HI, have seen a few between Seminole and Shawnee on the way home from work. But I am on the highway so can not tell you if they are doing okay. I simply see them flutter by but I have only counted two and that was Friday evening.

If I have any in my yard I will let you know. Steffie

Hi, Linda.

I am in rural Love County, very close to the Red River. We have been seeing monarchs for at least at month now, but it has been sporadic.

At first the ones I was seeing were mainly on our property, nectaring. Then the numbers increased and a lot of them could be seen flying north up the road, so I assume they were migrating. Then the severe cold hit and I saw only a couple during that timespan and they were staying in the yard around the wildflowers.

After it warmed up early last week, the numbers increased again, but these seem to be staying around our place, nectaring and laying eggs on the milkweed in the pasture. I haven't really noticed many flying on up the road this week.

Our milkweeds are not real tall yet, maybe 6" to 8". I do have lots and lots of flowers and I see more monarchs daily, but we aren't back to the numbers we had before the cold spell hit.

I hope this info helps. If I see a significant change, I will let y'all know.

Dawn

Thanks Steffie and Dawn for your reports. I really appreciate your info. I will forward your reports back to Chip.

I have been seeing alot more Monarchs this last week with the temps warming up. Some faded, some fresh. The faded females seem to be particularly intent upon laying eggs on my small milkweeds that are already heavily laden with eggs! I never seem to have enough milkweed. I guess that I shouldn't complain because the hard freeze killed back alot of the nectar and milkweed in northern Okla. and Kansas. The pickings are going to be rather slim for those that continue on north.

Steffie, I believe that we have visited before. Marilyn, with the native plants from Seminole is such a neat person, great friend, and has really wonderful native plants.

Dawn, what kinds of great flowers do you have blooming now? My verbena canadenses is a great nectar attractor, and is going great guns now, but I don't have alot of other things blooming. The Coral honeysuckles are laden with blooms and are attracting the hummers and orioles. I have male and female hummers now coming regularly. And, a pair of Baltimore orioles that come up to the honeysuckle and oriole feeder pretty regularly now. They fly off to the west, and I've never found their nest. Would love to find it!

Thanks again for your input. :)

Linda

I've seen a few of the faded ones in the last 10 days. They seemed to be generally moving to the south west. Have not seen any egg laying activity. We are out by Lake Arcadia.

I don't know too much about butterflies or growing milkweed for them and I live in town in Ardmore.
For the last couple of weeks I have been seeing one or two daily in my yard. Before the cold spell I saw quite a few one day, possibly as much as dozen of them. Since the cold spell I only see one at a time. It appears to like the blooms on the red tipped photinia and my roses.
For all the good this does I just thought I would post.
G.M.

Linda,

In the cultivated portions of our property, the following flowers are now in bloom:

Dianthus
Roses
Larkspur
Chives
Chamomile
Catmint
Verbena bonariensis
Marigolds
Profusion Zinnia 'Fire'
Celosia 'New Look Red'
Blue Farinacea Salvia
Red Salvia
Salsa Mix Salvia in reds, pink, white, coral, purple
Iris
Dutch Iris
Coral Honeysuckle
American Crossvine
Wax Begonias
Nasturtiums
Water Lilies

Most of the trees and shrubs have already finished flowering, although a few possumhaw hollies are still flowering.

In the 'wild' portions of our property, many wildflowers are in bloom and I don't know the names of all of them, but these are the ones I do know:

Texas Bluebonnets
Indian Paintbrush
Queen Anne's Lace
Dotted Blue-eyed Grass
Wild Verbena
Penstemon
Showy Evening Primrose
Red Poppies
Yarrow
Fleabane
Carolina Anemone (almost finished blooming)
Prairie Larkspur
Wild Mustard
Yellow Clover
Pink-flowered Gaura
White-flowered Gaura
Vetch
Cinquefoil
Western Pink Vervain
Hoary Cress
Yellow Goatsbeard

Most of the native spring-blooming trees and shrubs have already bloomed, but the wild blackberries are still blooming.

There's lots of different wildflowers with small white flowers that are bloooming and I have no idea what any of them are.

In the vegetable garden a lot of the tomato plants are blooming, but I don't think the butterflies care about them as much as I do. :)

Dawn

Since yesterday Amber and I have collected 5 monarch cats from milkweed in the pasture. This was the biggest one. Almost missed him because he was on a blade of grass a few inches away from the milkweed.

randy

Linda, yes we have visited. Marilyn is a great gardener with a lot of knowledge. I saw her in the grocery store the other night but did not get a chance to see how she was doing. A lady had her at produce discussing what to plant and I thought I might not want to get involved. I still had to get home and do dinner.

