It's Another New Year

2013 was a successful year for me: my tropical greenhouse was thriving right through from spring until autumn, and I rediscovered the 'fun' of rearing native species of butterflies and moths. I've also started to rear and breed some warm temperate and tropical moths, including the Death's Head Hawk Moth and the Atlas Moth, which I have also found very rewarding. Outside of the greenhouse, my butterfly borders also flourished, encouraging lots of native species into the garden to feed and breed.

I'm hoping to have an equally successful 2014, and today, I have begun with preparing for the year ahead. The first job of the year is to tidy up the greenhouse: cut back the rampant climbers, remove the dead leaves and stems from the remaining plants and shrubs, and to discard any fatalities that may not have survived. I am hoping to complete the 'tidy-up' process by the middle of February, which will allow me to get started on stocking up the borders again with new plants.

January is also the time to plan ahead, thinking about what plants you would like to grow, and also, the time to start sowing certain seeds - both for the greenhouse and the garden. I have already made my first seed order, of what will no doubt be several, and begun to sow some seeds.

I have got started early with several tropical seeds, including Passiflora alata, Passiflora foetida, Passiflora vitifolia, Annona squamosa and Aristolochia ringens. These are being started in a heated propagator at a temperature of about 25-30°C.

Comma

Scientific Name:
Polygonia c-album

The Comma is a widespread butterfly in the UK, and although it has been in decline throughout most of the twentieth century, it is one of the species that is making a comeback, with an estimated increase in numbers of about 37% since the 1970's. It is common in southern England, and its population is slowly expanding northwards. The common name is derived from the white comma-like marking on the underside of the rear hindwings, which is easily seen when the Comma is at rest.

The white comma-like marking which gives this butterfly its name is
clearly visible when the butterfly is at rest.

Commas are versatile butterflies, and will adapt to a variety of environments. Their usual habitat is open woodland and woodland edges, but they will thrive almost anywhere with a plentiful supply of nectar and, of course, their larval foodplants. They are a common sight in parks and gardens, especially in the autumn, when they will travel more widely in search of nectar and rotting fruit as they prepare for hibernation.

Commas have two broods each year, the first laying eggs towards the end of April and into May, and the second brood usually begins egg laying from mid July. A range of caterpillar foodplants are used, although Nettle (Urtica dioica) is the principle foodplant, but Hops (Humulus lupulus) is also commonly used. Other foodplants include Elms (Ulmus spp.), Currants (Ribes spp.) and Willows (Salix spp.)

The Comma is probably the easiest of our garden favourites to entice to breed in your garden, especially if you live in the south of England. If you ensure that you have a good supply of nectar rich plants in your borders during the appropriate breeding times, and a Hops vine growing up a sunny wall or fence, I can pretty much guarantee you'll have Commas laying eggs. In my own garden, we have had breeding Commas every year since we first planted our Hops vine. They will happily lay their eggs on the normal green strain, or the attractive Golden Hops (H. lupulus) 'Aurea'. I have noticed, however, that we tend to only have second generation butterflies laying on the Hops.

The female Comma will lay her eggs on a number of plants, usually
Nettles (Urtica dioica) but Hops (Humulus lupulus) is also commonly used.

In my garden, I do like to give the Commas a bit of a helping hand, and generally, I will collect some of the eggs laid, and rear 10-15 of them to adulthood myself. This is partly for enjoyment, and partly because the Hops vine can become infested with potential predators (mainly ants and spiders), that very few of the eggs laid would otherwise survive. The adults can then be released to feed up before they hibernate in the autumn.

Rearing Comma caterpillars is very easy - and even more so when you have a large supply of Hops growing in the garden to feed them on. The eggs are easily found, and are laid singly or in small batches on the upper surface of the leaves, usually close to the edges. Mostly, this is on young, fresh leaves, but some are laid on older leaves. They are easiest to find in sunshine, as they will glisten in the light, and are glassy green in colour. Another way to locate them is to observe the adults as they flutter around the vine - if one is fluttering from leaf to leaf, briefly settling and moving off again, there is a good chance that it is an egg-laying female, and there will most likely be an egg on the leaf she settled on.

