I have swallowtail catapillars on my parsley. Aways the parsley. Grow extra for them in particular.
funkmasta_kazper
Swallowtails! Absolutely gorgeous butterflies. All your Apiaceae plants belong to him now (at least until he pupates, which should be soon looking at the size of that lad!)
wildcampion
If you add bronze fennel to your garden, the swallowtail caterpillars will prefer them to parsley, and fennel is more abundant so you’ll lose nothing.
Beamburner
Very pretty, you lucky duck! I’m going to race home and check my carrot greens.
BeesForBrain
Aww, lucky! Swallowtails are gorgeous butterflies!
I had one on my parsley but a bird caught it right before my eyes 🙁
I wonder if eagle/falcon cutouts would deter them… mmm..
ScarieltheMudmaid
I ended up adding fennel to my garden so that these guys had a place to go. it was their favorite and i hate the flavor so win win. not sure if it matters but it was bronze fennel but they stayed off of pretty much anything else after that
turgon17
They go wild for dill that grows on its own after the first year of seeding. My parsley is safe and the butterflies do their thing
I love these little dudes too! They love my dill more though.
sallguud
As a child growing up in the early 80s, I remember an abundance of caterpillars in my yard. I haven’t seen one in the year and a half I’ve been at my home😩
1OrganicGardener
Bird food right there.
Flower_Goddess
They’re so cute! We had a little conga line going on the bronze fennel.
I’ve tried planting parsley for them a few times but the bunnies always get there first
WearyPassenger
This is exactly why I grow carrots. Originally I wanted carrots and these guys arrived, so I grew swallowtails <3. I still grow carrots hoping they will arrive every year, and they don’t, but I still grow them hoping. I still get carrots out of the mix because I bring these guys inside into a big butterfly cage so I can control what they eat so we all win.
jhallen2260
I had a like 20 of these in my parsley one year. I wanted a bunch of butterflies so I let them eat up my parsley. They ate it all and left lol. I didn’t get a single butterfly. The parsley did grow back though
allaboutmojitos
I grow parsley (their preference in my yard) just for them! I always make sure I’ve got at least one healthy full plant available at all times. Last year we had five different egg clutches mature in our yard, and more than once got to see one emerge from its chrysalis. It’s one of the great joys of summer
poisongigiofficial
Absolem vibes
Kiliana117
I have a whole fennel bed as a decoy to try and save the other plants
xsquintz
I had these on my Parsley one year. One day they were cool to look at. The next day the entire Parsley plant was gone. If you like your plants I’d remove them.
naturelovingmonster
He is cute, I’d give him his choice of my veggies. I actually keep some pots with parsley so I know I will get some of it and the caterpillars can have the plants in the garden.
Scoginsbitch
Last year I bought the parsley at the garden center that was crawling with them! Swallowtails are really cool!
Kiralynia
Worth it!!!
Jayce86
To help save your plants next year, grow either Queen Anne’s or Golden Alexander in a pot nearby. That way, you can transport any of these dudes you find to your sacrificial plants.
Adorable_Dust3799
They love fennel, it grows wild here and I’ve never seen them in anything else.
blu3st0ck7ng
Swallowtail!
pepperjackcheesey
They annihilated my parsely sunday. I’m ok with it. Although they are gone now, I hope the birds didn’t get them.
26 Comments
He’s beautiful!
I have swallowtail catapillars on my parsley. Aways the parsley. Grow extra for them in particular.
Swallowtails! Absolutely gorgeous butterflies. All your Apiaceae plants belong to him now (at least until he pupates, which should be soon looking at the size of that lad!)
If you add bronze fennel to your garden, the swallowtail caterpillars will prefer them to parsley, and fennel is more abundant so you’ll lose nothing.
Very pretty, you lucky duck! I’m going to race home and check my carrot greens.
Aww, lucky! Swallowtails are gorgeous butterflies!
I had one on my parsley but a bird caught it right before my eyes 🙁
I wonder if eagle/falcon cutouts would deter them… mmm..
I ended up adding fennel to my garden so that these guys had a place to go. it was their favorite and i hate the flavor so win win. not sure if it matters but it was bronze fennel but they stayed off of pretty much anything else after that
They go wild for dill that grows on its own after the first year of seeding. My parsley is safe and the butterflies do their thing
https://preview.redd.it/6czhz7sxj36f1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fd7c2b98bcf4cc06dd792b02cae54b6b1d51de20
I love these little dudes too! They love my dill more though.
As a child growing up in the early 80s, I remember an abundance of caterpillars in my yard. I haven’t seen one in the year and a half I’ve been at my home😩
Bird food right there.
They’re so cute! We had a little conga line going on the bronze fennel.
https://preview.redd.it/fs7k1ux9m36f1.png?width=1080&format=png&auto=webp&s=95b73ee1476a03f8c05cf65034a283de6b314b73
I’ve tried planting parsley for them a few times but the bunnies always get there first
This is exactly why I grow carrots. Originally I wanted carrots and these guys arrived, so I grew swallowtails <3. I still grow carrots hoping they will arrive every year, and they don’t, but I still grow them hoping. I still get carrots out of the mix because I bring these guys inside into a big butterfly cage so I can control what they eat so we all win.
I had a like 20 of these in my parsley one year. I wanted a bunch of butterflies so I let them eat up my parsley. They ate it all and left lol. I didn’t get a single butterfly. The parsley did grow back though
I grow parsley (their preference in my yard) just for them! I always make sure I’ve got at least one healthy full plant available at all times. Last year we had five different egg clutches mature in our yard, and more than once got to see one emerge from its chrysalis. It’s one of the great joys of summer
Absolem vibes
I have a whole fennel bed as a decoy to try and save the other plants
I had these on my Parsley one year. One day they were cool to look at. The next day the entire Parsley plant was gone. If you like your plants I’d remove them.
He is cute, I’d give him his choice of my veggies. I actually keep some pots with parsley so I know I will get some of it and the caterpillars can have the plants in the garden.
Last year I bought the parsley at the garden center that was crawling with them! Swallowtails are really cool!
Worth it!!!
To help save your plants next year, grow either Queen Anne’s or Golden Alexander in a pot nearby. That way, you can transport any of these dudes you find to your sacrificial plants.
They love fennel, it grows wild here and I’ve never seen them in anything else.
Swallowtail!
They annihilated my parsely sunday. I’m ok with it. Although they are gone now, I hope the birds didn’t get them.