An autumn joy is spying Red Admiral or Painted Lady butterflies flitting around and stopping to sip a Sedum’s generous offerings of nectar.

But this has been a rare delight recently. Our foul summer has had a dire effect on all our insects, apart from midges and clegs of course. And our gorgeous butterflies are no exception. This was shown by the Butterfly Conservation Trust’s 14th Big Butterfly Count. The data from this year’s citizen science project was so bad that the organisers have declared an ‘emergency’ for butterflies.

According to the study, many butterfly species have suffered an alarming decline over the past 14 years. In Scotland, the Trust has identified a 79% reduction in Red Admiral numbers, 62% Painted Lady and 74% Comma.

These figures are, of course highly alarming and very probably reflect the dreadful summer we’ve just endured. I certainly don’t want to underestimate this sharp decline but do draw comfort from the fact that, measured over a longer period, things aren’t quite as bad.

A Painted LadyA Painted Lady (Image: free) Data from the British Trust for Ornithology [BTO] is much more reassuring for gardeners. Trust members are invited to record the weekly tally of birds in their gardens and the survey has been expanded to include other creatures seen in the garden, including butterflies.

Results between 2007 and 2020 have now been published and reveal very positive information about butterfly sightings. They show that gardens have been a beacon of hope for butterflies at a time when there’s been a catastrophic decline in the countryside as a whole. Grubbing up hedgerows, many modern farming methods and the inexcusable use of insect-destroying neonicotinoids, have dealt a hammer blow to butterflies and biodiversity generally.

We have fewer butterfly species in Scotland than are identified in the BTO and BCT studies. And of these, some like the Large and Small Skipper only occur in the south east of the country, while the Wall butterfly is only found on the coasts of southern Scotland.

Nonetheless the overall long-term butterfly numbers remain reasonable, even if the last few months have been pretty bad. Wet conditions in England have led to fewer migratory species like Peacock, Painted Lady and Comma venturing north to Scotland. I’ve seen hardly any Peacocks, no Painted Ladies or Commas and only one Small Tortoiseshell.

Read more Dave Allan

But we must cling on to the fact that our gardens can be a safe refuge for some butterflies, so we should make them as attractive as we can. It’s very helpful that so many of us are letting some grass grow tall rather than keeping the whole lawn neatly trimmed. This longer grass provides food and shelter for caterpillars and overwintering pupae, especially of Ringlets and Meadow Browns.

Butterflies also need a reliable source of nectar which is specially true of migratory butterflies using our gardens as pit stops on their journey further north. Good nectar sources could include buddleia, red valerian, eryngiums, the daisy family, sedums and of course many others.

Our gardens will always be a welcome refuge for butterflies provided they aren’t overly tidy and are managed with wildlife in mind.

Apple ‘Sunset'Apple ‘Sunset' (Image: free)Plant of the week

Apple ‘Sunset' has a fine flavour with a perfect balance of sweetness and acidity. Often described as the Scottish ‘Cox’ it is similarly firm, juicy and tangy. The apples are as pretty as their name suggests though, like all apples, the fruits on the sunny side of the tree have the best colours.

It's one of the best varieties for producing quality fruits even after a season lacking in sunshine.