Do you remember all those butterflies fluttering about just recently? They were the Painted Ladies (Vanessa cardui) flying north on their annual migration. WELL, it is NOW the time to begin checking your Cheeseweed plants for eggs!
Cheeseweed (Malva parviflora) grows EVERYWHERE. The leaves look a lot like those of a Geranium flower but the flowers are these itty-bitty little roundish things without much fragrance. With our winter rains, you should be able to spot this plant in your yard and garden. Check along sidewalks when you go for walks because chances are, there's a bunch of it growing. (If you live near the school, there's LOTS of it growing along the sidewalk by the train tracks.)
Just yesterday, April 9th, I found 14 eggs on one of the Cheeseweed plants in my butterfly garden at home. In fact, the eggs were on the smallest of the plants I have, nestled in the Milkweed patch. The eggs are really small and are green. They are on the TOP of the leaves and look like little green spheres. If you see legs, those things are probably aphids. Simply snip off the leaf for now and put it in a small container.
It will take about four days before a tiny caterpillar will hatch. Initially, you won't need air for the larva (trust me, these little ones are ESCAPE artists so DO NOT make air holes!! They are super small and can crawl right out!). Visit this page for more information and have fun!
Check the Cheeseweed
AR Book Find
I bet YOU have your own 'AR' books at home or have been checking some out at your own public library! 'Accelerated Reader' books are simply those that have the special quizzes to go with them. Check to see if your book book is listed under the AR Book Find. You can find the reading level and more!
