Beautiful pic and so true! What's a Wayward Station and how do you get certified?

In years past I've only had Monarchs during the fall migration, but last year with a lot more milkweed available I had them spring through fall. Such a treat!

I caught this one newly emerged in my cherry tomatoes.

{{gwi:645635}}

These are beautiful pictures of the butterflies, indeed. Which kind of milkweed are you growing? I am interested, too, in growing some; but there is quite an array of choices out there!

Nal, what state are you in?

The fatality rate is too high in my garden for cats, I raise them in a big cage once I find the eggs. The garden spiders wipe them out.

A Monarch Wayward Station is a place where a garden hosts nectar, safety and host plants for migrating Monarchs. To register your garden log on to Monarchwatch.org.

The MonarchÂs food source is being replaced with "progress". Wayward Stations are desperately needed.

Edna

Hopflower, there are so many different types of milkweed.
Here's to name but a few.

Asclepias asperula "Antelope Horns"
Asclepias cancellata
Asclepias curassavica (I have)
Asclepias curassavica 'Silky Deep Red' (I have)
Asclepias curassavica 'Silky Gold' (I have)
Asclepias curassavica 'Silky Scarlet'
Asclepias fruticosa (I have)
Asclepias physocarpa "Family Jewels Tree" (I have)
Asclepias purpurescens "Purple Milkweed" (looking for)
Asclepias speciosa 'Davis' (looking for)
Asclepias speciosa "Showy Milkweed" (I have)
Asclepias sullivantii "Sullivant's Milkweed" (I have)
Asclepias verticillata "Whorled Milkweed" (I have)

Edna, I'm in Louisiana. I tried nursery-raising one year, but I'm comfortable enough now to let them cycle through in the great outdoors. I occasionally find a chrysalis half formed, or one that dies without emerging, but for the most part a good many survive. I'll check out the site. Thanks for the link.

Hop, I grow Asclepias curassavica ... Silky Gold and Butterfly Red.

Here is a link that might be useful: nursery raised Monarchs

Edna, I love this idea of providing a Wayward Station!
I'm going to check it out.

I planted verbena bonariensis two years ago in Ohio for the first time. I hadn't read that it attracted monarchs, but I had dozens visit these verbena "sticks". I called a friend who lived 20 minutes away and asked her if she had monarchs on her V. bonariensis and she said YES. When I moved my plants to here to Mass I was delighted to see that they were on my V.b here also. I wrote to Bluestone and asked why they didn't mention it in their catalog and they told me they weren't aware that Monarchs liked it. Well, I think they do!

The only asclepias I have is Asclepias tuberosa. I don't see that one on your list Edna. Is it not considered a good variety for the monarchs?

Your photos are beautiful. Thanks for this very interesting post.
Patti

Patti, tuberosa is perfect! They will love the red flowers. Butterflies love verbena, I have one also.

I'm so proud of you. I loved seeing the pics when they first came out. They couldn't have a better "launch" than under your care. Would love to see the sign when you get it. Ummm can butterflies read???

g'feffa

Congratulations Edna ~ That is wonderful news. You really have quite a collection of milkweed. Right now I have growing Asclepias curassavica. I also have seeds from you for the milkweed vine and family jewels to plant. The monarchs do visit our milkweed regularly and they are a joy to watch, then to see all sizes of cats devouring the plants, then awhile later, more monarchs. It is so neat to see fresh butterflies, as their colors are so vibrant. We also have two kinds of passionflower vines that the zebra longwings and the Gulf fritillaries love. Butterflies add a certain loveliness to gardens. Thank you for doing your part in the survival of 'flying flowers'.

FlowerLady

Edna,

What a wonderful certification! I'm not a butterfly expert, but we had so many gorgeous varieties last summer. I had a problem with bullfrogs catching the butterflies so we started netting the bullfrogs and relocating them.

I'd love to learn more, so I will look at the monarch information. I'll be sure to plant milkweed (I think that's also on the deer-resistant list).