The eggs should be kept with as little foliage as possible (cut around the egg if necessary) in a small airtight container and take about a week to hatch, although this may be quicker in warmer temperatures. The container should be checked regularly for hatching larvae. Upon hatching, the larvae should be transferred into a separate container, with a fresh hop leaf. The young caterpillars will quickly retreat to the underside of the leaf and begin feeding, which will become noticeable after several hours, when small holes begin to appear. It is important to make sure that containers are cleaned out every day, and that fresh food is provided. It is usually sufficient to place the caterpillars in with fresh food, whilst still attached to an old bit of leaf. They will soon transfer themselves to the fresh leaves.

The caterpillars assume a very distinguished appearance in later
stages, being sparsely covered with tan and white spiky hairs.

For the first two instars (skin changes) the caterpillars will be black in colour, and they tend to stay away from the edges of the leaf. When they reach their third instar, the caterpillars assume a very distinguished appearance, with a white patch on their rear segments, and a sparse covering of tan and white spiky hairs. The caterpillars are less shy after this, and although they still tend to prefer feeding from underneath the leaves, they will occasionally sit on top, and are said to resemble bird droppings.

The caterpillars grow quickly to maturity, before suspending
themselves in order to pupate.

As the caterpillars continue to feed, they will soon reach maturity, at which point they will ascend to the top of the container and suspend themselves from a silken pad to pupate. The butterflies usually emerge about two weeks later, usually between mid August and September. At this point they can be released, where they will gorge themselves on nectar from a variety of garden plants including Buddleia (Buddleia spp.), Michaelmas Daisy (Aster spp.), Ice Plant (Sedum spectabile), Ivy (Hedera helix) as well as fallen fruit.

Puss Moth

Puss Moth
Cerura vinula

The adult Puss Moth

UK Native: Yes
Foodplants: Sallows and Willows (Salix spp.) or Aspens and Poplars (Populus spp.)

The Puss Moth is a species of moth that I have been intrigued with since I was a child, although I'd never had the chance to rear or breed them myself. This year, I decided that I would purchase some eggs and rear the caterpillars.

The adult moth is fluffy, predominantly white and heavily speckled with black or grey. Although this sounds dull, it is actually a rather handsome moth, and can be quite large. The fluffy legs and thorax give rise to the common name, as from certain angles, the moth can indeed resemble a cat.

An early final instar caterpillar, with the eye-spot markings now clearly visible.

However, for most people (and for me), the most interesting feature of this moth is the caterpillar. Firstly, the appearance changes radically, with each instar looking distinctly different from the last. The only similarity is the unusual 'tails' of this species, which are in fact modified claspers. However, the caterpillar is at it's most striking in it's final instar, being bright green, with a dark saddle on its upper side, outlined in white. The head is also surrounded by a reddish-orange 'face' complete with black eye spots. The caterpillars are known for their aggressive behaviour, and once they feel threatened, they will turn to face the direction of attack, waving their 'tails' about, whilst extending special red filaments called flagellae. If this initial warning is not heeded, the caterpillars may spray the attacker with formic acid, which can be at a concentration of up to 40%.

A caterpillar approaching maturity.

The cocoon is also an amazing feature of this species. When the caterpillar is fully grown, it usually wanders away from the foodplant, and its colour will change from bright green to a dull brown or purple. The cocoon is usually spun on the trunk of a tree, or other convenient place, and is extremely difficult to spot. The larva will chew up particles of wood and spin these into the cocoon, which then becomes rock hard. It is also perfectly camouflaged against the usual tree trunk background.

The finished cocoon on a bark shaving.

Rearing:
The caterpillars have proven very easy to rear, although once they have been introduced to a particular foodplant (i.e. Salix or Populus), they cannot be transferred to the other. The larvae also eat a considerable amount of food in the last instar, so a plentiful supply of either Willow or Poplar will be needed to rear them successfully.

Upon hatching, the caterpillars will eat part of their eggshells. They also have a tendency to gallop off around the container, even when there is a plentiful supply of willow or poplar leaves for them to feed on. They will, eventually, settle down and begin to feed, and small holes will soon appear in the leaves.

Puss Moth larvae immediately after hatching.

