This is really helpful. I planted dill for the first time this year and found 5 of these caterpillars on it. I homeschool my kids and we set up a little habitat for them as part of our science unit. They are really excited to watch them grow and change.
That's fantastic! Glad it was helpful. And my whole purpose in this channel is to inspire/teach the next generation to be better for the environment than ours. Love it! Thanks for watching!
This is awesome! My daughter and i found one today, and had been gifted a butterfly habitat- we've been looking up everything we can and your video has been the most accurate, helpful and informative. Thank you!
What zone are you? I found 4 last week in my zone 5B. It's the latest I've seen on my dill. I'm leaving them outside. As the weather gets cold, expecting cooler temps later in the week (today 83 degrees). I think nature is confused. I could bring them in to overwinter, but i have put all of my butterfly raising supplies away for the year. Usually I'm done with everything mid September. I just released my last butterfly, a big female Monarch today, October 1st . You could let nature take its course or bring them to raise indoors. But you have to have enough food for them first and foremost. Good luck!
New subscriber greetings from Roseville Michigan near Lake Saint Clair Zone 6b, monarch butterfly rearer and black swallowtail rearer, I'm at 112 monarch butterflies released an roughly 20 more to go
That's awesome Jason! I didn't have a great year this year with Monarchs which makes me sad. I currently have 13 black swallowtails that will probably overwinter.
Great video Debbie. Never knew that certain butterflys depend on specific plants. Will definitely plant dill and fennel in pots next year unless you think it is not too late this year.
Hi Dan! It's not too late if you plant now. The next brood of Black Swallowtails are now emerging , so the females will be laying eggs again in the next few weeks. You can find the seeds at places like Joyful Butterfly, Prairie Moon Nursery or any native plant seed companies will have the seeds. If you can't plant now , you can wait until next spring to plant. I'm still looking for Monarch eggs which will be here in the next week or so, but my next video will be about attracting the Monarchs. Thanks for watching!
I was surprised and happy to find lots of swallowtail caterpillars all over my big old overgrown parsley plant this year. I live in north Florida. One of the chrysalis fell off its branch and onto the ground during a rainstorm. I picked it up and put it in a Tupperware (no lid) but now what should I do? I have raised monarchs and I know they have to hang. I want to make sure this butterfly emerges ok.
Hi Debbie, thank you for sharing. I am a container gardener in North Texas Zone 8a. And I just found about 7 swallowtail Larvae in my parsley and on my tiny lime tree. I just posted a video on IG & FB. Dill nor milkweed never lives here long. And the TX heat just took my BeeBalm plant. So, I don't think there is enough food out there for them. What can I do?
Hello! Are they large? Because they could be looking for a safe place to go into a chrysalis. Is there enough parsley to feed them?? They only eat anything out of the carrot family, fill, fennel, parsley, carrot tops, rye, Queen Anne's lace. They do not eat milkweed. That is strictly for monarchs. Honestly, it is pretty late in the season so only the strongest will survive and overwinter. Not every larvae makes it in the wild and are food for other pollinators. I know it's sad but I appreciate you trying. Thanks for subscribing and supporting my channel.😊
I’m curious of your region… I live in Texas and had one emerge as late as late October. From my experience the bigger they get the less aggressive. They’re too confident to stink lol. Focused on saving the food energy to keep eating. But I LOVE to hold them.
what zone are you in? You said swallowtails overwinter July/August?!? I’m hoping that’s not the case for me in Eastern Nebraska Zone 5. I’ve got theee dozen caterpillars (20 I brought into my house today due to my small potted parsely not able to handle the heat - I bought 3 potted at the grocery store. Soft foliage with no strong stems). These cats are all about ready (tonight or tomorrow) ready to pupate. I’m truly hoping I don’t have to overwinter all of these 😮 OMG about the 2 years chrysalis!! I have one chrysalis that formed 6/19 but never eclosed. I still have it (outside). Do i leave it outside??
