First Year Lessons

[crazygran43]

[size=150]Along with it being true to plant more milkweed than you think you'll need is this: Monarch cats won't eat any other leaf, but a milkweed, BUT they will eat a hanging chrysalis !!! I woke up and it was half eaten away!! {any hope for it? } {can I do anything? }. Aiso, get fast source back ups for milkweed in town that you can access in one day. All my plants have been eaten,so I put my cats in the refrigerater to keep them dormant til I can find them food. I don't know how long they'll "keep" in there.I found out there's a nursery in Richmond Virginia that sells Milkweed...PLEASE if anyone knows where I can get some PLEASE let me know. I ordered some online; but I don't know if it will get here in time. [/size]

[Mona Miller]

If you have caterpillars in the last instar (4th to 5th), they can finish their cycle on pumpkin. I tried this and it actually works. Place the pumpkin in small chunks down on the stems of the milkweed. I made them into rectangles so that they would have a surface to hold onto while eating. I made a hole in the center and then pushed it on to the stems. They will crawl up and eat it. Choosing whether to feed or not feed because of a lack of milkweed--I'd feed them pumpkin. I used Calabaza/Spanish Pumpkin that I got at the grocery store. Their frass turns orange. Do not feed to first through fourth instar, do not transfer back to milkweed. Let the 5th instar finish their cycle on the pumpkin. Someone posted this info to the duplex list serve and I thought I'd give it a try just in case I run out of milkweed, which I usually do.

http://www.monarch.org.nz/monarch/2005/08/13/pumpkin/

[crazygran43]

[size=150]I would like to try that pumpkin idea, just to watch how they manage to eat it with all those feet! LOL! But, I found that nursery !![/size] It's called " Sandys' Plants " in Mechanicsville on Bell Creek Rd. After 2 days in the refrigerator...I took them out and they came to life....HUNGRY...LOL!.... and I had the plant to feed them......they're amazing!! The ones I ordered online still haven't arrived!!!!!They're ALIVE! They're ALIVE!

[Mona Miller]

Make sure you wait until they are 4th to 5th instar. A friend tried it earlier and then switched them back to pumpkin and they died. I've tried it a couple times and both times waited to try it on 5th instars--none of them died.