As the larvae grow, it is important that they are kept in a relatively large container, so that stems of the cut food plant can be placed inside the cage, allowing the caterpillars to adopt their typical resting position when they are not feeding. Ideally, stems should be placed in a container of moist compost as opposed to water. Willow leaves in particular do not stay fresh for longer than a day when cut, so access to fresh food will be needed daily.

The typical resting position of the Puss Moth larva.

As the caterpillars approach maturity, you will need to ensure that bits of tree bark or rotted wood are provided prior to pupation, so that the caterpillars may successfully spin their wooden reinforced cocoons. They will gallop around the cage for many hours in search of somewhere to pupate if they do not deem anywhere suitable!

A caterpillar that has just begun spinning its cocoon.

The cocoons will develop and hibernate through the winter, with the adult moths not emerging until the following spring. They should be kept in a suitable container, and kept in a sheltered position outside to overwinter. They can be brought in during the spring, and released after emergence.

The First Pupae Arrive...

As the weather has started to heat up, the greenhouse is coming along nicely, with many of the plants in full growth, and flowers starting to appear. As it's been almost two years since I last had any butterflies gracing my tropical greenhouse, I have been itching to get some, and so I ordered my first batch for the year.

The chrysalids arrive, carefully snuggled amongst their cotton wool padding in a well wrapped box. These need to be suspended to make it easier for the emerging butterflies to crawl out and expand their wings. This is easily done, and I have used nothing more than an old shoe box, some small garden canes, and a glue gun. Care must be taken when gluing the chrysalids, and only the silken pad should be touched with glue, unless this is missing, in which case only the very tip of the cremaster should be glued to the canes.

The pupae of three different species of butterflies are suspended from garden canes to await emergence.

The pupae ordered so far are:
Emerald Swallowtail (Papilio palinurus) - back row
Common Mormon (Papilio polytes) - middle row
Leopard Lacewing (Cethosia cyane) - front row

The pupae do not take long to emerge - usually emerging between 2-7 days after receipt. The only thing that they require after being suspended is to be kept somewhere warm, and out of direct sunlight. They also benefit from a light misting with water, to help keep the air around them humid, and to prevent them from drying out.

2013... The Preparations Begin

So... it's been almost a year since I last wrote an entry on this blog. Last year was a bit hectic, but, I am hopeful that this year I will be able to keep it updated on a more frequent basis.

Okay, so, it's a new year. It's mid-February, and it's the time of year where I start thinking about the year ahead: What I want to grow, and what I want to breed in my tropical greenhouse. However, as I didn't grow  or breed at all last year, I have an empty greenhouse and I need to start filling it up again! This weekend I have been clearing out the remains of dead plants from my last breeding season in 2011. I am quite excited about getting stuck in again this year.

Above: the now much clearer greenhouse, with most of the lifeless plants removed.

I am already getting some Ruellia squarrosa plants growing, as these will form much of the ground cover in the tropical greenhouse and also provide an excellent host plant for the larvae of Siproeta stelenes, which I enjoyed having bred two years ago. I am sowing seeds of two species of Stachytarpheta as nectar sources: S. jamaicensis and S. urticifolia. Soon, I will be sowing a number of Pentas lanceolata and Vinca seeds which are also essential nectar sources.

Above: A lone Ruellia squarrosa clings on amazingly when all others had died. Also a pot of Ruellia seedlings to be planted around the greenhouse.

I am planning to breed my usual Heliconius charitonia as well, and have found that a shoot of Passiflora morifolia has emerged from the arid ground of the greenhouse. An unusual member of the passion flower family with large leaves, although, the Zebra has a tendency to favour the shoots of this species over others. Perhaps, because it is used by few other Heliconid butterflies. Other species of passion flower will also be introduced, hopefully Passiflora vitifolia.

I do have plans to have more species breeding this year, but for the time being, I am getting the preparations done for the above species.

So that's the tropical greenhouse... Now, although I didn't breed any tropical butterflies last year, I did refocus on my outside garden, and worked on that quite a bit with the aim of encouraging bees and butterflies to visit. This was highly successful, and I intend to make continuous improvements to this for 2013 and will include updates in this blog too.

