Monarch Life Cycle

Ever wonder how to raise a butterfly? Carolyn Minson was on a mission - raising Monarch butterflies. She raised and released about 100 butterflies in one summer. It all starts with finding milkweed plants that have eggs on them and then protecting the eggs and eventual caterpillars from the wide variety of potential predators. These pictures, photographed over a month-long period, document the stages from tiny pinhead size egg to full splendor adult.

Photos thanks to Vic and Sharon Prislipsky

Everybody Loves Butterflies

I have had a lot of success attracting pollinators with Cone Flowers, Salvia, Speedwell (Veronica), Guara, Prairie Blazing Star, and of course Lantana. I would like to emphasize that while many cultivars also attract pollinators, they have less nectar, and the pollinators do not get as much nutrition from them. Also, we should not "clean up" our gardens in the fall as many pollinators may be overwintering in our garden debris. - Sharon Prislipsky