El Dorado Insider Fall 2021 - 30

THE FIRST STEP TO ATTRACTING
MONARCHS IS TO PLANT LOTS OF
THE NECTAR-RICH PLANTS THEY
LIKE TO FEED ON SUCH AS
CONEFLOWER, BUTTERFLY BUSH,
SALVIA, AND PORTERWEED.
planting milkweed for the monarch caterpillars. Jackson watches
each summer - usually starting in early August - for signs of
butterflies in her nectar-filled garden. Once she spies them, or
has friends report sightings in their yards, she begins to look for
eggs which they lay on the underside of milkweed leaves. Kerry
carefully cuts the branches and brings them in to her tanks where
constant care ensues.
" It's a very intensive job, " says Jackson. " It's like living with
newborns who eat 24/7. "
Last year, Jackson tagged and released 200 butterflies.
The larva eat constantly and create quite a mess in the tanks.
" I've had many middle of the night trips to the yard to cut more
milkweed for them to eat, " she says. The whole process from larva
to pupa is about 10-14 days and there is no rest for the caregiver.
She says her house becomes filled with tanks and it's an exhausting,
yet rewarding effort. She remembers one year when she
needed to visit her daughter in Texas during butterfly season. Her
only option was to load up all the tanks and take them with her.
She has passed on her love for monarchs to her children, so her
daughter had milkweed on hand to feed them when they arrived.
Once a monarch emerges from the chrysalis, she tags it - with
a little sticker on the wing. The real joy comes though when she
releases the monarchs to continue on their journey. Her grandchildren
and untold numbers of students she has taught over the
years always love getting to release the butterflies - usually with
squeals of delight. " I love that the kids get so excited, " she says.
Jackson has seen the number of monarchs decrease in the years
she has been involved, due mainly to habitat loss. She loves sharing
her knowledge and passion with others, though she realizes
that most people will not go to the lengths she does. She says everyone
can plant milkweed and nectar-rich plants in their yards to
help the monarchs along their annual journey to and from Mexico
and she is always happy to share seeds with friends and neighbors.
She notes that all varieties of milkweed will grow here, but that
tropical milkweed is the monarchs' favorite.
" It's important to be good stewards of what the good Lord
blessed us with, " she says. I think the more you know about it, the
more it makes you interested and want to do it. "
To learn more about this fascinating process, Jackson recommends
the website monarchwatch.org for anything and everything
monarch you want to know.
Jackson teaches children
about monarch butterflies.
30 El Dorado Insider
In the meantime, keep an eye out for these beautiful travelers
who will be passing through any time now, and let's plant some
milkweed to help them along their way! p
http://www.monarchwatch.org
El Dorado Insider Fall 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of El Dorado Insider Fall 2021
