The Monarch That Came from Mexico

In 2014, a tagged Monarch butterfly visited the Pocket Pollinator Meadow at 15 Hillside Road. The tag was traced back to its overwintering site in the mountains of central Mexico. It had traveled over 2,000 miles to find our garden.

I don't say that to be dramatic. I say it because I want you to understand the scale of what we're participating in when we plant native milkweed and nectar plants in our suburban backyards. The Monarch migration is one of the great natural phenomena of the Eastern United States — a 3,000-mile round trip undertaken by an insect that weighs less than a paperclip. And it depends entirely on the availability of Asclepias — milkweed — along the migratory corridor.

We had planted Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) and Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa) in the meadow. The Swamp Milkweed is the one I recommend most for average to moist garden soils in the mid-Atlantic — it's reliable, it spreads slowly, and the pink flower clusters are irresistible to Monarchs from late July through September. The Butterfly Weed is showier — that intense orange — and it prefers drier, well-drained soils.

When the tagged butterfly arrived, it was fueling up. Building the fat reserves it would need to make it back to Mexico. Our 750 square feet of native planting was a rest stop on a 2,000-mile journey.

By 2014, the meadow had achieved certified Monarch Waystation status through Monarch Watch. That certification means the planting meets the minimum requirements for Monarch breeding and migration habitat — milkweed for larvae, nectar plants for adults, and a commitment to pesticide-free management.

If you want to do one thing for Monarchs this season: plant Asclepias incarnata. Put it somewhere moist, give it full sun, and leave it alone. The Monarchs will find it. They found ours from Mexico.