While adding some crushed eggshells to my tomato plants, I was startled by odd things moving in my dill planter - my first black swallowtail caterpillars! For years I've grown dill in this part of the garden, always wondering if these guys would make an appearance and today they did!
My small planter is home to 4 caterpillars, thankfully I have another dill crop that I can harvest from, so that these guys can have their own space. I might pick up a few plants from the farmers market this weekend, to feed the needs of us & them!
A few weeks ago, a blogger friend in Texas posted about her dill going to the caterpillars. My son and I marveled at how so many were munching the dill bed. Apparently they like fennel too, perhaps I should hunt down some fennel plants for them. They might make for a better chrysalis home.
Normally I squish & remove creatures that munch my crops, but theses aren't like those pesky cabbage worms that mutilate my kale. These guys grow into beautiful pollinators and I'm happy to have them in the garden.
Any fun surprises in your garden this year?