I'm in Zone 5B suburbs of Chicago. I actually have 2 as well from end of June that didn't eclose. That's early to be in diapause already, but who knows with his weather.? I would keep them outside until early September. If they don't eclose by then all you need to do is put them in an enclosure in the garage. I put a hook on the ceiling and hang it from there all winter. I wait until late September to hang it. Then bring it inside or a nice day outside after Mothers Day. You never know when they'll decide to eclose.
Need some help. Recently bought 2 small rue plants. Swallowtails have already laid a lot of eggs on them and I am afraid the plants are too small to support all those caterpillars when they hatch. What can I do to help them can I buy anything at the grocery store to feed them like parsley, carrot tops etc. Do you have any suggestions? Thank you
Hi Nadia! Unfortunately, the grocery store food (even though it's organic) is treated with BT. I've seen many people think they're doing the right thing buying organic food, but when they get home, their caterpillars end up dying for pesticide poisoning. I have some caterpillars that hardly have any food and they are doing fine. How many eggs do you think and what zone are you in. I succession plant dill/fennel/parsley and have a rue plant for my swallowtails. It's in its 3rd year and it's pretty large which covers me in a pinch when I don't have any dill/fennel left. It's getting slim pickings right now in my zone 5B. I would let nature take it's course, unless you want to plant some dill and hopefully it will be up in time. You could plant it in a pot inside so it germinates fast (that's how I start it in March) so that the swallowtails have a good amount by May when the overwintering swallowtails lays eggs. Good luck!
@@nadiamatejek5121 make sure you ask if it's treated with BT. I would say most do treat them. They might not know if they are not the growers. If you have a nursery that sells native plants, they shouldn't spray BT. But if you do buy from the nursery, wash thoroughly. Let me know how it goes.
Can I wash a limón tree very well to place a papilio cresphonted tiny baby caterpillar on. It is on a rue plant that 3 larger ones practically finished off.
@@candidaballinger4401 here's what found for its host plants. It may be okay but see list below. I don't have these caterpillars in my zone. Host plants: Eastern Giant Swallowtail (Papilio cresphontes): Prickly-Ash, Hercule's Club (Zanthoxylum clava-herculis), Wild Lime (Zanthoxylum fagara), Hoptree (Ptelea trifoliata), various Citrus, including Lemon (Citrus limon), Orange (Citrus sinensis), Bitter Orange (Citrus aurantium), Pummelo (Citrus maxima) and the herb Rue (Ruta graveolens). Definitely wash well. Good luck!
Hi Debbie, I live in Southern Ontario Canada and today August 20th I found a Black Swallowtail caterpillar about 1 1/2" long. The closest plant I have is celery in a pot and I have placed it in a cage with the caterpiller on it. What should my next move be. Is it likely to go into chrysalis soon and should I then hang the cage in my insulated unheated attatched garage or in my uninsulated shed until the spring. I have been raising Monarchs for 4 years and this year have released 33 with 7 chrysalis still to emerge. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Hello! What i do is get a empty toilet roll or paper towel that's cut smaller. Put caterpillar in the roll and put a paper towel over the top with a rubber band. Place pieces of celery for it to it until it goes into a chrysalis. Sounds like it will go soon. It purges excessive excrement poop right before. They make a sling and attach silk at the bottom end. They'll hang like that usually for 24 hours then go into a chrysalis. Wait at least 1-2 days after it goes into a chrysalis before you hang it in the enclosure. Then hang in an unheated garage or shed until spring. Check out fir video from last year about overwintering black swallowtails. I'll be coming out with another one in September overwintering your black swallowtails. This image been quite successful for me. Thanks for your question and comment. Good luck!
Hi thank you for the information. I have 2 cocoon swallowtails that have fell off the stalk of a dill plant and have no silk for me to hang it to my net cage, any idea how I can try to save it?
