If You Plant It They Will Come: Monarchs in Portland

Monarch butterflies are something you don't see very often in Portland. Until recently, I thought they just did not travel this far north. But, in an effort to help preserve their dwindling habitat, I planted common milkweed (Asclepias speciosa) a couple of years ago as it is native to the area and is the host plant for monarchs, i.e., the only food that monarch caterpillars eat.

Photo: Janet Loughrey

I thought that at the very least: well, it's a pretty plant.

 It took three solid years before it actually did anything, but now it thrives in the hell strip, carefree and virtually zero maintenance.

 Seed pods from last fall.

 The flower buds are really stunning, as are the flowers when in bloom:

 Finally growing, it attracts all kinds of bees; they really enjoy this plant. That was all I expected from it when out of the blue last week I spotted this critter:

I positively identified him/her as a monarch caterpillar. WOW, were we happy! I couldn't believe it. There he was, all alone, munching away on the Asclepias speciosa leaves. Within a day, he got at least a half an inch larger. We had such great plans - at the advice of a friend of ours who lives in the Bay Area and at one time in his life raised monarchs, to watch him grow, form a chrysalis and eventually burst forth as a full-fledged monarch. We were considering bringing the chrysalis inside in a makeshift habitat to protect him. 

I contacted my friend and garden writer Janet Loughrey who writes for fine gardening magazines such as Garden Design, and who lives nearby. I had coincidentally just read an article she had written in Garden Design about the decline of monarchs and what we can do about it....I knew Janet would be as thrilled as we were. She was thrilled, and so came out and took these fabulous photographs:

Photo: Janet Loughrey

Photo: Janet Loughrey

Photo: Janet Loughrey

We affectionately named him Mikey after our friend in the Bay Area. Just think of it - a monarch had to have visited the plant sometime earlier this spring, laid eggs and this one guy survived. That a monarch came this far north makes me wonder whether they were looking for milkweed and had to come this far to find it. I don't know, but I do know that growing up in Portland I never (that I know of) saw monarch butterflies, so, maybe. In any event, here was Mikey and we couldn't be prouder. 

But then, sadly, after the fourth day, he was gone. I suppose that a bird got him, I mean look at him! So colorful. Easy to spot. Nature took its course. 

This will not deter us, however. We are going to watch for them next year and if we spot any, we thought of putting netting over the whole plant. It's a lesson for us all, that yes, if you plant it and they need it, they will come. It also strikes me that, yes, after all this effort to create a safe, pesticide and herbicide-free habitat that it really does make a difference. It's worth it, even if Mikey the monarch caterpillar is not anywhere to be found. I know there are more Mikeys in the future. 

How can you attract monarchs and other beauties to your garden? There are many tips, here is a link for more detail. Plant milkweed, it's the only plant that they will lay eggs on and is the only plant the caterpillars eat. Plant nectar-producing plants such as echinacea, sunflower, aster, zinnia, sage and Indian blanket. Don't use pesticides, period. There are other ways. Have aphids? Spray them off with a hose or attract ladybugs. Have slugs? Beer. I go through an 18-pack of Pabst Blue Ribbon every month in the summer. I catch slugs the size of koi goldfish. Don't use herbicides. There are other ways. Want to kill off grass? Black plastic, cardboard, etc. Weeds in the cracks? Boiling water. There are a multitude of ideas I won't get into here, but trust me.

Monarchs are in decline, mainly due to habitat loss. Herbicides such as Roundup, whose active ingredient is the poison Glyphosate, are also part of the problem as it kills pollinator plants, and anything else it contacts. Safari, with the active ingredient dinotefuran, caused the death of 25,000 bumble bees in Wilsonville, Oregon last year. Similar pesticides are also partly to blame. 

Just sayin'.

Here's to Mikey, and more of his kind visiting our fair city hopefully next season.

UPDATE: Here's a link to a post by fellow blogger Amy Campion (The World's Best Gardening Blog) on how to grow your own milkweed from seed. Great post from March 16, 2015. 

Thank you for reading and until next week, happy gardening!