite of the GFs until one summer I planted a P. caerulea (died). They layed all their eggs on it until it was down to stems only, and then went to the Lavender Lady. They may do the same in your garden, too.

I think in the South, the passi's are the favored host, altho a few eggs were layed on my violets, and in the North, they seem to prefer the violets as I've seen reported here.

MissSherry, I've switched from Fennel to Rue, and from Rue to Fennel with my BSTs, with no problems. They readily ate either plant and pupated just as well. I hope the same happens for you.

Susan

I have a p. caerulea but haven't checked it yet! Shame on me. LOL I just bought it this year and I actually have it out by the mailbox. I guess I'll check on it and see if I have had any activity out there. So far, the vf and the gf here seem to like the Maypops just fine.

~Laura

Susan...do you want more P.caerulea? I have lots of volunteers!!!

Lila, would love some. I have tried it twice, tho, and both times it died over winter here. Others have been able to winter it over in my zone, but I have not been successful with it and I don't know why. Any ideas?

Susan

I have had trouble overwintering rosemary, rue & bronze fennel as well as different types of lavenders & finally figured out that I was watering during the winter & they all don't like wet feet!(slightly raised them by using big pots & making raised beds & now they are thriving in part shade!)
My Blue Passionvine however is thriving in clay & heavy soil...so I don't think that is the reason. Maybe if you add compost to the hole you plant it in & put a heavy mulch on top or grow it in a pot until next spring & plant it early so it has plenty of time to get established before winter! It is semi evergreen here in 7b/8a but when it gets cold...dies to the ground. It has come back every year for me for at least 7-8 years & like I mentioned is the plant of choice for my GFs! Also, it is in morning sun with afternoon shade on the north side of my house. It is also in another bed that is on the south side of my house & gets some relief from afternoon sun as well! It's funny...the GFs lay their eggs on the plant I have pictured first maybe because there are other vines that intermix with my southern location. I have several clematis varieties as well as volunteer cypress vine that grows intermixed with it! It is also more sheltered from my house & maybe it's because of the windiness that they prefer it???
I will dig up some volunteers this weekend & pot them until they get good roots established...then I can send them to you bare rooted...if you want to try them now? &/or I will pot up some & then can send them to you next spring if you'd rather??? Just let me know! I love the blue flowers!
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I tried to grow 'Lady Margaret' & it didn't come back for me...won't waste my $$$ again. We have been re-zoned to 8b but plants are 'iffy' because we are at least 5-10 degrees colder than Fort Worth during the winter.