And on a very separate note, I have also set up and online store, so please check this out using the links below! However I am not intending to generate massive profits and I certainly haven't given up the day job, but I am hoping that I can make some additional money to support my hobby. The store itself will be selling a variety of seeds in order to attract butterflies into the garden, with the additional aim of increasing awareness of butterfly conservation in the UK and encouraging people to do their bit, by growing plants that attract the adult butterflies to breed, as well as feed. I will also sell excess seed stock from the tropical greenhouse, which may be of interest to any fellow butterfly breeders out there!

My online store: Butterfly Garden Seeds
Follow us on Twitter: @bflygardenseeds
Like us on Facebook: Butterfly Garden Seeds

And there you have it: A brief explanation of the year ahead, and I have the intent this year to maintain an online diary of my tropical greenhouse and the butterflies being bred there.

Relocation

One thing I never thought that I would NOT enjoy is property hunting! It is tiresome and tedious, especially on a tight budget and being as picky as I am!

I have been looking to move out from under the wings of my parents now for about 8 months, but sadly, to no avail. The problem is, I am reluctant to get my tropical greenhouse up and running for another year, whilst I'm still living at home, in case I do move in that time. Unfortunately, finding a property with a nice sized garden that is within both my geographical and price ranges is proving to be difficult!

Even when my search is extending further south into the country wastelands of Surrey and Kent, there seems to be little about that I can afford! I really hope to find somewhere soon, as I am itching to get planting, and get back into the usual spring habits of plant growing and pupae ordering. I have been viewing a lot more properties recently, so hopefully, it won't be too long before I find one that fulfils my needs.

I'd normally be sowing seeds of the favourite Pentas lanceolata as an additional nectar source, or perhaps some more Asclepias curassavica which also grows quickly, to flowering size within a year. Alas, my greenhouse and my propagator remain vacant for the time being... Hopefully I'll have something more to report by the time I write another blog entry!

My First Blog: A Little About Me

Okay, so I've not written a blog before, and I guess with this being my first attempt, that it probably won't be that great, but here goes!

My name is Ricky. I'm currently twenty six years old and I have been interested in animals since a young age, developing a specific interest in butterflies when I was about five years old. Funnily enough, the interest developed when I had borrowed some books from my local library about the English countryside: One page had three or four pictures of British butterflies, and I remember returning to the library later that day to borrow some books specifically on butterflies.

Upon returning home, I ran straight out into the garden (as it was one of those rare, hot sunny English days) and started searching for butterflies, trying to identify any that visited the garden with the book I had borrowed. It was from here that I found myself hooked!

In the years since, I started rearing caterpillars that I would find out and about from larval to adult stage, before releasing them, and in 1997 at the age of twelve, I decided that I wanted my very own greenhouse from which to breed butterflies. For the next few years, I was successfully breeding a number of British species, from Meadow Browns and Orange Tips to Brimstones and Small Tortoiseshells. It was highly enjoyable, and added a level of complexity that I found both stimulating and rewarding.

I found that in the few years spent breeding British butterflies I learnt a lot both about the species of butterflies I was breeding and about plants - a very important sub-topic to the butterfly breeder!

In 2004 at the age of 18 we went on a family holiday to Cornwall, and as part of that trip we visited the Eden Project. I found myself mesmerised inside the giant tropical biome, and wished I could recreate it on a smaller scale. In the gift shop, I browsed the books that they had for sale, and one caught my eye: The Living Tropical Greenhouse by John and Maureen Tampion. That single book has provided me with the inspiration and the information that I needed to start venturing into the realm of breeding tropical species and cultivating tropical plants. I haven't looked back since!

And so, that brief biography takes us up to the present day. I have spent about eight or so years now breeding tropical butterflies and growing tropical plants, and my knowledge in that area has developed tremendously. I find latin names rolling off my tongue, so much so that I sometimes forget the common names of butterflies and plants! However, the thing that keeps me going is the quest to learn more about a hobby that I love, and I am writing this blog to help me 'get down on paper' my experiences. I hope that my information will be useful to others, and if not, perhaps inspire them to get into a hobby which has brought me an awful lot of enjoyment over the years, and that I hope will continue to do so for many more to come.