Darn creepy crawlies

So something has been eating our new Clematis Armandi, the one that is growing in the trellis in the back yard. This picture shows a pretty good example of the damage. We thought it was snails, so put out some snail bait. Last night, while sitting in the hot tub, we watched a caterpillar, about 2" long, make it's way down the trellis to the plant. So, armed with flashlights, we went back out a bit later to inspect and found several of the critters happily munching away. They were immediately dispatched, and today, the plant will get sprayed with BT to hopefully eliminate the critters.

They've done a pretty good number on the plant, eating off all the growing tips. Oh well - it was on a good run before that happened and hopefully it will pick back up quickly.