Very cute, MissSherry! Guess what I got to see "up close and personal" today? PIPEVINE cats SPICEBUSH cat I went to the Wild Things Nursery booth today - the one Linda and I are always talking about? I purchased 4 new False Nettles for the Red Admirals (and whatever else may use them, e.g., QMs, Commas)in quart pots. They were pretty good sized. I also got some yellow coneflower, astragalus crassicarpus (Marilyn swears the Sulphurs just eat this stuff to the bone every year in her yard); Partridge Pea (from Linda for Sulphurs); plantago lanceolata (from Linda for Buckeyes), my two black willows from Randy; a ribes odoratum (for birds); zizia aureas (Black Swallowtail); and verbesina encelioides (Bordered Patch). Anyway, that Spicebush cat was the cutest thing I've ever seen! And, the pipevines were adorable and very voracious! It's nice to see them up close so I will recognize them, unequivocally, when I see them. Marilyn and Ken are so cool - they always bring cats on some of the native plants they sell, so everyone can see the caterpillars. I think Linda brought the Monarch cats, too. People were just going crazy over her plants! I've never seen so many people in one area and they seemed to ALL be at the Wild Things booth. They also bring books with them, and one of them was Judy's book because it so clearly shows the various caterpillar eggs, larvae, chrysalises and adults. Congrats on your baby Tiger! Susan

Thank you, Susan! You are so sweet. I'm glad my website is beneficial. The best book I've found is "The Life Cycle of Butterflies". Today, I did a butterfly talk at a local nursery. It was for kids. I put on my camouflage pants, and Monarch Teacher Network Questionmark shirt. I told the kids I was a "butterfly rancher" and "small game hunter". We had fun! I had eggs, just hatched caterpillars, BIG caterpillars, and pupae. And I had 3 just eclosed Pipevine Swallowtail butterflies. Yesterday, a friend's granddaughter brought her 5 Painted Lady butterflies that she raised from a kit to release in the butterfly garden. We also had a good time hunting for eggs and caterpillars. I was honored that she wanted to release her butterfles in my garden. As you can tell, I'm enjoying life minus the stress of selling plants at the market. I'll be in OKC next Thursday. I'm planning on visiting you. I'll call you. I hope to get to your place fairly early--before the heat sets in. I'm meeting cousins for lunch. Sandy

I have enjoyed reading all the posts on host plants. It has given me info for my garden. However, I have been wondering what you are going to do with all this information. It sounds like you are going to use it personally to create a BF habitat in your yard. On keeping trees small for BFs, I like to think of it as BF Bonsai. I love the look of the Tulip Poplar tree. It's a very nice large tree, so I wouldn't mind having one in my yard, which is close to an acre. If Hubby would agree, our yard would border on being wooded! But, he likes everything spaced out. Currently my tulip trees are in pots on the patio, as they are still very small. Amazingly, though, I had small cats on the first tree within weeks after I got it. If you are looking for a small tree to attract a great number of BFs, the wafer ash fits the bill. I don't know if it is hardy in your area, but it's definitely one I'm adding to my backyard. As for Wild Black Cherry, there is one behind me that is an absolutely ugly tree. WBC is definitely one of those trees that would need to be kept pruned and not allowed to go wild. Having said all that, I'd be very sad to see the tree cut down, as it attracts all sorts of BFs and birds. Looks aren't everything! I think most of us on the forum have learned what works by trial and error. I know I have. I've been BF gardening for at least 12 years, and have given up on lots of plants, and am still acquiring other plants. Each season, I add new BFs to my raised category. My Xerces Society Butterfly Gardening Book has been a constant source for plants for BFs. Before I had this forum or used the internet, I relied on that book to build my garden. According to XSBFG, tulip poplar, sweet-bay, wild black cherry, chokecherry, ashes, hop tree (wafer ash), American hornbeam, spicebush, lilac, birches and aspens are hosts. The last two are listed for the Papilio canadensis. One thing I enjoyed about reading the XSBFG book is the accounts of the gardeners and their experiences. The notion that one plant works in all situations is quickly dispelled in this book. The best way to find out the best host in your area is to start planting. Start with the one you really want and if it doesn't work, try another. OKSandy

I've never tried keeping tulip poplars or black cherries in pots indefinitely, so I don't know the answer, Kathy. I wouldn't think it'd take long for them to get pot bound, so you'd need to keep potting them up to bigger containers - you couldn't keep this up forever, so eventually the trees would probably die. I doubt that pruning the tops will keep the roots from growing normally. Maybe you could learn root pruning and/or bonsai? I find most of my tigers on wild black cherry/prunus serotina and tulip poplar/liriodendron tulipifera, but I find quite a few on hop tree/ptelea trifoliata, which is the favorite host plant for giant swallowtails. My pteleas don't get very big, just to small tree or bush size. Sherry