Butterflies taking flight in area gardens

Packages marked "handle with care" began arriving at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden this week.

It's hard to imagine more fragile contents than butterflies -- actually chrysalides -- in the pupa stage of their metamorphosis.

Exotic tropical species in all sizes and colors are flying in on someone else's power to star in Lewis Ginter's "Butterflies Live!" exhibit that opens next Friday.

The north wing of the garden's conservatory will be aflutter with butterflies through mid-October.

"We'll try to keep about 500 butterflies on the property, between what's emerging and what's on display," said Tom Brinda, Lewis Ginter's assistant executive director of horticulture and education.

Across town at Maymont, horticulturists are putting in about 1,000 plants in an attempt to boost the butterfly population.

"Marie's Butterfly Trail," which opens Sunday, extends from the site of the old daylily garden near the Children's Farm entrance along the road between the horse and cow pastures and down to the bobcat habitat.

The butterfly gardens include yarrow, butterfly weed, sunflowers, spirea, herbs and other plants that lure the winged creatures. Signs will describe the butterfly's life cycle and explain why caterpillars need one type of plant -- called a host -- and butterflies need another -- nectar producers.

As visitors walk the trail, they'll see perennials, annuals, native grasses, trees and shrubs, all of which are important in the lives of butterflies, said Peggy Singlemann, Maymont's horticulture director.

Native butterflies that guests will see along the trail include tiger and zebra swallowtails, monarchs, viceroys and skippers.

Lewis Ginter also is installing plants in an outdoor border to attract native butterfly species. The butterflies inside the conservatory, however, are imported species that cannot be released outside.

Blue morpho, tangerine-colored Julia, translucent glasswing and red cracker are just a few of the tropical varieties that will be on display. Their arrival in Richmond comes with heavy governmental regulation and scientific preparation.

The species are raised in captivity on butterfly farms in tropical countries, Brinda explained. The U.S. Department of Agriculture licenses and permits the importing of butterflies.

The butterflies are packaged as pupa, wrapped in cotton, and shipped overnight to a broker in the U.S. who then sends them on to Lewis Ginter.

"We take them to a containment room behind the scenes," as required by law, Brinda explained. "They're unpacked and inspected. We check their health, then the pupa are pinned up in their natural position."

After the metamorphosis is complete, the butterflies continue to hang for several hours until their wings unfold and are stiff enough for flight, Brinda said.

"We gently lift them off of the chrysalis, put them in a carrying cage and take them to the display to be turned loose," he said.

Life spans of the exotics range from less than a week to a couple months, he said, which is why the shipments will continue throughout the summer.

Visitors to Butterflies Live! should heed the following tips:

• Visit on clear, sunny days to see the most butterfly activity.

• Plan daytime visits. The exhibit closes at 5 p.m. to accommodate the butterflies' natural daily rhythms.

• Do not touch the butterflies.

• Bring a camera.

• Lewis Ginter's garden shop is selling butterfly kits. A vendor sends the buyer caterpillars that can be raised into butterflies.

Plan to attend one of numerous butterfly-themed programs this summer. Log onto http://www.lewisginter.org for details. The site also has directions for downloading an animated blue morpho butterfly widget for your blog, Web site or Facebook page.

Contact Julie Young at (804) 649-6732 or .