While I was in el norte, I had no worries about my plants, as I knew my neighbors A&P would take good care of them. It has taken me a week to unpack, put things away, clean (oh, the dust!), and get reacquainted with my garden’s flora and fauna.
I was surprised and delighted this tiny cactus welcomed me with one of its flowers.
Another delight was the presence of Eddie Lizard still hanging out on the outer side of the screen between the atrium and my office. He’s been here a month and a half!
A less welcome sight were these small caterpillars. Thankfully, P took on the task of picking them off with my garden tweezers. They have been munching on my Passion Flower leaves for months and I can’t figure out how to eradicate them. Any suggestions?
After being gone for a month, it’s good to be back home, be warm and dry, and enjoying my garden!
Have you tried dish soap and warm water? Just let them fall into the liquid mix. Or, you may want to try and spray the plant with neem oul
Thanks for the suggestion. I’ve tried everything, including soap and water and Neem oil, but nothing seems to deter them. All the leaves now look like lace and, in an effort to save my Passion Flower, I continue to pluck them off every day.
I think maybe those leaf munchers you’ve got are Fritillary butterfly caterpillars of some variety. The Google search results link was so long I made a tinyurl for it: https://tinyurl.com/y4875esx
You might want to consider sacrificing some of the passion flower leaves for them. Or not.
I love butterflies, but they are insatiable and are destroying the Passion Flower — a plant that was a gift to me by someone who was going through a very difficult time.
Ahhhh! Lovely you’re back!
Can hardly wait for your next post!
Thank you, Francie!
Bienvenidos back to Oaxaca. Nice pics as always
Listening to music of the Byrds and C, S Y & N ; another one leaves us, D. Crosby.
Enjoy and be well, Shannon
Thank you, it’s good to be back! The music of David Crosby is part of the soundtrack of my life.
I’d share the vine, as your dinner guests will look something like this; https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/Gulf_fritillary_butterfly_on_Mexican_sunflower.jpg
I know, but, all the Passion Flower vine leaves now look like lace and I’m worried they are killing it. As I mentioned above, the plant was a gift.