Monarch Trust NZ Forum » Butterflies

Alternative foods - pepper tree?

(4 posts)

  1. Lyril
    Member

    Last year's 100% deathrate of my Swan plants was a disaster, so I've completely replanted and I'm now researching 'poverty' foods just in case. I will try to get Tweedia (I'm in Australia so buying overseas seeds is oftem difficult) but I also noticed a mention of the Pepper tree (Schinus molle).

    This is readily available. Has anyone tried to raise Monarchs on it? I have used it in the past for Stick insects, which liked it but it tended to gum up their mouth parts. Handy in an emergency though.

    I have a huge, proliferating pepper tree in the paddock. If hungry monarch caterpillars will eat it I will be very happy. Lots of Asc. fructicosa germinated, but my attempts to germinate incarnata, syracusa, speciosa, rotundifolia and curassavica were pretty woeful.

    Fortunately very few butterflies have arrived so far. It sometimes happens like this, - then there are still caterpillars around when winter sets in.

    Posted 3 months ago #

  2. Jacqui
    Key Master

    Hi Lyril

    That's SO funny... I was walking Bonnie yesterday (Fowlds Park, Mt Albert, Auckland) and saw a Schinus molle and remembered how it was said to be an alternative food. However, I've never tried it or heard of anyone who has tried it.

    Hope we can find out more. It would certainly be better than Tweedia, which is painfully slow growing and they don't seem to like it.

    Jacqui

    Posted 3 months ago #

  3. Darren
    Member

    Schinus molle, (also known as American pepper, Peruvian peppertree, escobilla, false pepper, molle del Peru, pepper tree, peppercorn tree, Californian pepper tree, pirul and Peruvian mastic) is native to the Peruvian Andes.

    http://globalspecies.org/ntaxa/853894 lists Monarchs as one of it's predators, and http://globalspecies.org/ntaxa/2299042 lists Schinus molle as a Monarch foodplant

    However before you get too excited,
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schinus_molle notes that it has become a serious invasive weed internationally. It is invasive throughout much of Australia in a range of habitats from grasslands to dry open forest and coastal areas.

    Nice photo of a monarch on one here:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/r44time/6213033103/

    Posted 3 months ago #

  4. Lyril
    Member

    Thanks for that. Useful to know if there's another starvation episode. I haven't had much success with pumpkin.

    Pepper (peppercorn here) is definitely an invasive weed in some areas, but it is also absolutely gorgeous. It often survives around many of the old, failed farms on marginal land, the places where so many pioneers and WW1 veterans saw their hopes of a better life fade and die. Often it's just the peppercorns, geraniums and agapanthus left to show where there was a home. As it ages its trunk get gnarled and interesting, and the foliage is always so graceful. One of my favourite trees.
    I'm glad wanderers can survive on it.

    Posted 3 months ago #

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