2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Would you agree that a garden with bright, beautiful butterflies becomes even more attractive? After all, it is so pleasant to watch these fragile and airy creatures when they flutter fussily over your flower garden, like multi-colored petals plucked in the wind. But butterflies do not come to everyone. How do you attract them?
It is necessary to immediately make a reservation that we are not talking about harmful cabbage or any moths there. There is a lot of talk about them in the section on pests. And in this material I would like to pay attention to the real living decor of the summer garden - butterflies that do not harm the plants, but, on the contrary, pollinate them, decorate them, raising our spirits and pleasing the eye. Here are some useful information for those who want to attract more "good" butterflies to their garden:
- Butterflies lay their eggs on plants in places where there is enough moisture and little pesticides. Insects love areas with warm climates. They appear and linger where there are plants most preferred for growing their larvae.
- Butterfly larvae are very selective and will not settle on any bush. Caterpillars usually prefer foliage of specific groups of plants, most often unattractive in appearance. Therefore, do not be surprised if a butterfly is circling over common, perhaps even weedy, wild grass - perhaps it intends to lay eggs.
- Usually, newborn caterpillars are insatiable, so they eat the plant almost to the skeleton of the leaves. For example, the blackish caterpillars of one of the most common butterflies in Russia, the Peacock's Eye, happily eat the foliage of hops, raspberries, willows and nettles. Chewing continuously, the butterfly larvae grow, gradually turning into pupae, which eventually become beautiful adult butterflies.
- Adult butterflies are real gourmets and have a sweet tooth. They love to drink flower nectar, so they try to find beautiful and fragrant flowering plants. With their long, spiral proboscis, butterflies penetrate deep into the center of the flower, reaching sweet nectar. They are especially attracted by: aster, rudbeckia, geyllardia, lobelia, catnip, echinacea, daisy, goldenrod, hyssop, anise, lavender, lupine, mallow, phlox, violet, string, verbena, yarrow, zinnia.
- In addition to nectar, butterflies feed on moisture from puddles or raindrops, sometimes they do not disdain human sweat. Thanks to him, they replenish their body with minerals and nutrients.
- In order for beautiful butterflies to live in your garden, it is necessary to provide them and their larvae with a favorable habitat. Plant a variety of plants such as grasses, annuals, perennials, grapes, shrubs, and trees. For a change, you can sow meadow grasses and crops.
- It is good to plant the plants that the butterflies like so that they bloom throughout the season. The more varied the flowers in the garden, the more different types of butterflies will fly to them.
- Do not introduce butterfly larvae into plants on your own. It is enough to leave some weeds on a small part of the garden or in the neighborhood, on which females can lay eggs. It is great if fresh water accumulates in those places or overripe fruits that have fallen from the trees remain to rot, which will provide the larvae with nutritious moisture filled with minerals.
- Butterflies also need flat stones so that they take sun baths or sunbathe, collecting heat in their wings. Insects prefer fragrant flowering plants in sunny and calm places.
- Some species of butterflies feed at a certain height, preferring not flowers, but bushes. For the winter, many of their species try to stay close to their eggs, pupae or larvae. Therefore, you should not mow weeds and grasses for the winter so that the butterflies and their offspring do not die.
- Butterfly larvae are usually solitary and are rare, unlike harmful caterpillars, which should be left in a visible place so that they can be eaten by birds, or even get rid of them altogether. However, even the caterpillars of beneficial butterflies in too large numbers can harm ornamental or vegetable crops. To preserve the harvest and the butterflies that decorate the garden, you can transfer caterpillars from cultivated plants to weeds.
When inviting butterflies to your garden, you should still remember that they should be wonderful guests, not ruling hosts.
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