Larval Food Plants April 20, 2014

Butterflies are very specialized.  Most butterflies will only lay their eggs on one kind of plant.  The most well-known example is the Monarch butterfly.  The Monarch will only lay their eggs on Milkweed.  I grow lots and lots of host plants.  I love butterflies.  Some of my newest host plants are below.

 I planted this tree this past winter.  It is a Paw Paw.  Paw Paws are native to Texas.  They are the host plants for the beautiful Zebra Swallowtail.  Zebra Swallowtails like wooded areas.  They will never been seen in urban or suburban areas.  Paw Paw trees are interesting in their own right.  They make huge fruits that have a banana-ish taste.  Paw Paws colonize.

 This is a Spicebush.  I have a female and a male Spicebush.  This is as interesting as they get.  The female will make little, insignificant yellow flowers in very early spring.  What makes them special is that they are the host plant for the Spicebush Swallowtail butterfly.  They feed at night and hide during the day.  But, you will know if you have caterpillars if you see rolled up leaves on your shrub.  They roll themselves up in the leaves during the day.  They are an amazing-looking caterpillar with huge "eyes" on their hind parts to scare away predators.

       This is Frogfruit.  Frogfruit is a ground cover, and it is the host plant for the Phaon Crescent.  I bought this at the Mercer plant sale this spring.