Search - Articles

The caterpillars of the oak processionary moth are a real pest, but I couldn't contemplate killing them. I find myself in this situation regularly. So many so-called pests are creatures I'm quite happy to live alongside and I do so without a second

feeding on plants at night, and finding their caterpillars amongst the foliage. Just four years ago my garden was paved over, so finding moths here feels like real progress.Sadly, few gardeners welcome moths as warmly as they do butterflies

and sunned it self on the glossy ivy leaves that cover our south-facing fence. This spring generation develops from caterpillars that fed on ivy, but probably not this clump, since they eat the developing flower buds and we don’t have any here yet. They

When the children first found the caterpillar, they were fascinated and asked me what sort of moth it might turn into. They were amazed when I told them that instead of a moth, it would turn into a sawfly the size of a hornet. Some of the parents

, where the container can sit undisturbed for several yearsMore on gardening for wildlifeProvide late-summer nectar for butterflies and bees.Learn how to identify bumblebeesBrowse our image gallery of butterflies and caterpillarsGrowing from seeds

insects (left). They are ichneumons, parasitoid wasps which lay their eggs inside living caterpillars. The hatching grubs then eat the caterpillars alive from the inside. These specimins had chosen a much damper situation under the bark of a pine log

. The speckled wood is a slim elegant creature, with large broad brown wings, and yet the squat green pupa under the frisbee looked wholly other.The speckled wood is unique amongst British butterflies in that it regularly overwinters in both caterpillar

the bumblebee nest and hangs around outside for a few days to pick up its scent. Once she has done this, she enters the nest undetected to lay her eggs. These hatch into caterpillars, which start off by eating the nest debris before moving to the wax pots

year, they’re as regular as clockwork.The birds usually arrive in the first week of May, and carry out a recce of the garden to make sure it can still meet their needs (i.e. that it has a good supply of caterpillars and sunflower hearts). Then I see one

, but with its obvious pale cream coloration it was fooling no one.We usually get two sawflies laying their eggs. Arge pagana is the pale speckled caterpillar that skeletonises whole branches, while Blennocampa phyllocolpa is the small green leaf