Milkweed and Monarch Butterfly

[street]

Just wondering if any here have collected eggs from the milkweed plant and experienced the arrival of the monarch butterfly?

As a kid my mother got me involved in the processes but have not done it in many moons now.

Yesterday I went to the ranch and gathered milkweed pods and brought them home to collect the seeds for planting. I have some people that want the seed to start a butterfly garden.

I guess I'm going back to be a kid but it is a fascinating journey of the monarch butterfly. If interested please research it and learn about the process.

 

[Lawrencewendall]

I planted some last year hoping to attract the butterflies. They never grew.

 

[candrew]

Just wondering if any here have collected eggs from the milkweed plant and experienced the arrival of the monarch butterfly?

As a kid my mother got me involved in the processes but have not done it in many moons now.

Yesterday I went to the ranch and gathered milkweed pods and brought them home to collect the seeds for planting. I have some people that want the seed to start a butterfly garden.

I guess I'm going back to be a kid but it is a fascinating journey of the monarch butterfly. If interested please research it and learn about the process.

The journey of the monarch butterfly is truly one of nature's most beautiful miracles. We're going to order some seeds and try scattering them in one of the riparian areas close to where we live here in the desert southwest.

 

[Nemo2]

I remember, as a kid, there were butterflies everywhere.....now it's "Oh look, a butterfly"...sad really.

 

[mpeirce]

We planted milkweed in our garden from a local nursery. Planting seeds it a bit trickier, since the seeds need a cold period before they will sprout - so don't collect seeds and keep them inside your house before planting. Look up "stratification."

We had about a dozen monarch caterpillars on the milkweed plants last year. They pretty much mow down the milkweed plants, but since that's why we planted them, we don't mind.

We get lots of butterflies in our garden as well as a wide variety of bees.

We also get humming birds and moths - sphingidae are fascinating moths that look and behave like humming birds and large bees.

Here's one of the Monarch caterpillars

A Tiger Swallowtail

And a Hummingbird Clearwing moth

 

[street]

Outstanding!

Most milkweed species planted in North America need a cold moist stratification to encourage spring germination. Cold moist stratification is a technique used to simulate the real-world conditions a seed would receive outdoors after the frozen winter gives way to a warm, wet spring.

If collecting seed this fall make sure you store seed in an envelope ad place I the fridge. If you plant in the fall keep cold till seeding and do just before freeze up in northern climate. Have to the ground wet and wait till spring for germination.

 

[Chuckanut]

Where can we get milkweed seeds?

 

[mpeirce]

Where can we get milkweed seeds?

Many nursery's sell them.

And you'll be surprised at all the results if you type in Milkweed into Amazon...

 

[REWahoo]

Our house is located near the top of a hill at the point of a small v-shaped valley, on the primary spring Monarch migration route from Mexico. The valley opens to the south and when the Monarchs are migrating north from Mexico we can watch them fly up the valley and over the house, heading to Canada.

 

[street]

Where can we get milkweed seeds?

You can order it from seed company's or collect it yourself. I also would be in favor of sending you seed. Good luck lets save the Monarch!

 

[Blue Collar Guy]

I bought a box of Butterfly Flower seeds at the dollar store. I also bought flower-boxes and potting soil. Flowers grew, I didnt notice a rush of butterfly's in my back yard. I do get a ton of lightening bugs at night.

 

[socca]

A couple of years ago I planted some milkweed at my house. It was purchased at a local native plants nursery. Now it comes up everywhere like a, er, weed. It attracts Florida Monarch butterflies. I don't know how these are related to the butterflies that make the famous migration.

 

[pacergal]

Our house is located near the top of a hill at the point of a small v-shaped valley, on the primary spring Monarch migration route from Mexico. The valley opens to the south and when the Monarchs are migrating north from Mexico we can watch them fly up the valley and over the house, heading to Canada.

That must be a beautiful sight!

 

[Amethyst]

We have several butterfly bushes (Buddleiae) in our yard. They are very easy to grow from seed (they plant their own volunteers). We get yellow swallowtails, black swallowtails, the very occasional Monarch, the Maryland checkered butterfly (which some people think resembles the state flag), and tons of little brown and yellow butterflies. Also some hummingbird moths.

Right now the Sedum Autumn Joy is blooming, which also attracts bees and butterflies. I saw a Monarch (or its smaller cousin, the Viceroy) butterfly the other day. No butterflies just now, probably b/c the sun isn't out.

 

[6miths]

Yes we have milkweed all over the place both at home and at the cottage. The local McDonald's even planted some in their flower bed. Many monarch and other butterflies and moths along with hummingbirds around. Butterfly bush is my favourite fragrant flower so have many of these along with other butterfly and hummingbird favourites.

 

[manerac]

I planted some last year hoping to attract the butterflies. They never grew.

Don't feel bad, growing milkweed is harder than you'd think.

We germinated several seeds and transplanted to our wild area, but none survived. I suspect critters.

 

[brucethebroker]

As a kid growing up in Michigan, we saw many Monarch caterpillars feasting on milkweed. Later, at college in the early 70's, a "doper" friend excitedly ran into our apt. waving a locally found plant (ripped out of the ground, roots and all) in the air. "Look at the marijuana plant I found growing by the side of the road". "That's milkweed", I told him. "No it isn't-this is some fine, home grown stuff!"

Don't know if he tried to smoke it, though....

 

[Amethyst]

Dunno what he'd been smoking, but I can see little to no resemblance between Cannabis S. and Asclepias L. The leaves aren't anything alike. The pods, in particular, would seem to be a point of divergence

]

As a kid growing up in Michigan, we saw many Monarch caterpillars feasting on milkweed. Later, at college in the early 70's, a "doper" friend excitedly ran into our apt. waving a locally found plant (ripped out of the ground, roots and all) in the air. "Look at the marijuana plant I found growing by the side of the road". "That's milkweed", I told him. "No it isn't-this is some fine, home grown stuff!"

Don't know if he tried to smoke it, though....

 

[braumeister]

 

[street]

LOL