There was an extensive debate on the international Butterfly Listserve Leps-l a few years ago. (1995) it was prompted by the appearance of an aggressive and nasty convicted felon collector who disappeared and was often henceforth on the list referred to as "He Who Must Not Be Named" ( It i...

I seem to recall reading that Purple Hairstreak pupae are frequently found in ants nests. Certainly it isn't unknown for a relation ship to exist with hairstreaks. Edwards Haristreak an oak feeder from the USA is known to have a relationship with ants. Whist in Ecuador many years ago I saw was able ...

I do have some concerns about this. The BBC's science is often very bad and not at all what you would expect. You certainly cannot rank buddleia with rhododendron, japanese knotweed and himalayan balsam. Buddleia does well in an urban setting but it is unusual to find it as a problem invasive plant ...

Have other people had their butterfly Magazien form Butterfly Conservation yet. There is a stunning photo on the front of it.
What do others think?

This is definitely one for you Susie. The Royal Horticultural Society have published a Plant Collector Guide to what they spell Buddlejas. I tripped across it this week when researching things for the garden. Amazon have it for sale and mine arrived this morning. It lists a large number of species a...

I don't grow buddleia professionally. It is just how my personality is about things I am interested in. I am always reading technical things about the stuff that interests me. Butterflies interest me a great deal so I know a lot about the things that surround them . I own what has been one of the wo...

I'm interested in knowing more about your collection Susie.
Do you have more interesting buddleias?

Bicolor was developed by Dr Michael Dirr at the university of Oregon as a cross between B.X weyeriana" honeycomb" ( the davidii globosa hybrid and B. Davidii. It is a back cross with davidii. It would be interesting to see what it produces in the way of seed. If you look at it carefully th...

Bicolor is one of the hybrids with globosa blood in it.

It seems that there are issues with the chromosome number and that the hybrids do not produce good pollent
http://www.springerlink.com/content/k5545h4202l26280/

This is interesting!

I have a small one grown from a cutting I got last year. It is less vigorous than the standard buddleia. To illustrate this. I had two pots. On with the beijing variety and one with an accidental seedling of the ordinary davidii. I had to destroy the davidii. It had grown fast and started to go into...

Devil's bit scabious is a very good nectar plant. As a young child I first noticed it as a nectar plant that was very common near my home. Until I saw my first Marsh Fritillary just a few yards from the house ( they used to visit our garden). I then looked in my books and discovered it was all over ...

As a buddleia enthusiast myself I would add this The two hybrids mentioned above appear to be second generation crosses between davidii and globosa. Which is interesting. It would be most interesting to grow on any seedlings that they might produce. http://www.jstor.org/pss/2437811 There are a large...

So, we're back on the Ragwort, tomorrow I'll call in the local vets and asked them how dangerous ragwort is to animals. Why when I sell my big bale hay to famers, do they ask 'is there any ragwort in this hay'? Its deadly to horses and cattle fresh or dried, its not meant to be a joke, its not some...

There are many many more dangerous substances present in other plants and alcohol consumption is a far bigger risk to the livers of the general population. So put down that glass of wine and chew ragwort instead. I might try the latter but not the former (well, chew a Ragwort leaf and see if it doe...

O.K Roger, Here's the deal, I'll grow the dreaded Ragwort and when Defra fine me which believe me it would be a heafty fine you'll it pay for me, thanks :wink: I'll pop over to the field as I haven't finish the clear up and see if I can see the Small Skipper's and I can then take a photo. This my h...

Where on the relatively quite few occasions when introductions have been successful they are often lycaenids so an establishement of a Small Blue colony Andd, may be possible. However what is the period your are talking about how long has the Blue been there since introduction. It is common for thin...

It isn't always popular to say it but tthere is very clear research that shows that butterfly introductions do not work well. Peter Crib actually kept a capive breeding colony as I understand it this was caged. Marsh Fritillaries are particularly well studies as subjects for introductions over 80 at...