Edinburgh’s Butterfly & Insect World has a shortage of OAPs – but it isn’t the over 65’s they’re calling on - it’s ‘Old Aged Plants’.

Edinburgh’s Butterfly & Insect World has a shortage of OAPs – but it isn’t the over 65’s they’re calling on - it’s ‘Old Aged Plants’.
 
The popular family attraction, based at Dobbies Garden World, is home to six varieties of the Swallowtail butterfly, a large, colourful butterfly whose larvae feed on the leaves of citrus trees but it would seem the supply of these tasty trees is outstripped by demand!
 
Butterfly & Insect World’s assistant manager, Kevin Thom, explains: “It’s breeding time for the butterflies here in our indoor tropical flight area and this species of butterfly love to lay their eggs onto the leaves of citrus plants and when the caterpillars hatch, they’re particularly peckish! We’ve almost exhausted our own supply of old citrus trees and it would seem the Swallowtail’s appetite is insatiable!”
 
To help feed their future fluttering friends, Butterfly & Insect World is calling on members of the public to donate their old citrus trees. “Our hungry butterflies are eating so quickly, we just can’t keep up,” laughs Kevin. Large, overgrown citrus trees are particularly welcome, and Butterfly & Insect World is hoping members of the public will come forward with orange and lemon trees which have outgrown their conservatory or simply become unmanageable.
 
As an incentive, Butterfly & Insect World is offering a free Family Pass worth £23.50 for anyone who donates an old citrus tree. Kevin adds: “We really do need more OAPs – Old Aged Plants – to keep our caterpillars’ bellies full. As the citrus leaves are devoured so quickly, we hate to use beautiful, thriving citrus trees that are still in their prime – otherwise we would just send an SOS out to Dobbies.  If you can help, then please pop along to the visitor attraction with your ‘OAP’ and we’ll make sure they get added to the menu!”
 
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For further information please contact Dobbies Press Office: Gayle Wilson on 0131 561 6083 or gaylewilson@dobbies.com