plant milkweed

these are milkweed seed pods.

i love these. when they float around the yard, they remind me of little fairies.

i planted milkweed. lots of milkweed.

from when the caterpillars hatch to full grown, each one will need at least 20 leaves.

i bought a few plants from the local nursery, started some from seed, and some from cuttings.

milkweed is self propagating. you can cut 4" stems off an established plant, place it in water - and once it has roots, plant it in your garden.

caution with milkweed: when cutting a growing plant, the white "milk" sap of the plant contains components that can irritate the skin and eyes. the sap is like the juice of a hot pepper that can create a slow burning sensation. wash your hands well if you get some on you. do not eat milkweed. it tastes horrible and consumption of even a small amount is a purgative (makes you vomit). the plants also contains varied amounts of a Cardenolide glycosides which can be harmful and cause cardiac arrest if ingested in large amounts. this horrible taste is the major defense of the monarch against predators.

emmet

this is emmet. i kept seeing this butterfly in my yard. when i looked at him closer i realized his wing was broken and he couldn't fly. i brought him into the house where he had his spot on my window sill with my house plants, and i would bring him many flowers.

i never realized that a butterfly would have a personality... but he did. he didn't like certain flowers. if i didn't bring the white flowers he liked - he would get grumpy.

every morning i would put him out in the yard to enjoy the sunshine, and at the end of the day, bring him inside. one day i put him outside - and when i went to get him that night - he was gone.

but this story actually started seven months earlier...

i was doing some gardening and i noticed this weed that had popped up. i was going to pull it - but i heard a voice that said 'leave it there - let it grow'.

it grew... and grew. i watched it. it bloomed. i could then identify it as Asclepias curassavica - Milkweed.

turns out milkweed is the only plant monarch butterflies will lay their eggs on. when they hatch, the caterpillars will only eat milkweed leaves because it has certain nutrients that allow it to grow and transform into a butterfly. milkweed has sap that is non-toxic to the caterpillar - but toxic to potential predators - so predators learn that if they eat the caterpillar it will make them sick.

emmet hanging out in the window