What I do and this happens every year to me, either they fall or I want to move them. I leave them dry a day or two, then I make what I call swallowtail bed or pocket. I cut a toilet or paper towel roll into a square (mainly for support and hanging). I then take a thicker paper towel and fold it a couple times and fold the bottom up a couple times to form a pocket. I staple on both sides. I then use a safety pin to attach to my enclosure and slip the chrysalis into it's new bed. I've had great success and I usually need to do this for the overwintering chrysalis. They've emerged beautifully. It's hard to describe so I hope you understand, but I'll be talking about it in the next couple weeks, because the swallowtails that are in chrysalis now may be overwintering until spring. Let me know if you have any other questions.
I brought mine in and he fell while he was in the J position before he managed to do a chrysalis and I’m wondering if he will survive or not? he’s safe from predators because he’s in my house.
Thank you for your question. It does happen and they are quite adaptable. You can either place near the edge of your enclosure so it can crawl up to dry or place in what a call a butterfly pillow. See my videos for how to make one. But basically all you need is a paper toilet roll and a paper towel. Cut a piece of toilet roll and staple a folded paper towel onto the piece of cardboard. Place chrsalis in the pillow, attach to an enclosure and the chrysalis will emerge with no problem! Good luck!
You mist them when you bring them in from overwintering them. It replicates rain that they would experience if they were outside in the elements. No need to give them water otherwise .
Do you spray the chrysalis? If you bring them inside does the room need to be a specific temperature? This is my first year raising black swallowtail caterpillars so I have so many questions lol you are awesome and should go on tour for other Master Gardeners like me! Thank you 😊
You are so kind to say that. Glad it's informative. When you say spray, you mean water correct? In mid- spring, zone 5B I bring them inside( room temperature which is around 68 degrees, around my last frost which is mid- May. They are in my unheated garage hanging from October- May. Then in mid- May I bring them indoors and spritz them with water. Within a week or two they all emerge. Don't be alarmed if one doesn't which happened to me in 2018-2020. Went into its chrysalis in August 2018 , did not wake up at all in 2019 ( can you blame her lol) and emerged a female 21 months later in May 2020. I'm going to do a new video on Black Swallowtails I think. They are some of the most viewed videos on my channel. What else would you want to know?
Thank you! Yes ma'am, I meant with water. I live in 7a zone and right now it's sometimes 110 degrees which is very hard. I had four caterpillars but two got away too quickly and one was killed I found it half eaten 😔 so now I've learned when I find these caterpillars to just bring them indoors. I don't have any other questions as of yet. But I will watch any video about butterflies and caterpillars you have. I appreciate you so much!!! ❤️
They are quick. I have them in a vege pod which is like a raised bed. I use it to grow dill and fennel . In the spring i wait until a female lays eggs then i put the cover on until he emerge. But they're sneaky and get out of the smallest opening. They don't know I'm trying to protect them from predators! But that's fine.. i have a very diverse garden so as long as i can raise a few that's fine. Still waiting for monarchs. Should be any day now.
Thanks for the video! Regarding questions to address for the future, I’m trying to raise 3 indoors as they decimated my potted parsley plant outside. Finding something that they can eat has been a great challenge. A neighbor gave me some fennel sprigs, which they quickly ate, so I bought organic parsley at Whole Foods. Apparently organic parsley can be sprayed with a bacteria, BT (?), which can kill them within 12 hours. 😳 so I acquired a little more Fennel, and I’m crossing my fingers it will enough. 🤞🏽 it would be great to hear someone address this area - sounds like you have to make sure that you grow enough of your own!
@@valeriewaters9825 yes organic herbs more than likely be sprayed with BT. So the best thing to do is to have enough food. I usually have my initial food in my vege pod. Then in May I start 4 more pots of dill . They lay eggs on them and I can either bring them inside or put them in the vege pod if there is food left. I also started 2 more in pots in late July which normally I need for my overwintering swallowtails. But I haven't food anymore. This will be the 1st year I have excess food. I will definitely address this issue with future videos. In fact, I'll be having another video on overwintering swallowtails which seems to be where a lot of people have questions. Stay tuned in the next few weeks. I also plan to make a pdf informational brochure over the winter hopefully.
My black swallowtail have not emerged and it’s been 19 to 21 days so far they’ve been in their cocoon. They’re turning a yellow in spots when they were brown. Is that normal or should I be concerned? Stressing out.
I had one of mine take almost 2 years, but those are the late chrysalis. Did u raise it indoors as an egg or caterpillar? It could have been parasitized by a wasp. You may see something emerge from the chrysalis . In this case i would separate if possible in a separate enclosure for a few more days. Either the butterfly will emerge or unfortunately if it was parasitized the caterpillar is dead and is being fed by the wasp or other insect that invaded the chrysalis or caterpillar. It happens unfortunately when they're not brought in as eggs. Hope this helps. Good luck!
@@traceyhall1097 sometimes wasps do lay eggs on the caterpillar. They grow normally , go into a chrysalis and they unfortunately they die. Don't give up hope yet. Just separate if you can.
This is really helpful. I planted dill for the first time this year and found 5 of these caterpillars on it. I homeschool my kids and we set up a little habitat for them as part of our science unit. They are really excited to watch them grow and change.
That's fantastic! Glad it was helpful. And my whole purpose in this channel is to inspire/teach the next generation to be better for the environment than ours. Love it! Thanks for watching!
This is awesome! My daughter and i found one today, and had been gifted a butterfly habitat- we've been looking up everything we can and your video has been the most accurate, helpful and informative. Thank you!
You are most welcome! Glad it helped. They are awesome to watch grow. Have fun!!! 🦋
Excellent video! I also found your Certifications interesting. Thanks for sharing those personal tidbits.
You are most welcome! Stay tuned ... pollinator video coming soon!
That was really cool! Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge!
You're welcome. Glad you found it helpful. FYI.. I thought my season was over and i just found 4 1st instars!
It’s October 1st and I just found 13 black swallowtails cats on my fennel! I can’t believe they are here so late in the season.
What zone are you? I found 4 last week in my zone 5B. It's the latest I've seen on my dill. I'm leaving them outside. As the weather gets cold, expecting cooler temps later in the week (today 83 degrees). I think nature is confused. I could bring them in to overwinter, but i have put all of my butterfly raising supplies away for the year. Usually I'm done with everything mid September. I just released my last butterfly, a big female Monarch today, October 1st . You could let nature take its course or bring them to raise indoors. But you have to have enough food for them first and foremost. Good luck!
This is awesome I came here from Erin hatmaker channel I love the way you raise the caterpillar
Thank you! I really appreciate Ernie Hatmaker's " Shout- Out and glad you enjoyed the video.
Very sweet thanks for sharing
Thank you for watching!
New subscriber greetings from Roseville Michigan near Lake Saint Clair Zone 6b, monarch butterfly rearer and black swallowtail rearer, I'm at 112 monarch butterflies released an roughly 20 more to go
All of my swallowtail caterpillars came off of my 8 Rue plants, nothing on my 1 dill plant,all of my 9 plants are in pots
That's awesome Jason! I didn't have a great year this year with Monarchs which makes me sad. I currently have 13 black swallowtails that will probably overwinter.
All of my black swallowtails were on my dill and none on my rue .
Great video Debbie. Never knew that certain butterflys depend on specific plants. Will definitely plant dill and fennel in pots next year unless you think it is not too late this year.
Hi Dan! It's not too late if you plant now. The next brood of Black Swallowtails are now emerging , so the females will be laying eggs again in the next few weeks. You can find the seeds at places like Joyful Butterfly, Prairie Moon Nursery or any native plant seed companies will have the seeds. If you can't plant now , you can wait until next spring to plant. I'm still looking for Monarch eggs which will be here in the next week or so, but my next video will be about attracting the Monarchs. Thanks for watching!
I was surprised and happy to find lots of swallowtail caterpillars all over my big old overgrown parsley plant this year. I live in north Florida. One of the chrysalis fell off its branch and onto the ground during a rainstorm. I picked it up and put it in a Tupperware (no lid) but now what should I do? I have raised monarchs and I know they have to hang. I want to make sure this butterfly emerges ok.
Check out my overwintering RUclips videos. Even though they might not overwinter, this is what i do when they fall off as well. Good luck!
Hi Debbie, thank you for sharing. I am a container gardener in North Texas Zone 8a. And I just found about 7 swallowtail Larvae in my parsley and on my tiny lime tree. I just posted a video on IG & FB. Dill nor milkweed never lives here long. And the TX heat just took my BeeBalm plant. So, I don't think there is enough food out there for them. What can I do?
Hello! Are they large? Because they could be looking for a safe place to go into a chrysalis. Is there enough parsley to feed them?? They only eat anything out of the carrot family, fill, fennel, parsley, carrot tops, rye, Queen Anne's lace. They do not eat milkweed. That is strictly for monarchs. Honestly, it is pretty late in the season so only the strongest will survive and overwinter. Not every larvae makes it in the wild and are food for other pollinators. I know it's sad but I appreciate you trying. Thanks for subscribing and supporting my channel.😊
I’m curious of your region… I live in Texas and had one emerge as late as late October.
From my experience the bigger they get the less aggressive. They’re too confident to stink lol. Focused on saving the food energy to keep eating.
But I LOVE to hold them.
My region is 5B and I've had them emerge as late as August/September and those will go into a Chrysalis until the following late spring (May).
what zone are you in? You said swallowtails overwinter July/August?!? I’m hoping that’s not the case for me in Eastern Nebraska Zone 5. I’ve got theee dozen caterpillars (20 I brought into my house today due to my small potted parsely not able to handle the heat - I bought 3 potted at the grocery store. Soft foliage with no strong stems). These cats are all about ready (tonight or tomorrow) ready to pupate. I’m truly hoping I don’t have to overwinter all of these 😮
OMG about the 2 years chrysalis!! I have one chrysalis that formed 6/19 but never eclosed. I still have it (outside). Do i leave it outside??
I'm in Zone 5B suburbs of Chicago. I actually have 2 as well from end of June that didn't eclose. That's early to be in diapause already, but who knows with his weather.? I would keep them outside until early September. If they don't eclose by then all you need to do is put them in an enclosure in the garage. I put a hook on the ceiling and hang it from there all winter. I wait until late September to hang it. Then bring it inside or a nice day outside after Mothers Day. You never know when they'll decide to eclose.
Need some help. Recently bought 2 small rue plants. Swallowtails have already laid a lot of eggs on them and I am afraid the plants are too small to support all those caterpillars when they hatch. What can I do to help them can I buy anything at the grocery store to feed them like parsley, carrot tops etc. Do you have any suggestions? Thank you
Hi Nadia! Unfortunately, the grocery store food (even though it's organic) is treated with BT. I've seen many people think they're doing the right thing buying organic food, but when they get home, their caterpillars end up dying for pesticide poisoning. I have some caterpillars that hardly have any food and they are doing fine. How many eggs do you think and what zone are you in. I succession plant dill/fennel/parsley and have a rue plant for my swallowtails. It's in its 3rd year and it's pretty large which covers me in a pinch when I don't have any dill/fennel left. It's getting slim pickings right now in my zone 5B. I would let nature take it's course, unless you want to plant some dill and hopefully it will be up in time. You could plant it in a pot inside so it germinates fast (that's how I start it in March) so that the swallowtails have a good amount by May when the overwintering swallowtails lays eggs. Good luck!
@@dksgardenoasis im in zone 9b. I know a nursery that is still selling potted herbs...didn't know that about organic...what a shame how sad...
