Yes, That is the plant. The cats on the dill are not Monarch's. Monarchs have black yellow and green stripes, but no dots. They will only eat Milk Weed. Each summer in Michigan,our grand daughters and I raise a couple of monarchs in a screened covered jar. BUT we also have gobs of wild milkweed. Seems as if I am the only one in our park that has this plant, but we noticed tonight that three of the cats have started their next phase, so the new plant should be food enough for the other three.I have hopes that my plants will grow new leaves, and maybe a new family of monarchs..

I get my bulk ingredients from a local feedmill, so start by searching for local co-ops, grain elevators, or feedmills. And yes, most store bought bags of "mixed seed" are filled with junk, which is a cheap way to add weight, so they can sack you for 20lbs, when they actually only have 5 to 10lbs of useful seed in it. As for those blackbirds and other regulars, I have them too. Here's how I have my feeders set up: First, I have my main area, where I feed only black oil sunflower seed, and suet for the woodpeckers. Then, about 20 feet away, I have a tray feeder with my homemade mixed seed, which equals 1 part sunflower, 1 part cracked corn, 2 parts white proso millet. This mix keep all the sparrows, blackbirds, and doves entertained, while allowing the neater birds like cardinals and various finches, to eat in peace, away from the more aggressive birds. On the the bluejays, my favorite bird. It's perfectly safe to feed them cat & dog food, although for me, the crows would just eat it all. I find that my bluejays like peanuts the most, especially in the shell. They also love cobbed corn, and also really like cheese nip crackers. Also, you said that your squirrels eat the cat food?? I can't seem to get them to eat anything but my sunflower seed. They'll do everything they can to get on my feeders, even though I give them corn and peanuts to eat. So yeah, try & find a source of bulk seed, and buy the big three. Don't get carried away on the cracked corn though, because it does spoil over time, so I limit it to 50lbs, which lasts a long time. The others can last 2 to 3 years, if you keep them stored in a dry place. I use metal trash cans, and keep them in my garage, and make sure to clean up ALL spilled seed to keep mice away. You'll be pleasantly surprised at how there is no more wasted seed when you feed the seed the birds want. The only time I got weeds was when I had feeders over mulched areas, because it would get under the mulch where the birds couldn't find it, then sprout. But, I moved my feeders to grass areas, so all the ground feeding birds eat the spilled seed. Good luck! Joe

Thank you ..Thank you..Thank you..I'm googling it now!

I've been looking all over for this and I think lisanti07028 and eline65 is right, Slender Aster. Here are some of my photos of 4 that I pulled up: If this is right and it is Slender Aster (AKA: Wild Aster, Panicled Aster and Salt Marsh Aster) then here is what I know about them. Wait until a day after a very heavy rain... if the ground is soggy, then that is ideal. They will fell like a miniature bush and not succulent like the pictures seem to convey. Get each branch that is down low, usually running under grass and pull them to the top and grasp them firmly and slowly pull straight up. They will come out easily with the full tap root. If they ground is not moist enough they will always break off at soil level. Although one photo indicates the root is off to the side, that one I pull up under a raised garden structure and was growing out from under a board. So expect to have the tap root straight down. They are perennial (but some sources say they are summer annual weed), regardless the flower heads have tons of seeds so if you pull them early before they bloom then you have significantly reduced new growth. Apparently a hard winter will kill them off, but not the seeds. Best control is a pre emergent herbicide such as Halts. Next best is a post emergent herbicide 2, 4-D+MCPP+Dicamba (which as I understand is Trimec) but it needs to be applied to growing plants in the Spring since by Fall they start to get woody and are much harder to kill. I'm far from being an expert on this (just found what this weed was that I've had for about five years) but I would suggest pulling them after a heavy rain at the end of Summer and then using Halts around February, and when they first start appearing pull them after a heavy rain. This year I didn't use Halts and I think they are worse. Some neighbors have their whole yard covered in them and it's generally those houses that were up for sale and not mowed regularly.