Attracting Monarch Butterflies

[john gault]

I want to plant some milkweed to watch monarchs lay eggs. I've been told that the non-native (I think Mexican milkweed) is best for attracting them. Is that true, or does it really matter? Also is Butterfly weed a form of milkweed and will monarchs lay eggs in that?

[rainbowgardener]

I'm not sure it really matters. Yes, butterfly weed (asclepias tuberosa) is a milkweed, sometimes called butterfly milkweed or orange milkweed. Butterflies will happily use it.

[john gault]

Milk weed must be a tough plant. I was looking as some yesterday and they were all covered, I mean COVERED, with aphids, but they looked alright, not dying or anything. Is that typical?

[rainbowgardener]

yeah, they have their own special bug, the milkweed beetle/ milkweed bug, that only lives on them:

[url=https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https://www.cirrusimage.com/Bugs/large_milkweed_bug_001.jpg&imgrefurl=https://www.cirrusimage.com/bugs_large_milkweed.htm&h=683&w=1024&sz=90&tbnid=ls2SHBKRA3wUPM:&tbnh=91&tbnw=136&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dmilkweed%2Bbeetle%2Bimage%26tbm%3Disch%26tbo%3Du&zoom=1&q=milkweed+beetle+image&docid=GbRoGpwueTmVuM&sa=X&ei=jm9pTsboNePnsQLx6cnDBg&ved=0CDQQ9QEwCA&dur=189]milkweed beetle[/url]

that eats the seeds and sometimes suck the juices. I've seen my milkweed pretty covered in these guys and showing no damage, (Perhaps the seed eating has something to do with why they haven't spread very fast, but they seem to have plenty of seeds left, blowing around.)

There's an interesting little symbiosis here. The milkweed plant is not eaten by very many things because it has toxic compounds in it, protecting it from a lot of leaf eaters. (Perhaps the aphids on yours are actually dying from the toxins?) Milkweed bugs are one of a small group of insects that have the ability to tolerate the toxic compounds in the milkweed plant. The milkweed bugs are able to concentrate in their bodies bad tasting compounds found in the sap of milkweed plants. This makes the bugs inedible to birds and other predators. So the bugs are very brightly colored to signal their inedibility, birds learn to recognize it.

Training the birds not to eat bright orange and black insects, means that they tend not to eat other orange and black insects, such as the Monarch and Viceroy butterflies. So by hanging around milkweed plants where the birds have learned not to eat black and orange insects, the Monarchs gain some protection. The milkweed bug gains protection from predators from the toxins in the milkweed plant. It seems like the milkweed plant must be gaining something from all this too, but I don't know what that is.

But to get back to the original question, yes milkweed is very tough. You can find it growing by roadsides...

[john gault]

Milk weed must be a tough plant. I was looking as some yesterday and they were all covered, I mean COVERED, with aphids, but they looked alright, not dying or anything. Is that typical?

I ended up buying two butterfly weed plants, but today I went back to the above mentioned nursery to buy those aphid-covered milkweeds, but they were all gone...yes, all of them Must've been over 20 of them.

So I was looking around (wasn't going to leave empty handed) and I found these plants that the bees were going crazy over -- Blue Fortune Agastache -- really neat blue flowers, but what got me is the bee activity around these plants compared to all the others.

[rainbowgardener]

Yes, the agastache is one of my favorites, butterflies like it too.

The one you have is called giant hyssop. The one I have is called anise hyssop. I'm not quite sure if they are the same species or not, though both aagastaches. They are all in the mint family, but mine has a strong tinge of anise in the scent/taste. It is wonderful in herbal tea blends. Even if yours isn't as anise-y, it will still be nice in tea. I just spread mine around the yard more this season - divided some of the older stuff.

Very hardy and easy care once established.

[applestar]

I'm in a rush right now, but if I forget, remind me -- I have seeds for Native common, swamp, butterfly weed/flower as well as Mexican silky and tropical (I think Australian or African) Oscar swan milkweeds that I can share if you like. In you area, I think you can plant them this fall/now and expect them to come up and establish themselves.

Search monarch butterfly under my name as author and you'll find my posts on the subject.

[john gault]

Milk weed must be a tough plant. I was looking as some yesterday and they were all covered, I mean COVERED, with aphids, but they looked alright, not dying or anything. Is that typical?

I ended up buying two butterfly weed plants, but today I went back to the above mentioned nursery to buy those aphid-covered milkweeds, but they were all gone...yes, all of them Must've been over 20 of them.

So I was looking around (wasn't going to leave empty handed) and I found these plants that the bees were going crazy over -- Blue Fortune Agastache -- really neat blue flowers, but what got me is the bee activity around these plants compared to all the others.

