Category Archives: candlestick cassia

Easy to spot

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The coloring of a monarch caterpillar has become easier to spot amongst all the vegetation.

I continue to have a burst of caterpillars go through the lifecycle, and then a break happens, allowing the balloon milkweed a chance to grow back, before it starts all over again.

I also have two giant milkweed in the garden, probably pushing 7 feet tall, and butterflyweed, so there is a plethora of food sources for them.

I hope in the coming months to continue to add more Southwest Florida native milkweed  to their space.

Tonight while walking through the garden I spotted a monarch caterpillar in its “j” form on my candlestick cassia, a neighboring plant to the milkweed. There were still droplets of rain on the caterpillar.  Hopefully, I can watch it make its chrysalis in the morning.

As I continued to walk through the garden, I spotted another monarch caterpillar crawling on one of the many sage plants. It seemed to be trying to find its spot to make its chrysalis.

Here are a few newly emerged monarch butterflies from the garden, as well as some visitors enjoying the nectar.

The yellow beauty

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This morning I spent quite a few hours in the garden with the company of the orange barred sulphur butterfly.

I have made it to the far section of the garden where my candlestick cassia plant is located, a favorite of the sulphur, with my stone pathway.

She kept fluttering in, flying high and low, close and far away from me. I lost count of how many eggs this sulphur left behind on its host plant.

The plant is already loaded with caterpillars of every instar.

Heavenly

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The smell when walking out the front door is heavenly, all because the jasmine tree is in full bloom. The butterflies spend time in this tree, and on a rare occasion a caterpillar makes its chrysalis on the branches, or leaves.

The candlestick cassia is also starting to bloom, soon its showy yellow flowers will begin to open from the bottom to the top. This plant has a mind of its own and has grown in a variety of ways. This plant has survived three hurricanes, and has started making its way back again, which is great because the orange barred sulphur visits it on a daily basis laying eggs. Last check there were quite a few caterpillars chomping away.

The cycle continues

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The orange-barred sulphur butterflies absolutely love my candlestick cassia. They are constantly laying eggs on the edge of the leaves, continuing the lifecycle.

The female’s coloring changes from winter to summer, while the male remains bright yellow with an orange bar on its forewing, and a yellow hindwing with orange edges. The under surface of the male wings has small dark spots.

The caterpillars are pretty neat – those that eat the leaves are mainly green, while those that eat the yellow flowers are yellow.

Happiness

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I love walking out to the butterfly house and seeing new life. Its an instant smile.

The last orange barred sulphur emerged early this morning in the butterfly house.

This butterfly is one of abundance in the garden currently. I always spot multiple ones flying about, laying eggs, or sipping nectar. I have two of its host plants – the bahama cassia and candlestick cassia. They are planted on opposite corners of the garden and are thriving again, as I trimmed them both back. New growth is sprouting, mostly covered in eggs.