We all love butterflies; but we are not so keen on caterpillars, especially when they devour our crops or favourite plant. But you can´t have one without the other, s. Many of our common herbs work too; lavender, rosemary, thyme and oregano being particular favourites. Try a patch of flopping oregano plants, dusty-pink in full flower, with blue agapanthus flowers spearing skyward – your butterflies will be in heaven with these nectar-rich plantings. Many ground-covering succulents are good butterfly material too; much of the sedum family and, in particular sedum herbstfreude Autumn Joy which, here, will give a spring flowering and a repeat autumn flush, useful for late nectar. In climbers I've noticed that the passion vines are particularly liked and the night-opening ipomoea alba is a haunt of moths. For a small tree, try caesalpinia gilliesii, the lovely bird of paradise tree with its yellow flowers and prominent red stamens.
If you want butterflies, be nice to nettles! A patch of nettles has always been the traditional way to draw butterflies and, whilst a little difficult to achieve here because they like rich ground, a small area is possible. The young shoots also make a very fortifying tea for us.
The umbellifers are also greatly loved – things like parsley, dill, cumin, coriander, fennel, parsnip, celery and Queen Anne's lace or wild carrot.
Many might think, ok, butterflies fine but moths aren´t so welcome. Think again! Have you seen the stunning hawk moth, silk moth and mullein moth caterpillars? They are fabulous in the world of caterpillars and moths. The most striking of all is the elephant hawk moth which loves fuchsia plants and rosebay willow herb. If you've oleanders planted, look out too for the oleander hawk moth caterpillar which starts off vivid yellow with a black horn on the rear end of the body. They, too, are able to absorb the oleander toxins thus avoiding the attention of predators. Silk moths are just adorable – furry little Chewbaccas – find them a mulberry tree. They will eat leaves of both black and white but much prefer the white. Similarly, mulleins or verbascums are essential food for the mullein moth caterpillar, a striking yellow, black and white creature. Keep a couple of verbascum bait plants for them, well separated from your garden plantings so that you can enjoy their vast furry leaves too and towering flower spikes.
Mother Nature will control plagues; thus we have predators such as frogs, toads, lizards and birds. If you have chickens and ducks and caterpillars are getting out of control, let your feathered friends' free range for a while. It's all part of the natural food chain.
Food crops can be netted to protect or try growing bait plants nearby – nasturtiums are incredibly useful for protecting your brassicas. Or try tucking large pieces of white eggshell around your brassicas. The cabbage white butterfly, mistaking them for other butterflies, will avoid them to avoid over competition for food. They are also not so keen on non-green leaves; so plant red cabbage, coloured kale, rainbow chard and purple pak choi. Herb sachets placed between clothing will keep clothes moths at bay – stuff them with lavender, rosemary, thyme, mint or cloves and refresh now and again with essential oils. Strong-smelling cedar chests were commonly used; substitute with airtight boxes.
And remember that the odd hole in a lettuce leaf is not detrimental to us but it was a great feed for some other little fella!
Viveros Florena, Cómpeta will re-open after our summer break on Tuesday 4th September. We're going to be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed after our long holiday so look out for lots of innovations and happenings!as the song goes. So what's the answer?
It's easy to say, in a green world, leave them alone and I would take that pathway but I do understand it's difficult when the cabbage whites are munching away at your brassicas; clothes moth caterpillars are chomping through your favourite cardigan and the tomato moth caterpillars are tucking into your tastiest tomatoes. But stop and think before you reach for the spray bottle of insecticide. Every one of those devouring caterpillars has the ability to turn into a hovering thing of beauty that delights our eyes during late summer walks around our gardens and campo. And it's not even just the butterflies that are so beautiful; many of our beloved birds are packed with caterpillar power. They're part of the food chain.
Butterflies and moths are found on every continent except Antarctica and it is thought that there are around 15,000 species of butterflies and 200,000 species of moths worldwide. It sounds like a lot but they, like much of our wildlife, are having a hard time. It is believed that over the last two to three decades the Iberian butterfly population has dropped by some 70%, and continues to fall; this is in line with worldwide trends. The reasons are various with the usual death knell – climate change, and in particular summer droughts, intensive farming methods with the use of chemical insecticides and herbicides and loss of habitat due to urbanisation.
Gardeners can help these endangered creatures, help swing those figures around and I want to help you do it fairly painlessly! We may be small but there are a lot of us and remember that the ultimate goal is to sit back in your garden and watch the gorgeous flight of butterflies. That metamorphosis from squashy and ugly to a dancing flutter of flight has always held us in awe and amazement. Let's make sure it is never lost from our lives.
Growing a few plants specifically for butterflies can make an enormous difference. There are two absolute musts in a butterfly garden. Most of us know and recognise buddleja – commonly known as the butterfly bush for obvious reasons. All types are loved by butterflies but, probably, buddleja davidii is their favourite and it's supremely easy, tough, drought resistant etc. A must have if you've space for a large shrub. The second is less well known, the commonly named butterfly plant or asclepia curassavica. Its bright orange flowers are attractive and, again, it is tough and easy. This is an interesting one because to most insects (and humans) it is poisonous but it is like chocolate cake to the monarch butterfly. The toxins reside in their system making them unpalatable to birds, so it's a win-win for the caterpillars. They will devour your plant but don´t worry, the plant will survive and re-shoot. Mother Nature will take control; most of the caterpillars will have eaten their full and form chrysalides, a few will go hungry and die. Similar looking are the lantanas and verbena family in general; try the perennial verbena bonariensis, its swaying stems act like magnets to our fluttering friends. Other butterfly perennials are penstemon, agapanthus, aster, eupatoriums, achilleas, valerians, salvias and the delicious minty scent of agastaches and the hot cherry pie aroma of heliotropes draw them too. Silvery-leaved lychnis coronaria with its searing hot pink flowers is another one and if you don´t do pink, there's a calmer white version too. If you want some instant butterfly plants try the quick growing annual cosmos, sunflowers, pentas, zinnias, nicotianas or tobacco plants and marigold
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