Do they like parsley and bronze fennel?

Cameron

I planted parsley in my garden last year for the butterflies and see eggs on them. Infact I had a butterfly yesterday land on it for quite some time. Is this the time they lay their eggs because I didn't notice the butterfly eggs till after it left? What else do I need to provide for them? I have a lot of nectar plants and I plan on planting more parsley and fennel but do I need Milkweed or is their something else I can use?

Very cool, but I am laughing here...I thought you meant kitty cats and just could not make sense of what you all were saying. : )

I have an old field just covered in milkweed. We have thousands of monarchs every year. They are a joy.

HAHAHA! THANK YOU DEBBIE!!! I thought they were talking about CATS and couldn't understand either! Now I get it.

Well, Edna, thanks to you I've been lost in butterfly websites all weekend.
We raised a few batches of monarchs when our daugher was little. I'd like to do more to help butterflies in my new garden, so milkweed and parsley and other to-be-decided-on-later plants are now in my garden plan.
Thanks for re-igniting my interest!
Patti

Sorry, Debbie, I should have defined myself better. You guessed it, cat is short for caterpillar.

Monarchs eat only Asclepias (milkweed) and it's poisonous. The caterpillars eat the milkweed and in turn it provides them with a toxin which makes them poisonous. If an animal eats a Monarch it usually gets very ill and will never eat another. Painted Ladies mimic the Monarch in color however they are not poisonous, but predators don't know that.

Momof2, you must have had a Black Swallowtail? They lay eggs on fennel, parsley, dill and rue.

I've added a link below on what caterpillar eats what.

Those of you in the south and eastern states are more fortunate than I as you have quite a variety of butterflies. I get the late Monarchs around September-October.

Here is a link that might be useful: What do butterflies eat

Edna, thanks so much for the info. Yes, it was a Black Swallowtail. I do get quite a varity of butterflies but I just never learned about the foods certain ones eat/lay eggs on/ect. They have a butterfly house at this place called Cypress Gardens and I saw they had parsley with caterpillars on it but I didn't know what kind. So last year I planted some in with my flowers. I will have to see where I can get some of the other plants listed for the kind I know we have around here. That link was very helpful!
Meghan

Since I live in the migratory path of the Monarchs, I've been trying to create a wayward station on my own by planting more nectar bearing flowers. The sight of butterflies and hummingbirds in my garden is always such a treat!

I've attached a map for those who are interested in the breeding grounds and migratory paths of Monarchs in the US.

Edna, your pictures always inspire me!

Marilyn

Here is a link that might be useful: Migratory Paths

Edan, I'm so pleased and happy for you. You have worked so long and hard at providing the butterflies with a safe and wonderful habitat. Congratulations!

MeMo

Oops...Just got an email that the map didn't show up. Let's try this again.

Here is a link that might be useful: Migratory Path

I have babies!!! The Black Swallowtail eggs have hatched and the caterpillars are happily munching away on the parsley! Maybe I need to go plant some more so they have plenty of food. It's so exciting!
Meghan

Meghan, that's awesome!!!!!! They are little pigs. I hope you have plenty of food on hand.

Finally got my sign.....
{{gwi:645636}}

Well, having read this thread, I today submitted the registration for being a Monarch wayward station as well.

I have 1.5 acres in the foothills of Southern California, and about 4500 sq ft of that is currently planted with Verbena, Butterfly Bush, Parsley, Dill, Fennel, Zinnia to name a few.

I am currently adding more and more Milkweed varities, concentrating on ones native to California.

Thanks for the inspiration!

Edna, thanks for getting everyone interested in Monarch Waystations! I don't recall seeing your post on the Butterfly Forum, but there is so much discussion there, I often forget things that have been posted.

I plan to get my sign up this weekend for "McKenna's Monarch Habitat" registered last summer.

