Hi. I sowed some seeds in the ground for the first time and they have sprouted. I purchased six little plants to ensure that I have some for containers when the time comes. Where do I keep these plants until then. Do I put them in the containers now? Do I leave them in my house or just put them outside in their little cells? I have a little rabbit running around (I love him...he can stay) but I am sure he will find these yummy. I don't blame him. Anyway, just want to know what to do with these little guys. I didn't want to wait until they were expensive in the fall to buy them.

It's very doubtful that the fluorescent light was too intense. I grow various seedlings under fluorescent bulbs spaced about as close together as I can possibly squeeze them to approach natural light. If your lamps are unusually intense and placed immediately above the seedlings, just back them off a little. It's more likely that something else is going on. If you are sure that lack of moisture wasn't a problem, how about too much moisture? I have had more problems with too much moisture than not enough, myself. I've had cuttings in well aerated soil to experience rot because of excessive moisture even when the top of the soil looked like it was dry. Sometimes it's hard to judge the moisture levels in the lower part of the pot. Transplanting now might be a good idea because it would give you a chance to examine the roots and see if rot was a problem. I would stick with the fluorescent bulbs. Incandescent bulbs are generally not well suited for use as plant lights for various reasons. BTW, check the wavelength (temperature) of your bulbs if they aren't specifically for plants. Something around 5000 degrees K is usually best. Some bulbs are too red or too blue for best plant response.

First of all, don't panic. BFs often go for a day before they eat anything. You can feed it a sugar-water solution made from: 1 cup water 1 Tbsp sugar (NOT honey or a sugar substitute) Mix these together and put some in a container with a piece of clean sponge (I use the lid to an apple juice container). If the sponge is new, make sure you wash it well until you no longer see any soapy bubbles coming out. Since it doesn't sound like you'll be able to release it anytime soon, you can keep it in an enclosure in your house (most BFs live for about 2 weeks). It is rather nice to be able to watch a butterfly in your house. The enclosure you use should be made of mesh or something else that will not hurt your BF's wings. I don't know if you have something like this already or not, but if you don't, you can probably make one. Hopefully, some other people on this forum will post ideas about enclosures. I hope your BF does fine! Do you know what kind it is? -Jmcat

Are BST's and GST's about the same size? I am seriously so nervous that I am going to come home one day and find a butterfly with deformed wings who cannot fly and it would break my heart! I even thought about bringing them to the LSU school of entomology to see if they would take them so I could make sure they will have proper supervision and eclose with no problems, but then I wondered if that would be the wrong thing to do. I guess I am just nervous because I don't really know what to expect since I have never seen the process in person.