The Stittsville library branch is now a caterpillar home. Drop by to visit their caterpillar cabinet. It will soon metamorphose into a butterfly cabinet! Currently, the caterpillars are in their cozy cup homes, but soon they will form a chrysalis and emerge as beautiful Painted Lady butterflies.
The Painted Lady Butterfly is the most widespread butterfly species found on the planet, occupying all continents except Antarctica and Australia. They are an iconic butterfly to most Canadians with most of us stopping in our tracks to enjoy a moment in their presence.
To attract Painted Lady butterflies to your garden, they feed from tall (3-6 feet high) plants, including blazing star, cosmos, New England aster, Joe-pye weed, Mexican sunflower, purple coneflower, and zinnias. They will visit other nectar plants, though, including red clover and milkweed. The adults only live for about 2 weeks, feeding exclusively on nectar.
The caterpillar and butterfly friends will be at the Library throughout May. When they are mature they will be released into a natural setting. At that time, the Library will hold an impromptu mini-storytime and butterfly release party. Check Programs and Events toward the end of May to stay updated on the release information.
Plant Swap and Free Seed Kits
Spring really is here because it’s almost time for Plant Swap again. Join the Library staff on Saturday May 20 and Sunday May 21. Bring a few plants to share and take a few home!
The Library will also be giving out free seed kits to children during the Plant Swap (while supplies last). The seed kits are generously provided from the company Good in Every Grain, whose goal is to help children understand the importance of different grains and how plants grow to produce a variety of things. The seeds should be planted by the beginning of June. For more information on this program, please visit this link: https://goodineverygrain.ca/whats-growing-on/.
Stittsville Programs
The Library is running a few more programs before taking a break in order to gear up for their summer programming!
Toddlertime (drop-in) continues to run on Thursdays at 10:20am until May 25. Their last Imagination Stations/Imaginer… Imaginer, quoi? runs on Saturday May 20 at 10:30am. To find out more about programs the Stittsville branch offers, visit Programs and Events where you will find creative writing workshops, Babytime programs, and so much more.