I have 2011 milkweed - lots of it. you can have some if you want. Barbi

Ryse, if the Monarch was a female, there is a good chance she was laying eggs if she was "fluttering" around the milkweed plants, especially if she seemed more interested in the foliage than the flowers. If you observe closely you can actually see her deposit eggs (oviposit) on the underside of the leaves. You can then check the leaves for eggs - tiny white dots that resemble an oval pearl. I haven't seen any Monarchs yet, but when I do see a female ovipositing I try to collect the eggs as soon as possible, because chances are the numerous predators in the garden will make a meal of them - they might not last a day. If the egg survives and hatches, the caterpillars are tiny at first and not always easy to find. They are also susceptible to predation and may not make it to the larger caterpillar stages. Because of the predators, I take many eggs and a few caterpillars inside to raise. You can cut down your milkweed if there are no eggs or caterpillars on them. About a month ago, I cut back (by half or so) a lot of my the common milkweed and pinched the tropical, so they will send up fresh shoots. These shoots are very desirable to the Monarch females, because the foliage quality is superior and they're easier for small caterpillars to eat. If you decide to let some pods go to seed, you could collect some and scatter the seed yourself in your pasture before they reseed in your garden. Win-win. (I do this a lot in wild areas.)

Congratulations cAROL!!! That is SO exciting!! I'm happy your milkweed is blooming and hope you get lots of butterflies in your garden. I've been adding plants the butterflies & hummingbirds love to my flowerbeds the past several years. I sure got a jump on it this year with all the WS perennials I grew. Milkweed grows here on the hill behind the breezeway where my mother encouraged it as a host plant for the monarch butterfly caterpillars. I have never heard or read anything about the seasalt sand. I have read that butterflies can't drink from a birdbath and the experts suggest you keep a shallow puddle of water surrounded by sand where they can drink. I'll see what I can dig up for information and email it to you. Happy gardening!!! Eileen

Where do you live, and what zone? Most North American Milkweeds need a cold period, known as Winter stratification. There are several ways to plant and/or store Milkweed seeds thru the Winter. First of all, collect only from the healthiest pods on the healthiest plants. Avoid plants or pods infested with aphids and/or Milkweed bugs. For Tropical Milkweed, no cold stratification is necessary; simply plant in the Spring/ Summer. Keep seeds at room temp. Depending on your location, you will need to chill your Native Milkweed seed thru the Winter. You can Winter sow, planting just before a snow, or plant in the Fall. If you want to keep your seeds safe from birds, squirrels etc, you can keep them in the refrigerator for a minimum of six weeks. I put mine in a rolled Ziploc baggie, tagged c a Sharpie, and store all seeds in a vase in my unheated garage. I then Spring sow. I start my seeds in plastic deep celled flats and eventually move them to 4" pots. They make great gifts for friends, family, neighbors and coworkers. And there's still plenty for your garden :)> If you gather more seed than you can use, you can donate the remaining seeds to The Monarch Project or several other organizations geared towards preserving this natural treasure. Gather all you can. Every little bit helps. John