Harvey County Parks

6 days ago

Looking for something to do outside while practicing social distancing? Here is a great idea from Park Naturalist Rachel.

Gardening for Monarchs
Every year, monarch butterflies migrate from the eastern provinces of Canada and the United States to the Transvolcanic Mountains of central Mexico where they overwinter in clusters in the Oyamel fir forests. Monarch reproduction begins shortly after the overwintering monarchs begin to move north at the end of February and continues until around November when the remainder of butterflies in the last generation join the migration in Texas and Mexico. Their journey is astonishing, and considered to be one of the world’s greatest natural wonders.
After mating, female monarchs search for milkweeds. Milkweeds and a few other plants in the same plant family are the only kind of plant that monarchs will lay eggs on, because it is the only plant that their larva can eat. These plants are known for their milky sap, and unique flowers. When larvae eat milkweed, they ingest the plants toxins (cardiac glycosides). They are able to sequester these compounds in their wings and exoskeletons, making themselves unpalatable to predators. Monarchs use more than 30 milkweed species as a host plant. The most common species of milkweed utilized by monarchs is common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca), which easily establishes in disturbed areas like roadsides and fields. Most milkweeds are perennial plants, and grow back each year from rootstock instead of from seed alone. Monarchs also require nectar plants as adults. Nectar plants are their source of carbohydrates, amino acids, and some salt. Without these resources, monarch butterflies could not migrate or reproduce.
Historically, in the Midwest milkweed plants were widespread. Habitat destruction has reduced their range and numbers dramatically. Roads, housing developments, agricultural expansion and herbicide use all contribute to the declining monarch population. In the United States, thousands of acres are converted to development each day. Also, chemically intensive herbicides and insecticides kill monarchs and their host plants. The use of “Roundup ready” soybeans that are genetically engineered to resist Roundup (glyphosate, the worlds’ most widely used herbicide), has resulted in the loss of at least 100 million acres of monarch habitat in row crops since 1997. This allows growers to spray fields with the herbicide instead of tilling to control weeds. Milkweeds survive tilling but not the repeated use of glyphosate. Frequent mowing eliminates milkweed plants, and monarchs are also killed outright by many pesticides. Their overwintering sites have also shrunk dramatically due to illegal logging and thinning of forest sites.
To help the monarch population, you can create and protect monarch habitats. This can be as simple as adding milkweed and nectar sources to an existing garden or maintaining natural habitats with milkweed. When planning your garden or restoration area, it is important to plant milkweed species that are native to your region of the country. Native plants typically require less maintenance and are more beneficial to local wildlife. Harvey County, Kansas is considered to be in the northeast eco region for milkweed. In this region, milkweed species that are preferred by monarchs and easy to establish are: common milkweed, swamp milkweed, butterfly milkweed, and poke milkweed. If started from seed indoors, allow 4-8 weeks growing time before transplanting outdoors. Seeds of most milkweed species need to be stratified before planting. This means that they need to be cold treated for 3-6 weeks before planting. Without stratification, the percentage of seeds that germinate is usually low. Stratification can be accomplished by placing seeds in moist paper towels (in a baggie or other container) and left in the refrigerator. No effort is too small. Your garden can be a few plants on a patio, or many plants across acres of land. Pictured here is a bright orange butterfly milkweed plant at Harvey County West Park, a tagged monarch with swamp milkweed at East Park, and a fifth instar monarch caterpillar eating a Common milkweed leaf at the Osage nature trails.
For more information about monarch conservation and how to garden for monarchs, visit www.monarchwatch.org.
Additional information about monarchs can be found at
www.monarchjointventure.org.
Join other citizen scientist to collect long-term data on larval monarch populations and milkweed habitat www.mlmp.org. ... See moreSee less