1.

Plant Native Milkweed

Whether your garden is big or small, consider planting native milkweed in a pot on your porch, deck, yard or garden.

Why?

Milkweed is where Monarchs lay their eggs for the next generation.

Butterflies lays eggs in milkweed to produce the larvae that become tiny caterpillars. These tiny caterpillars have only one source of food – milkweed.

In addition to being their only source of food, milkweed contains toxins that are poisonous to potential predators.

Without a source of milkweed, a caterpillar doesn’t have the nourishment or the protection it needs to turn into a pupa or chrysalis, from which a butterfly will emerge in all its beauty.

Just as babies need milk in the earliest stage of life to survive, so tiny caterpillars need milkweed in order to become butterflies.

There are over 100 species of milkweed in North America. In the Pacific Northwest, Showy Milkweed and Narrow-Leafed Milkweed are both native varieties that Western Monarchs will love.

Also, talk to other gardeners and let them know about the importance of planting Milkweed.

2.

Create a Butterfly-Friendly Habitat

Here are some ways you can make a butterfly friendly habitat in your yard or garden:

Plant Nectar-Rich Flowers: It is important to have nectar-rich flowers in spring and late summer/fall to assure the adults have plenty of food to fuel their long migrations.

The flowers of Showy and Narrow-leafed Milkweed are excellent nectar sources in addition to being Monarch host plants.

Butterflies like blooms featuring clusters of tiny flowers like Ceanothus and lilac have or ones that have a central disk like daisies and asters

Whenever possible, choose plants native to your area. Nectar flowers native to the Pacific Northwest include: Common sunflower, coastal verbena, asters, larkspur, and Canada goldenrod.

Other flowers to look for include liatris, beebalm, yarrow, and zinnias.

Planting in groups of the same flower will be more enticing than dotting them throughout the garden.

Native shrubs include Ceanothus and Lewis's mock orange.

Always choose organically grown plants free from pesticides and herbicides.

Add a dark, flat warming stone to your yard or garden. Butterflies are cold-blooded. A flat stone gives Monarchs a place to rest, gather, and warm their wings so they can fly.

Create a “puddling” place. A bit of wet sand and mud/garden soil with water allows them to drink water and gather needed minerals.

Local garden stores and nurseries provide plants, information and other resources to help Western Monarchs. Check them out!

For even more helpful tips on designing your habitat, check out this post on Portland Monarchs Facebook group!

3.

Help Us to Create a Monarch Corridor

Western Monarchs migrate twice a year – once in the spring, then again in the fall down the West coast from Canada, through Washington and Oregon and into central California coastline.

We want to create a Monarch Corridor along their migration route.

By planting milkweed and other butterfly-friendly plants, we can help sustain Monarchs on their annual migrations.

The more gardeners, as well as scientists know about where Western Monarchs are found, the more we can help to sustain them on their long annual migration.

You can help us to create a monarch corridor to track Western Monarch migration patterns.

How?

Send us an email and let us know if you’ve seen Western Monarch butterflies in your yard, approximately where you are and the time of year you saw them.

We will use this to create a map of Western Monarch migration patterns to build awareness about Western monarchs and habitats to sustain them all along this corridor.

For more information about the Western Monarch butterflies visit the following websites: