Page 16 - FEB2020

Creatures in the garden

HOW TO ATTRACT BUTTERFLIES TO YOUR GARDEN
As most of us in Botswana know, December time comes with a deluge of Butterflies,
masses of our very own Christmas snowflakes pour across the land, and every year
I continue to marvel at the sight. The majority in my garden are Brown-veined white
(T.L), Meadow white, various Colotis species (T.R), White-cloaked skipper, Zebra white,
Yellow pansy, Spotted Joker (M.R), African migrant, African monarch (B.R), Garden
acraea (M.L), African clouded yellow, Topaz blue and many more Charaxes, Hairtails,
and Coppers along with the magnificent Citrus swallowtail (B.L).
It’s quite easy to attract
butterflies to your garden, and
they are beneficial insects,
pollinating our flowers, while
playing an essential part in the
food chain.
They attract insect eating birds;
and the caterpillars, while
doing very little damage to your
plants, attract a host of
predatious beneficial insects to
your garden too. Only the
caterpillar of the Citrus
swallowtail, does any real
damage to your plants, and I
don’t think my garden would be
quite the same without those
enormous butteflies fluttering
through it.

To encourage butterflies to your
garden, set aside an area of
indigenous grasses and flowers.
Provide butterfly feeders: with
nectar (sugar and water) or a
whole range of fruits, especially
old bananas. You can also create
muddy areas in the sun, which
they will love. And avoid
pesticides. Text & photos by S.C