So today I was out in the garden and noticed this on one of my butterfly weeds:!:

[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Miscellaneous%20Yard%20Pics/017-2.jpg[/img]


And here is one of the Butterflies, which I see everyday

[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Miscellaneous%20Yard%20Pics/027.jpg[/img]

And here is one of the butterfly weeds going to seed

[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Miscellaneous%20Yard%20Pics/022-2.jpg[/img]

And this plant (Cosmos) is what I credit for attracting so many butterflies; they seem to like it more than the Butterfly Weed, but I guess the caterpillars don't

BTW, I'm in the process of making a super-variety flower garden for 2012
[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Miscellaneous%20Yard%20Pics/005-2.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Miscellaneous%20Yard%20Pics/003-2.jpg[/img]

[john gault]

I was in the garden today checking on various seedlings when I saw a monarch flying around to all my butterfly weeds laying eggs, so should have some more caterpillars soon.

BTW, still waiting for a butterfly to emerge from the cocoon.

I reorganized my photobucket, so I'll repost.

[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Monarch%20Butterfly/027.jpg[/img]


[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Monarch%20Butterfly/017-2.jpg[/img]


[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Monarch%20Butterfly/001-2.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Monarch%20Butterfly/007.jpg[/img]

[applestar]

Looking good! Your Monarch way station is off to a great start!
What you have there is a tropical milkweed Asclepias curassavica. They do love those. I imagine in your garden, they will be perennial and/or self seed.

Up here, they can't survive the winter and can't even reseed so I have to start them way early along with tomatoes or even earlier. I overwintered 4 plants last year inside and have two inside this year.

Out in the garden, I mostly have common and swamp milkweeds which the north migrating monarchs seem to favor, as well as a different kind of butterfly weed that the Monarchs are less interested in, though I do see them use it every so often. I also have honey vine milkweed and whorled milkweed.

How far away from the milkweed is the plant that the caterpillar attached itself and made the chrysalis on? Sometimes, they march off as much as 40 feet. ...and sometimes you'll find chrysalis hanging under the unlikeliest or most inconvenient places. It's possible to move them though.

Once they start to lay eggs and fly from your garden, it seems like the word gets around because I have seen many return visitors over the last several years. Good luck!

[john gault]

How far away from the milkweed is the plant that the caterpillar attached itself and made the chrysalis on? Sometimes, they march off as much as 40 feet. ...and sometimes you'll find chrysalis hanging under the unlikeliest or most inconvenient places. It's possible to move them though.

It's only about a foot away from where it was feeding, but of course that's by way of the butterfly Since he doesn't have his wings yet, he had further to travel, but still not far, probably a total of only about 6 feet.

I was wondering how often they do connect to the plant they feed on, but realized that the butterfly weed is not the best plant to latch onto, because the leaves readily fall off, much more so than other plants, so that would require them to attach to the stem, but not sure if they do that. But I don't see why they can't attach to it, because the butterfly weed does lean over at a good angle, unlike the Hibiscus, which has a very straight stem, so he must attach to the leaf....I don't know.

I was also wondering what would happen if the leaf did fall to the ground? Would he still have a chance? As it is he found the perfect leaf, this one is very strong.

[applestar]

Typically they make chrysalis AWAY from milkweed. not the least of their concerns is that voracious 5th instar Monarch caterpillars -- yes, their own sibs and cousins -- will not only eat every bit of the leaves and stems the chrysalis is hanging on, but they are not above eating the chrysalis itself as well.

They ae capable of eclosing from chrysalis lying on a surface and climbing up to dry their wings (although chances of the still crumpled and fragile wings getting snagged and being damaged becomes greater) but outdoors on the ground, any number of predators --insect, reptile, animal, and avian -- might try to nibble on it or step on it, or bacteria and fungus could infect it while it is lying on the moist ground as well.

They really need to try to attach where the attachment is sheltered from rain because although extremely secure when dry, the silk becomes soft when moistened and then the chrysalis can become detached and fall.

If you ever find a chrysalis in an inconvenient or unsafe location, you can spray or spritz some water on and around the black stem where it is attached, then grip that stem with a tweezer or needle nose pliers and ease the chrysalis off with a steady pull. A flat pad/sheet of silk will come off with it and you can either tape the chrysalis onto a better location or use a straigh pin to pin through using silk sheet, or tie a thread around the black stem and tie it onto a different surface.

[john gault]

I was in the garden today checking on various seedlings when I saw a monarch flying around to all my butterfly weeds laying eggs, so should have some more caterpillars soon.

These things are tiny! Very difficult to get a pic of on a windy day with my cheap camera. It's one time I really need a camera with manual focus, going to have to look into buying one.

[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Monarch%20Butterfly/056.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Monarch%20Butterfly/038.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Monarch%20Butterfly/026.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Monarch%20Butterfly/059.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Monarch%20Butterfly/052.jpg[/img]

[john gault]

I was in the garden today checking on various seedlings when I saw a monarch flying around to all my butterfly weeds laying eggs, so should have some more caterpillars soon.

BTW, still waiting for a butterfly to emerge from the cocoon.

I reorganized my photobucket, so I'll repost.

[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Monarch%20Butterfly/027.jpg[/img]


[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Monarch%20Butterfly/017-2.jpg[/img]


[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Monarch%20Butterfly/001-2.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Monarch%20Butterfly/007.jpg[/img]

And the circle is completed.....


[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Monarch%20Butterfly/012-1.jpg[/img]


[img]https://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m484/76gunner/Monarch%20Butterfly/007-1.jpg[/img]