@@nadiamatejek5121 make sure you ask if it's treated with BT. I would say most do treat them. They might not know if they are not the growers. If you have a nursery that sells native plants, they shouldn't spray BT. But if you do buy from the nursery, wash thoroughly. Let me know how it goes.
Can I wash a limón tree very well to place a papilio cresphonted tiny baby caterpillar on. It is on a rue plant that 3 larger ones practically finished off.
@@candidaballinger4401 here's what found for its host plants. It may be okay but see list below. I don't have these caterpillars in my zone. Host plants:
Eastern Giant Swallowtail (Papilio cresphontes): Prickly-Ash, Hercule's Club (Zanthoxylum clava-herculis), Wild Lime (Zanthoxylum fagara), Hoptree (Ptelea trifoliata), various Citrus, including Lemon (Citrus limon), Orange (Citrus sinensis), Bitter Orange (Citrus aurantium), Pummelo (Citrus maxima) and the herb Rue (Ruta graveolens).
Definitely wash well. Good luck!
Hi Debbie, I live in Southern Ontario Canada and today August 20th I found a Black Swallowtail caterpillar about 1 1/2" long. The closest plant I have is celery in a pot and I have placed it in a cage with the caterpiller on it. What should my next move be. Is it likely to go into chrysalis soon and should I then hang the cage in my insulated unheated attatched garage or in my uninsulated shed until the spring. I have been raising Monarchs for 4 years and this year have released 33 with 7 chrysalis still to emerge. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Hello! What i do is get a empty toilet roll or paper towel that's cut smaller. Put caterpillar in the roll and put a paper towel over the top with a rubber band. Place pieces of celery for it to it until it goes into a chrysalis. Sounds like it will go soon. It purges excessive excrement poop right before. They make a sling and attach silk at the bottom end. They'll hang like that usually for 24 hours then go into a chrysalis. Wait at least 1-2 days after it goes into a chrysalis before you hang it in the enclosure. Then hang in an unheated garage or shed until spring. Check out fir video from last year about overwintering black swallowtails. I'll be coming out with another one in September overwintering your black swallowtails. This image been quite successful for me. Thanks for your question and comment. Good luck!
Hi thank you for the information. I have 2 cocoon swallowtails that have fell off the stalk of a dill plant and have no silk for me to hang it to my net cage, any idea how I can try to save it?
What I do and this happens every year to me, either they fall or I want to move them. I leave them dry a day or two, then I make what I call swallowtail bed or pocket. I cut a toilet or paper towel roll into a square (mainly for support and hanging). I then take a thicker paper towel and fold it a couple times and fold the bottom up a couple times to form a pocket. I staple on both sides. I then use a safety pin to attach to my enclosure and slip the chrysalis into it's new bed. I've had great success and I usually need to do this for the overwintering chrysalis. They've emerged beautifully. It's hard to describe so I hope you understand, but I'll be talking about it in the next couple weeks, because the swallowtails that are in chrysalis now may be overwintering until spring. Let me know if you have any other questions.
I brought mine in and he fell while he was in the J position before he managed to do a chrysalis and I’m wondering if he will survive or not? he’s safe from predators because he’s in my house.
Thank you for your question. It does happen and they are quite adaptable. You can either place near the edge of your enclosure so it can crawl up to dry or place in what a call a butterfly pillow. See my videos for how to make one. But basically all you need is a paper toilet roll and a paper towel. Cut a piece of toilet roll and staple a folded paper towel onto the piece of cardboard. Place chrsalis in the pillow, attach to an enclosure and the chrysalis will emerge with no problem! Good luck!
@@dksgardenoasis thank you for you help.
How do you give them water?
You mist them when you bring them in from overwintering them. It replicates rain that they would experience if they were outside in the elements. No need to give them water otherwise .
Can you use store bought parsley?
