Going for Gold?

In the early years of my residency at Pwll ( W. of Llanelli), I decided to plant some Delphiniums in the hope of attracting the attractive golden plusia to my moth traps. Plants were grown from seed and duly grown on - remember that Delphiniums are biennial ie they will grow and `bulk-out` in the first summer of growth and flower in the second year. My efforts were successful in that one golden plusia was indeed caught but whether this was due to pure chance or the sensing of the presence of the food-plant by that adult moth cannot be proven. What I do know is that - to give one example - my planting of alder buckthorns in or near by present garden has attracted brimstone butterflies (males and females) and encouraged breeding.

The golden plusia is a species that only colonised the British Isles in the late 1800s, but it has declined in recent decades possibly due to less planting of Delphiniums as they can be fussy to grow - often needing protection from slugs and snails and staking. I recall it being a staple of garden plantings in the 1960s and 1970s - my grandfather used to grow them from seed, alongside other old favourites such as sweet williams and snapdragons. I`ll be trying again this year even though my present garden has the most awful heavy clay soils (previously at Pwll I had lovely, friable loam) and perhaps Carmarthenshire Moth & Butterfly Group members may wish to try too? I would try to plant about 6 to 10 plants, rather than a singleton (the more plants, the more olfactory attractant!) and perhaps coastal members may have the best chance - though I recall a 1990s record made by Steve Lucas in the Betws area of the Amman Valley. Another plant that local moth`ers may wish to try are tobacco plants Nicotiana sylvestris - go for the plain white and very fragrant ones - you may lure convolvulus hawk-moths to your garden in the gloaming! They are annuals ie they will flower in the first year.

                  Above: Golden Plusia, at Tyrwaun, Pwll, 22nd August 2007. Photo: Jon S. Baker

The caption (written by Jon Baker) to the photo above in the Carms Moth & Butterfly Group Newsl No 10, Sept. 2007 is given below:

"2437 GOLDEN PLUSIA Polychrysia moneta

This moth has not been seen in the county since 1995. There were just five records, mostly in the early nineties, and with the decline of this species nationally it was feared that it might not be seen again here. But Ian Morgan got rewarded for planting delphiniums in his garden at Pwll (SN4601) with one turning up in his trap on 22^nd August. Photographed by JSB next day".

My 2007 sighting is currently the last in Carms - will you see it this (or next) year?...plant your Delphiniums - I`m going to plant some seeds now!