The first sight to greet Delmont Public Library visitors is a brightly painted enclosure full of equally bright striped monarch caterpillars.
Thanks to a grant from the Community Foundation of Westmoreland County, library leaders are raising more than 100 of the caterpillars to adulthood before setting them free in the butterfly garden behind the Delmont borough building.
“We ordered the caterpillars in April,” said Diane Resnick, library children's service coordinator. “We found a place near Seven Springs that sells plants and caterpillars, so I'm really glad we were able to get them locally.”
Every Monday, a group of volunteer “Delmont Diggers” meets at 6 p.m. to continue work on the garden, which includes butterfly-friendly flora such as cosmos, butterfly bushes and mint, as well as walking paths and garden decorations.
Those volunteers will gather July 24 to release the butterflies, with a sugar solution in hand to feed them and lead them into the garden.
Resnick said the community response has been wonderful.
“We asked people to sign up if they wanted to help out in the garden or adopt a caterpillar, and we had more than 40 people sign up,” she said. “I was contacted by a local Master Gardener who has been raising monarchs for the past 10 years, so I snatched her up and she's been helping with her knowledge.”
Additional volunteers are helping to feed the caterpillars by growing their primary food source, the milkweed plant, and bringing it to the library.
“It's just been a great response,” Resnick said. “The community here in Delmont is so wonderful.”
Patrick Varine is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-850-2862, pvarine@tribweb.com or via Twitter @MurrysvilleStar.