I wouldn't recommend it because most store bought herbs including organic herbs are treated with BT and will poison your caterpillars.
Do you spray the chrysalis? If you bring them inside does the room need to be a specific temperature? This is my first year raising black swallowtail caterpillars so I have so many questions lol you are awesome and should go on tour for other Master Gardeners like me! Thank you 😊
You are so kind to say that. Glad it's informative. When you say spray, you mean water correct? In mid- spring, zone 5B I bring them inside( room temperature which is around 68 degrees, around my last frost which is mid- May. They are in my unheated garage hanging from October- May. Then in mid- May I bring them indoors and spritz them with water. Within a week or two they all emerge. Don't be alarmed if one doesn't which happened to me in 2018-2020. Went into its chrysalis in August 2018 , did not wake up at all in 2019 ( can you blame her lol) and emerged a female 21 months later in May 2020. I'm going to do a new video on Black Swallowtails I think. They are some of the most viewed videos on my channel. What else would you want to know?
Thank you! Yes ma'am, I meant with water. I live in 7a zone and right now it's sometimes 110 degrees which is very hard. I had four caterpillars but two got away too quickly and one was killed I found it half eaten 😔 so now I've learned when I find these caterpillars to just bring them indoors. I don't have any other questions as of yet. But I will watch any video about butterflies and caterpillars you have. I appreciate you so much!!! ❤️
They are quick. I have them in a vege pod which is like a raised bed. I use it to grow dill and fennel . In the spring i wait until a female lays eggs then i put the cover on until he emerge. But they're sneaky and get out of the smallest opening. They don't know I'm trying to protect them from predators! But that's fine.. i have a very diverse garden so as long as i can raise a few that's fine. Still waiting for monarchs. Should be any day now.
Thanks for the video! Regarding questions to address for the future, I’m trying to raise 3 indoors as they decimated my potted parsley plant outside. Finding something that they can eat has been a great challenge. A neighbor gave me some fennel sprigs, which they quickly ate, so I bought organic parsley at Whole Foods. Apparently organic parsley can be sprayed with a bacteria, BT (?), which can kill them within 12 hours. 😳 so I acquired a little more Fennel, and I’m crossing my fingers it will enough. 🤞🏽 it would be great to hear someone address this area - sounds like you have to make sure that you grow enough of your own!
@@valeriewaters9825 yes organic herbs more than likely be sprayed with BT. So the best thing to do is to have enough food. I usually have my initial food in my vege pod. Then in May I start 4 more pots of dill . They lay eggs on them and I can either bring them inside or put them in the vege pod if there is food left. I also started 2 more in pots in late July which normally I need for my overwintering swallowtails. But I haven't food anymore. This will be the 1st year I have excess food. I will definitely address this issue with future videos. In fact, I'll be having another video on overwintering swallowtails which seems to be where a lot of people have questions. Stay tuned in the next few weeks. I also plan to make a pdf informational brochure over the winter hopefully.
My black swallowtail have not emerged and it’s been 19 to 21 days so far they’ve been in their cocoon. They’re turning a yellow in spots when they were brown. Is that normal or should I be concerned? Stressing out.
I had one of mine take almost 2 years, but those are the late chrysalis. Did u raise it indoors as an egg or caterpillar? It could have been parasitized by a wasp. You may see something emerge from the chrysalis . In this case i would separate if possible in a separate enclosure for a few more days. Either the butterfly will emerge or unfortunately if it was parasitized the caterpillar is dead and is being fed by the wasp or other insect that invaded the chrysalis or caterpillar. It happens unfortunately when they're not brought in as eggs. Hope this helps. Good luck!
@@dksgardenoasis they were raised indoors from a caterpillar that I found on my dill and parsley. Thanks for replying.
@@traceyhall1097 sometimes wasps do lay eggs on the caterpillar. They grow normally , go into a chrysalis and they unfortunately they die. Don't give up hope yet. Just separate if you can.