Monarch Caterpillar Care in Florida

I purchased a butterfly weed plant and now have 23 caterpillars which I put into a large plastic container, netting on top for air and a few leaves for food.

Do I need to buy more plants for food,what should I do to keep them alive and for them to become butterflies? I live in Florida and don't have any flowering plants in my garden. Please help. Thank you.

Karen says:
You are going to need a lot of milkweed to feed 23 caterpillars, especially after a few weeks when they get larger. It doesn't look like common milkweed is found in Florida according to the USDA Plants Database. Here in Minnesota you can find it all over in ditches, along roads in swamps, etc. If by chance you have seen some common milkweed, you can cut stems and bring it home to feed the caterpillars. Otherwise Swamp milkweed and tropical milkweed are in Florida so you will have to find some source (nursery, friend or in the wild) to feed your caterpillars.

Here is information on these milkweeds.

I hope this helps.