Have you tried using wet floral foam? I use that all the time. Cut a slab of it and let it soak up water until it absorbs no more. You can easily set a slab of it on a shallow tray or plate. Stick the ends of your cuttings into it. It's fairly soft so you shouldn't have too much trouble sticking a branch into it...for leaf stems you might want to make a small starter hole with a tooth pick to prefer the tender leaf stem from breaking.

You can add a little water each time it starts to evaporate.

Once the caterpillars hatch you can stick in fresh leaves next to your old ones and they will crawl over to the new ones...I don't recommend cutting around them while their on the milkweed leaves as the sap tends to get sticky and they could end up getting stuck :o)

I use a soft paint brush to brush off the frass but if your piece of wet floral foam gets too dirty...just toss it and replace with a new piece.

You don't have to worry about any caterpillars falling into water and drowning. So much safer.

I also use a variety of small containers for the eggs and first instar cats. Any plastic rubber maid food storage container will work. I cut out holes in the side panels and hot glue mesh over them...for air circulation.

I've included a link to some of my cat cages and my use of wet floral foam on community webshots.

~ Cat

Here is a link that might be useful: Photos of some of my cat houses

IMHO----wait until the caterpillar emerges...and give it at least until the 2nd instar...big enough to gather but too small for wasps...then you can snip the leaf around where it's eating and move it to your desired location, or gently move the little guy,and I mean gently. Always tickle a caterpillars but (hindquarters) before attemtping to move it, if it doesn't move, do not move the 'pillar as it's getting ready to molt. I always wait until 3rd instar before bringing them in, it make so much sense. (except early in the spring, when i bring all the eggs in) If you are going to remove eggs, then carefully cut the leaf around the egg, and when removed, trim further until you have a piece about the size of a square centimeter. Place it CAREFULLY on your desired munching plant, preferably on a large flat leaf (as when your plant grows, the leaves will change position...and thus your little bundle of joy will be on the ground and very hard to find, especially if the little guy has emerged from the egg.....also, your small leaf will curl up and dry within 24 hours, but your little larvae will quickly crawl to your healthy and living leaf. I keep several MW plants in pots just for this purpose...it is very easy, and i rotate them when they are eaten down. Tweezers are a necessary tool for this.

I hope this offers some assistance.

Thank you for the one-on-one direction from tdogmom, Sherry rocks!!!

So I collected 10 eggs off of 3 plants and here's how.

I pulled the leaves from the plant and just put them in a dry, disposable ziplock container with holes punch in the lid from the inside out. Some of the cats hatched before the leaves dried out and curled, some didn't - so I took the drying leaves and cut around the eggs and placed the small pieces on top of fresh leaves. I changed the leaves daily, checking on all sides to make sure I didn't throw out the babies! Those babies just went hunting for the fresh leaves!

Seemed to work, of the 10 eggs - 3 never hatched, 1 hatched then disappeared...(dinner anyone?) and 1 cat died between the 1st and 2nd instar. 5 made it all the way to chrysalis and eclosed.

Changed the leaves daily - kept the container dry, cleaned out the frass by wiping out with a dry paper towel.

I'll do it this way again!!

Thanks, Bobbi. :)

I pluck the leaf from the plant then cut around the egg, leaving just a bit of leaf. (You have to realize that I collect a LOT of Monarch eggs-as of this current 'collection,' I am up to a little over 850 just in the past 12 days or so.) I do it this way so that when the little one hatches I can easily see him/her on the leaf and then transfer the little leaf bit onto a fresh whole leaf.

Otherwise, basically Bobbi has given you the instructions beautifully! :) Thanks, Bobbi!

I've tried to put together a blog to help with the raising of Monarchs. You can check it out as I am constantly updating it, as I get more time...

Here is a link that might be useful: blog to help with raising Monarchs