Ok, let me try this again. Sat here and typed away went to add a pic and darn puter actign stupid again and blowing fuses of some sort, so gonan post and then try and do a pic which may or may not work and if it don't wil throw me off line for about 15 minutes.
I went otu this mornign to try and hand pollinate a few more of my luna white hibiscus blooms. These are plants in two gallon pots, two feet off the ground and several feet tall.
Whiel I was at it, I noticed all this eithey tiny black eggs or some sort of frass on the spent bloom. Eveidently it fell out from the spent casing of a dead bloom that wasn't pollinated.
I looke d aroudn and have foudn several of thes e spent bloom casings that have thes e tiny black whatever's in them layign there.
The problem is I have some butterflies aroudn here and a ne w big one, but he always flitting aroudn and I have no ide a what it is yet, but other than that haven't seen any butterflies specifically on thes e plants. I have no ide a what butterfly or what their eggs would like on a hibiscus. Doe s anybody here with all there photo's and knowledge maybe help me identify if they eggs.
I worry if they eggs they beign laid in unpollinate d casings which die and fall of f , so if they eggs they fallign of f to the ground. I have no idea how to try and collect the eggs if they that and save them. Have only saved cyrsallises.
I sure woudl appreciate any help or advice.
Ok gonan post this then try a pic.
Eggs or fraa help?
Alrighty. Ain't no way I am gona be able to post a pic. puter shut down again. Then I had soem friends stop by and was showing them the blooms and would ya belive it frass. oddle s and oddles of frass. His wife couldn't se well so when I pulle d the bloom apart further for her to see ther e was the fras s pile d up and a bunch of small holes.
Whatever in the middle of the bloom is havign a munchign holiday. Can't see the critter and if it a butterfly, didn't want to disturb his progress.
So now the uestion is what would be eatign the hibiscus buds in Alabama. Any idea anybody, please.
Starlight, maybe what you are seeing are seeds from the spent bloom, just a thought.
I thought that at first too Frostweed, but nope there a not so lean eatign machien in there. I am hoping I don't have to tear the bloom apart to se e what it is, but in a coupel of hours I got a feelign my curiosity gonna get the better of me and I wil have to see what it is.
I grew these hibiscus last year and nothign touche d them.
I have Monarchs , and them little white moths that too tiny and fast to capture a pic of or get close too Orange swallows and now have Spice bush swalltails showing up have Luna moths that visit but that usually later in the season.
I just ate a banana and mayo sandwhich with a glas s of orange juice and just don't have it in me to see a green larvae munching til my stomach settles. Ya I a wimp. : )
I looked and I found the Hibiscus is host to;
Hibiscus spp. -- Rose-Mallow Mallow Scrub-Hairstreak (Strymon istapa)
I hope that helps.
here is a link to see the butterfly.
http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species?l=1562
Josephine.
Well cool!!!!!!!!!! Josephine. : ) That sur e doe s look liek somethign I have seen flyign around here. Thanks for the link. it says to maintain the populations so they can eat all what left. Not to many more blooms left, just about bloomed out. they can eat all the leave s too if need be , just as long as they let me get or 5 seed pods to harvest.
Thank you for the help. Sure do appreciate it!!!!!! : )
I don't know if you have this scourge down in AL, starlight, but if your hibiscus was here, I'd bet that the dreaded Japanese beetles were paying you a visit.
They are small metallic green beetles; "eating machines" does not do them justice. They would be pretty obvious if they were around your yard. They consume almost everything in Rosaceae.
I hope all you have is some butterfly larva.
Seen them or something like them here and they are AWFUL!!! How one keeps a pesticide free yard is beyond me unless you only grow plants that have no known pests (with would probably eliminate the majority of hummer and butterfly plants)! Arghhhhhhhhhh!
VV.... Unfortunatly we do. Last year was an unbeliveable year for them arriving and attackign everythign in people's yards around Ga and AL. the lowe's and home depot couldn't keep enough of them jap bettle bags in stock. Folks were buying half dozen and more of them at a time.
I trie d to tell folks that the phermone would just bring more bettles that they needed to try another way. I have never seen them in my yard. Not to say that ain't around. I woudl lov e to have rose s but remmebe r how bad growing up as a kid up north how ba d they was, so I just go to the store and buy me a bunch or two to look at in the house.
Ther e are some neighbor s that have roses, so may go and ask if I can check out their bushe s and se e if that pest is around.
I took the bloom and rippe d it all open. Didn't find anybody hiding in there which now has me worrie d as to what having a fre e smorgasborg.
I didn't realiz e that these beetle s ate the hibiscus up and I got oodles of different hibiscus seeds started. Sur e glad ya told me that, cuz now I will scout them even more.
Becky... I hear ya big time. With ever new plant I brign in along come s a half dozen new pests . I just try and keep the benficials up as much as I can and scout every other day to try and catch something.