I had cats last yr but I think the pesticide queen next door has pretty much made any attempts this year futile. Randy, great pix as usual. I probably should move out someplace to put some distance between me and neighbors. I appear to be the only organic in the block, sigh!

I will be watching but outside time is limited during the week so I dont get to do as much observing in the yard.

Have a good evening. Steffie

Found this on a tropical milkweed this morning on the back porch.
{{gwi:1092696}}
randy

So sorry for not getting back sooner. Thanks to everyone for posting. I got the info out to Chip at Monarch Watch. The Monarchs are definitely working their way back north.

Thanks Dragonladytoo for your report from Lake Arcadia. It's so beautiful around there with all of the trees and wildflowers. Do you enjoy Dragonflies, also- hence your name?

G.M., your sighting is very important regardless if you know alot about butterflies or have milkweed. I appreciate your posting about seeing some Monarchs around your yard. Thanks so much. I plan to be coming to Ardmore next Friday for the Annual ODAT Wildflower seminar. I am really looking forward to it! There will be speakers and Native Plant dealors there on Friday. Marilyn Stewart will be there with her native plants for sale. And, Steve Owens from Okla. Gardening will be there will his native plants for sale. They both will both be speaking on Friday.

Saturday, will be a native plant tour. Wish I could go, but have a niece graduating in Stillwater that day.

Try to come if you can. I believe that there is an admission at the door.

Dawn, what a wonderful array of flowers that you have blooming. You are a lil further south, so things have been warmer there. I'm sure that you attract lots of butterflies and hummers.

Your native area sounds like to die for!!! I would love to have all of those wildflowers in my yard. I am working on a native area. I have a few paintbrush and bluebonnets. I hope that I can keep the bermuda out,and that they will reseed.

Randy, glad that you are enjoying the Monarch cats. They are just pretty darn cuuute.

Steffie, so sorry to hear that you live next door to a "Pesticide queen". :( Not good for butterfly cats. Not good for people, either. It's just not fair, is it? They don't realize that their pesticide doesn't just stay in their yard only. Wish that I had a good answer for you. Good luck.

Randy, your tropical mw is further along than mine! The cats keep eating my buds off!

Here is a link that might be useful: Wildflower Workshop in Ardmore

Linda that workshop sounds very interesting. I will consider going to it.

Are any of you guys who are interested in wildflowers and naturalization going to it?

Thank you for the info.

G.M.

An all day trip is not feasible for me, but gee, don't I wish????

Linda, Dawn is the Queen of gardening on this forum, and she does much to attract wildlife in her garden. She has assisted many a newcomer with beginning a garden that includes plants for butterflies, bees, and moths. She's a doll! I'd love to see both yours and Dawn's gardens since they are outside the city! I get tired of seeing concrete all the time.

I haven't seen much the last few days in the garden due to the cloudy and rainy weather. I keep checking the Rue, though I haven't seen any black swallowtails or GSTs yet.

I bought another lantana today, 'Irene'. I think it's been around awhile and will hopefully also attract some butterflies, as well as the red, red verbena, dianthus (red), red pentas, etc. I'm really putting a lot of red in this year both for the butterflies and the hummers.

Susan

Linda,

Since Thursday, I have seen several faded monarchs, and two were very faded and sort of tattered and torn looking. They hung around nectaring for only a short while and then moved on.

Dawn

Saw a few orange butterfilies at the park today, but wasn't close enough to them to ID them, Linda. When I got home today, had a grey hairstreak and an orange sulphur flitting around the flowers I've got sitting out to be planted! Also saw a Cloudless Sulphur across the street. The Cabbage Whites were out in full force as well.

Some of the orange ones I saw looked big enough to be Monarchs, but as I said, too far away to accurately ID.

Susan

Monarchs have been in my yard for a week now. To me they seem confused, however I am just now learning about butterflies, and purchasing all the proper plants. I am in South Oklahoma City, OK.

Hi,

I'm not sure what you mean by confused. Most have made the trip from Mexico to get here. That can't be done by being confused.

They may be looking for nectar plants. May be looking for milkweed to lay eggs on. Males may be patrolling looking for babes.

I've not found any eggs yet here, but have seen hundreds moving through on the way north. The henbit and dandelion have made my place a great resting spot before pushing on.

randy

Linda, are you tracking monarchs again this year? I saw ONE yesterday :) I think she might have been checking out my baby asclepias. I ordered them from Live Monarch. They are itty bitty....

Lisa

4 in Grove (far NE corner of OK) yesterday. All were in good shape with brilliant colors and intact wings.