I have winter sown so many species of Asclepias it's not funny, and they are ALL coming up. Whew! Their favorite has to be A. curassavica, an annual anywhere north of zone 8. But, it comes up so readily from direct sowing, and there are always people willing to share seed on the Butterfly Forum.

Someone told me that the Cottage Garden forum was geared toward planting butterfly plants, too, so thought I would check it out.

The Monarchs are moving out of the Mexican forests now and headed north into Texas, Louisiana,Arkansas, and Mississippi, so it won't be too much longer before we see them.

Susan

Congratulations to our dear resident Sweet Pea and Butterfly Queen! :-) What a lovely thing to get such a sign, you must be so proud to qualify!

I was reading an article the other day saying that there are now monarch colonies in the Algarve region in Portugal. This was absolute news to me, as I've never heard of monarchs here before, but the article said that apparently they came because a certain shrub, Gomphocarpus fruticosus, has been spreading as a sub-spontaneous plant in the Algarve. I googled this shrub and it belongs to the Asclepiadaceae family, so this makes sense! Unlike their American counterparts, the European and North African monarchs are not migratory, so how the colonies are being established is still not known. The excerpt I read was taken from a study published on the Portuguese Enthomology Society newsletter. I thought this was fascinating, as I thought that no monarchs existed in Portugal (we have been a Republic since 1910 ;-))

Eduarda (who is still anxiously waiting to see whether the asclepias incarnata she planted last year has survived Winter)

You have me inspired too. I printed out the application for myself and I am also mulling over plans for desigining somethig at church too. I've been feeling a little blah but this has me excited.

(((Edna))), if I were a butterfly I'd choose you as my "mom", too. : ) Love your sign - it is well deserved.

I'm not seeing as many monarchs as usual but there are lots of other kinds flittering around. Emma and Gracie love to chase them. Don't worry, they fail miserably at catching any. : )

Diana

i was wondering if any of you had yet tried the whole monarch tagging thing. i've looked it up and thought it sounded like a great idea but am unsure if it is as easy as they make it sound.

There are some in the Butterfly Forum who tag. Personally, I decided against it. I read somewhere that people in Mexico are paid to retrieve tagged Monarchs. Many Monarchs are killed as a result.

They have to be dead for them to send them in and receive their money. Yes, they are paid $5 per tag, which for the poor locals, is a lot of money. As far as I know, they don't kill them, they collect the dead ones that litter the forest floor. The Monarchs are not flying around much in the forest. They only come down from the trees for a rare drink of water and then back up they go. I doubt if there is much "killing" going on.

You can, however, check out Journey North, which posts the migration, both north and south. The migration is underway and latest reports reflect Monarchs are at the Red River, which borders northern Texas and southern Oklahoma. I live in central Oklahoma, so I can barely wait!

Tagging is done gently and easily, and usually right when the butterfly ecloses. They rest until their wings are dry and they warm up enough to fly. This takes anywhere from 1 to several hours. The tiny little "dot" sticker tag is just gently applied to the outside of the upper wing. Even children are doing it at Monarch Waystations elementary schools. I plan to do it this summer myself. It's important information that Monarch Watch is gathering in regard to these migrating butterflies.

It is a personal decision, but I don't mind helping out the hispanic population IN Mexico.

BTW, Edna frequents the Butterfly Forum and I believe it was her that suggested I check out the Cottage Garden forum, too.

Susan

Hello todancewithwolves....

Say, about how long did it take you to get your plaque after registering? I completed the online registration form in mid-March, and I'm not even sure the transaction went through.

I emailed the guy at U. Kansas, but no response??

any thoughts?

beavis

Edna,

Just an interesting FYI -- and hope that other states are doing this as well.

I just found out that North Carolina DOT, which plants wildflower gardens along our highway, is addressing the Monarch issue and has planted milkweed.

Cameron

Here is a link that might be useful: NC DOT Monarch program

I was LOL thinking about a station for Wayward Monarchs!! You could put up a teeny little red light for them...